INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15889, 1, '2025-12-20 16:58:35', '2025-12-20 16:58:35', '', '_O3A1675', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1675', '', '', '2025-12-20 16:58:35', '2025-12-20 16:58:35', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15890, 1, '2025-12-20 17:02:14', '2025-12-20 17:02:14', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowinig-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:02:14', '2025-12-20 17:02:14', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15890', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15891, 1, '2025-12-20 17:02:28', '2025-12-20 17:02:28', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:02:28', '2025-12-20 17:02:28', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15891', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15892, 1, '2025-12-20 17:05:29', '2025-12-20 17:05:29', '', '_O3A1647', 'Renata on her sister\'s birthday', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1647', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:05:56', '2025-12-20 17:05:56', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1647.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15893, 1, '2025-12-20 17:12:06', '2025-12-20 17:12:06', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:12:06', '2025-12-20 17:12:06', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15893', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15894, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1743', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1743', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15895, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1747', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1747', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15896, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1703', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1703-3', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15897, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1639', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1639', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15898, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1609', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1609', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15899, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1650', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1650', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15900, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', '_O3A1661', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1661', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '2025-12-20 17:14:52', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15901, 1, '2025-12-20 17:14:53', '2025-12-20 17:14:53', '', '_O3A1662', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1662', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:14:53', '2025-12-20 17:14:53', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15902, 1, '2025-12-20 17:15:29', '2025-12-20 17:15:29', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:15:29', '2025-12-20 17:15:29', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15902', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15903, 1, '2025-12-20 17:20:30', '2025-12-20 17:20:30', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma teaching piano</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:20:30', '2025-12-20 17:20:30', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15903', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15904, 1, '2025-12-20 17:22:12', '2025-12-20 17:22:12', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma teaching piano</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:22:12', '2025-12-20 17:22:12', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15904', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15905, 1, '2025-12-20 17:23:02', '2025-12-20 17:23:02', '', '_O3A1756-Edit-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1756-edit-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:23:02', '2025-12-20 17:23:02', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15906, 1, '2025-12-20 17:23:32', '2025-12-20 17:23:32', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma teaching piano</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:23:32', '2025-12-20 17:23:32', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15906', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15907, 1, '2025-12-20 17:24:49', '2025-12-20 17:24:49', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma teaching piano</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:24:49', '2025-12-20 17:24:49', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15907', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15908, 1, '2025-12-20 17:25:48', '2025-12-20 17:25:48', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder of those few.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma teaching piano</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:25:48', '2025-12-20 17:25:48', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15908', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15909, 1, '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '', '_O3A1758-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1758-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1758-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15910, 1, '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '', '_O3A1769', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1769', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '2025-12-20 17:26:55', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1769.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15911, 1, '2025-12-20 17:27:53', '2025-12-20 17:27:53', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder of those few.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma teaching piano</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15909,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1758-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15909\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The kids in the tree</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15910,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1769-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15910\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The requisite goofy shot</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:27:53', '2025-12-20 17:27:53', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15911', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15912, 1, '2025-12-20 17:29:55', '2025-12-20 17:29:55', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder of those few.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Piano lesson</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15909,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1758-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15909\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The kids in the tree</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15910,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1769-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15910\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The requisite goofy shot</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:29:55', '2025-12-20 17:29:55', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15912', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15913, 1, '2025-12-20 17:31:54', '2025-12-20 17:31:54', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>or<em> obscuring </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder of those few.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Piano lesson</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15909,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1758-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15909\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The kids in the tree</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15910,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1769-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15910\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The requisite goofy shot</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:31:54', '2025-12-20 17:31:54', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15913', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15915, 1, '2025-12-20 17:49:58', '2025-12-20 17:49:58', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>or<em> obscuring </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. (Turner\'s title suggests that he thought the viewer needed help making sense of it.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder of those few.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Piano lesson</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15909,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1758-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15909\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The kids in the tree</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15910,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1769-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15910\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The requisite goofy shot</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:49:58', '2025-12-20 17:49:58', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15915', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15916, 1, '2025-12-20 17:51:02', '2025-12-20 17:51:02', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>My oldest daughter and her husband have ten children and live in a big house with a good number of windows. This makes natural-light photography of domestic scenes a joy. The Lensbaby Spark lens allows me to choose what I focus on, while blurring everything outside that circle, with specular highlights (natural, bright spots in the image) showing up as stars. (The Spark has a number of options for lens inserts. I have used the star one by force of habit more than anything. I\'m going to have to experiment with the other options.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Art is at least in part <em>abstraction </em>-- taking away what is extraneous or demoting the secondary (in the artist\'s vision), so that attention goes to what is important. Sometimes, art involves <em>complication </em>or<em> obscuring </em>-- teasing the viewing or hearing mind to find a pattern. The seeking of visual or dramatic intelligibility is itself satisfying. Impressionism is an example of this abstraction and complication in painting -- and photography. Here is a Turner that I photographed in Paris last summer, that draws the viewer in because it is deliberately obscure. (Turner\'s title suggests that he thought the viewer needed help making sense of it.)</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15880,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\",\"align\":\"center\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A9599-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15880\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">J. M. W. Turner, \"Landscape with a River and a Bay in the Distance\" </figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Black &amp; white photography takes away color. That, coupled with the Spark lens\'s ability to put part of the image out of focus, and increasing the contrast between light and dark in post-processing software, makes the subject stand out from the surroundings. The image has an immediacy or intensity that others, in color and in focus everywhere, generally lack. At the same time, the viewer needs the blurred parts of the image for social context and meaning.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15860,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1648-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15860\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata dressed up for St. Nicholas Day, and for the celebration of her sister\'s birthday.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15862,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1657-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15862\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata looking back, as my wife gives some piano instruction to Susannah.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15863,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1692-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15863\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Papa kisses Beatrice as her birthday party begins</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A house full of kids, even a big house, can be a pretty noisy place -- especially for old geezers! There is a lot of -- what do they call it? -- \"social interaction\" between the kids. These are home-schooled kids, who get together with other home-schoolers for some activities, so they are well \"socialized.\" The Spark lens is great for showing how the kids can withdraw occasionally from the group and <em>read.</em> Framing the image helps.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15865,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1649-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15865\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Kevin and Tintin</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15866,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1731-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15866\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah off on his own</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As children mature their personalities both emerge and mature. Very few are averse to having their pictures taken (though one in the family has been). The boys especially like to clown for the camera, and tell me, \"Take my picture, Grandpa!\"</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15869,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1711-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15869\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Isaiah against the window</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15870,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1714-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15870\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gideon pretending to punch the camera</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>There is a lot of care for one another in a big family. Older children, especially the girls, tend to the younger ones. Sexual differentiation could be argued about forever, but from what I have seen, boys tend to <em>protect</em> and <em>solve problems</em> for younger ones, while girls tend to <em>nurture</em> and <em>help them</em>. The tendencies should be seen as overlapping circles in a Venn diagram -- boys can be nurturing, to some extent, and girls can be protective, and so forth -- but I think this holds as a generalization.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15871,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1733-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15871\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Naomi and Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15872,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1734-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15872\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice sees Grandpa and the camera\'s big black eye</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15873,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1735-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15873\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom fixes Katie\'s hair, while Naomi looks on with Beatrice</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The Spark lens is great for putting the focus on people in conversation, either speaking or listening.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15878,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1663-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15878\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori in conversation</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15876,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1682-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15876\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra and Lydia</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15877,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1701-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15877\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lori with Katie and Gideon</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>A birthday party, and especially the opening of gifts and the presentation of the birthday cake, is a natural opportunity for photography. The Spark lens does what camera phones can\'t, but so much depends on being in the right place at the right time.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15885,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1572-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15885\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Beatrice and mom</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15886,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1575-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15886\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Yes, that\'s Grandpa!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15888,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1670-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15888\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">First birthday candle</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15889,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1675-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15889\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">What\'s this all about?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15882,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1679-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15882\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Being initiated into the candle-blowing-out ritual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15883,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1708-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15883\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A happy baby</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15887,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1716-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15887\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And what\'s this?</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15884,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1723-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15884\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A doll of her own!</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Look at the last photo. St. Augustine observed (roughly) that we are to <em>love people</em> and <em>use things</em>, but that we tend in our weakness to <em>use people</em> and <em>love things</em>. With dolls, however, baby girls develop an attachment to a <em>thing </em>that will prepare them for their later love for their own children. Familial love is learned and fostered.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took a ton of photos in the few days I was at Linthicum, Maryland. Only a few of them did I turn into black &amp; whites. Here are the remainder of those few.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15898,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1609-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15898\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mom is concerned.</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15897,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1639-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15897\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata loves the camera and it\'s mutual</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15899,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1650-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15899\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Grandma is a born teacher</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15900,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1661-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15900\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Piano lesson</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15901,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1662-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15901\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Susannah</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15896,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1703-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15896\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Renata at the party</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15894,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1743-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15894\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Alexandra against the light</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15895,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1747-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15895\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Some of the kids waiting for the family photo</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15905,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1756-Edit-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15905\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The fam (with only one head substitution)</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15909,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1758-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15909\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The kids in the tree</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15910,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1769-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15910\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The requisite goofy shot</figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Beatrice\'s Birthday', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15858-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 17:51:02', '2025-12-20 17:51:02', '', 15858, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15916', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15917, 1, '2025-12-20 20:48:01', '2025-12-20 20:48:01', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I get the same \"dopamine hit\" when I capture a great composition of mountains, or a beautiful flower, and so forth.) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, her expression, and her clothing. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The third-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the mid-range tones of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software. The beauty is still there, but it is now somewhat <em>dramatic.</em></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took over 700 photos of Sheldon, and it was difficult to choose the best. Here are some that I haven\'t included above. Some show the use of a \"go-bo,\" or \"go-between,\" which broke the light up so that light and shadow fell over Sheldon\'s face and form in a pleasing way.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15967,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1799-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15967\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15956,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1860-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15956\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15957,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1827-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15957\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15963,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1832-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15963\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15954,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15954\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15966,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1850-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15966\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15959,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1857-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15959\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15955,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1920-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15955\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15971,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2057-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15971\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15964,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2069-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15964\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15962,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2076-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15962\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15972,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2114-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15972\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15975,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2164-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15975\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15961,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2488-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15961\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15968,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2280-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15968\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15969,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2284-Edit-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15969\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15960,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2303-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15960\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15965,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2317-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15965\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15980,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2207-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15980\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'sheldon-in-light-and-shadow-and-behind-glass', '', '', '2025-12-24 02:38:06', '2025-12-24 02:38:06', '', 0, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15917', 0, 'post', '', 0),
(15918, 1, '2025-12-20 18:19:46', '2025-12-20 18:19:46', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. I am not a technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera than what I have done before. </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:19:46', '2025-12-20 18:19:46', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15918', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15919, 1, '2025-12-20 18:26:28', '2025-12-20 18:26:28', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. I am not a technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight with anything more significant, for those who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a best of the bunch.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:26:28', '2025-12-20 18:26:28', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15919', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15920, 1, '2025-12-20 18:39:05', '2025-12-20 18:39:05', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful forces me to think of something different for each session. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Often the model does something unexpected and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:39:05', '2025-12-20 18:39:05', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15920', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15921, 1, '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '', '_O3A1839', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1839', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15922, 1, '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '', '_O3A2007', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2007-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '2025-12-20 18:43:18', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15923, 1, '2025-12-20 18:43:19', '2025-12-20 18:43:19', '', '_O3A1815', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1815', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:43:19', '2025-12-20 18:43:19', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15924, 1, '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '', '_O3A2394-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2394-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15925, 1, '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '', '_O3A1787', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1787', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15926, 1, '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '', '_O3A1805', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1805', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '2025-12-20 18:47:32', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15927, 1, '2025-12-20 18:48:26', '2025-12-20 18:48:26', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful forces me to think of something different for each session. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Often the model does something unexpected and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:48:26', '2025-12-20 18:48:26', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15927', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15928, 1, '2025-12-20 18:50:02', '2025-12-20 18:50:02', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful forces me to think of something different for each session. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Often the model does something unexpected and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon came up with this pose, and with the light it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:50:02', '2025-12-20 18:50:02', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15928', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15929, 1, '2025-12-20 18:51:03', '2025-12-20 18:51:03', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful forces me to think of something different for each session. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Often the model does something unexpected and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon came up with this pose on the fly, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). </p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 18:51:03', '2025-12-20 18:51:03', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15929', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15930, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '', '_O3A2201', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2201', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15931, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '', '_O3A2440', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2440', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '2025-12-20 19:04:43', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15932, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', '_O3A2283', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2283', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15933, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', '_O3A2449', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2449', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15934, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', '_O3A2481', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2481', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15935, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', '_O3A2175', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2175', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15936, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', '_O3A2326', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2326', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15937, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', '_O3A2371', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2371', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '2025-12-20 19:04:44', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15938, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '', '_O3A2459', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2459', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15939, 1, '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '', '_O3A2277', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2277', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '2025-12-20 19:04:45', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15940, 1, '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '', '_O3A2481', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2481-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15941, 1, '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '', '_O3A2482', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2482', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '2025-12-20 19:07:34', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15942, 1, '2025-12-20 19:17:00', '2025-12-20 19:17:00', '', '_O3A1925', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1925', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:17:00', '2025-12-20 19:17:00', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15943, 1, '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '', '_O3A2007-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2007-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15944, 1, '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '', '_O3A2121-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2121-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15945, 1, '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '', '_O3A2183', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2183', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '2025-12-20 19:17:01', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15946, 1, '2025-12-20 19:17:03', '2025-12-20 19:17:03', '', '_O3A2098-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2098-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:17:03', '2025-12-20 19:17:03', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15947, 1, '2025-12-20 19:57:25', '2025-12-20 19:57:25', '', '_O3A2119-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2119-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:57:25', '2025-12-20 19:57:25', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15948, 1, '2025-12-20 19:58:57', '2025-12-20 19:58:57', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, or her expression. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The second-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in the last image heightens the model\'s expression.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 19:58:57', '2025-12-20 19:58:57', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15948', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15949, 1, '2025-12-20 20:03:20', '2025-12-20 20:03:20', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, or her expression. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The second-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the skin of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:03:20', '2025-12-20 20:03:20', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15949', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15950, 1, '2025-12-20 20:05:57', '2025-12-20 20:05:57', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, or her expression. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The second-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the mid-range tones of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software. The beauty is still there, but it is now somewhat <em>dramatic.</em></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:05:57', '2025-12-20 20:05:57', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15950', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15951, 1, '2025-12-20 20:07:52', '2025-12-20 20:07:52', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, or her expression. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The third-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the mid-range tones of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software. The beauty is still there, but it is now somewhat <em>dramatic.</em></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:07:52', '2025-12-20 20:07:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15951', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15952, 1, '2025-12-20 20:09:24', '2025-12-20 20:09:24', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) ) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, or her expression. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The third-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the mid-range tones of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software. The beauty is still there, but it is now somewhat <em>dramatic.</em></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:09:24', '2025-12-20 20:09:24', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15952', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15953, 1, '2025-12-20 20:11:46', '2025-12-20 20:11:46', '', '_O3A1928', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1928', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:11:46', '2025-12-20 20:11:46', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1928.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15954, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', '_O3A1839', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1839-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-1.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15955, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', '_O3A1920', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1920-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1920.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15956, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', '_O3A1860-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1860-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1860-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15957, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', '_O3A1827', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1827', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '2025-12-20 20:16:50', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1827.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15958, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '', '_O3A1814', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1814-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1814.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15959, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '', '_O3A1857', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1857', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '2025-12-20 20:16:51', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1857.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15960, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A2303', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2303', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2303.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15961, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A2488', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2488', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2488.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15962, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A2076', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2076', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2076.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15963, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A1832', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1832-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1832.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15964, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A2069', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2069', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2069.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15965, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A2317', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2317', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2317.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15966, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A1850', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1850', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1850.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15967, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', '_O3A1799', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a1799', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '2025-12-20 20:16:52', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1799.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15968, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '', '_O3A2280', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2280', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2280.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15969, 1, '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '', '_O3A2284-Edit', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2284-edit', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '2025-12-20 20:16:53', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2284-Edit.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15970, 1, '2025-12-20 20:17:06', '2025-12-20 20:17:06', '', '_O3A2331', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2331', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:17:06', '2025-12-20 20:17:06', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2331.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15971, 1, '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', '_O3A2057', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2057', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2057.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15972, 1, '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', '_O3A2114', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2114', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2114.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15973, 1, '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', '_O3A2325', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2325-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2325.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15974, 1, '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', '_O3A2007', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2007-3', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-1.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(15975, 1, '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', '_O3A2164', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2164', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '2025-12-20 20:17:07', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2164.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0);
INSERT INTO `wp_f0awfstbfz_posts` (`ID`, `post_author`, `post_date`, `post_date_gmt`, `post_content`, `post_title`, `post_excerpt`, `post_status`, `comment_status`, `ping_status`, `post_password`, `post_name`, `to_ping`, `pinged`, `post_modified`, `post_modified_gmt`, `post_content_filtered`, `post_parent`, `guid`, `menu_order`, `post_type`, `post_mime_type`, `comment_count`) VALUES
(15976, 1, '2025-12-20 20:23:09', '2025-12-20 20:23:09', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) ) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, or her expression. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The third-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the mid-range tones of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software. The beauty is still there, but it is now somewhat <em>dramatic.</em></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took over 700 photos of Sheldon, and it was difficult to choose the best. Here are some that I haven\'t included above. Some show the use of a \"go-bo,\" or \"go-between,\" which broke the light up so that light and shadow fell over Sheldon\'s face and form in a pleasing way.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15967,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1799-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15967\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15956,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1860-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15956\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15957,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1827-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15957\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15963,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1832-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15963\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15954,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15954\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15966,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1850-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15966\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15959,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1857-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15959\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15955,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1920-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15955\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15971,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2057-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15971\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15964,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2069-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15964\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15962,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2076-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15962\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15972,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2114-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15972\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15975,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2164-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15975\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15968,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2280-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15968\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15969,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2284-Edit-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15969\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15960,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2303-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15960\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15965,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2317-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15965\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15973,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2325-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15973\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15970,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2331-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15970\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15961,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2488-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15961\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:23:09', '2025-12-20 20:23:09', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15976', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15977, 1, '2025-12-20 20:27:02', '2025-12-20 20:27:02', '<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>For me, the camera is a way of making art. The chief requirement of a visual artist is <em>imagination</em>. I am not a photographic technician, though I admire those who are. I bore very easily. After the first few shots of the same set-up, I want to know what <em>else </em>I can do with the camera, with the lighting, with props, with the subject (wardrobe, or pose). In the moment when I am photographing a pretty woman, it is a bit like \"love at first sight,\" a kind of intoxication with the capture of the image. I have the same experience when I <em>don\'t </em>have a camera, and just wish my eyes were a camera. (I love the beauty of many women. I know myself well enough not to mistake the visual delight in the moment with anything more significant, for those of my friends who get anxious with this kind of talk. :-) ) It is easy just to keep going for that moment of delight, and I often take several shots of the same pose, just to see if I can get a \"best of the bunch.\" Digital photography is so cheap that it is easy to just keep firing away.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is helpful to photograph the same pretty or beautiful young woman a number of times, because the impulse to create something beautiful with the same subject forces me to think of something different for each session. I come up with ideas in advance, often from what I have seen other photographers do, or from what I have done with other models before. When I am thinking, What do I do with this person in front of this light and this camera? I get an idea, which is a kind of imaginative \"pre-visualization\" of the shot. I take the shot, look at the back of the camera, and can see instantly what is good, and what could be better for the next shot. Sometimes I just tell the model to move and assume whatever pose crosses her mind,  and it works, or works well enough that with a tweak or two I can get something more pleasing.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15923,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1815-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15923\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15921,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15921\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15922,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15922\"/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sheldon\'s idea, and with the lights it <em>worked!</em></figcaption></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Photography is \"light-writing,\" and by implication a photograph requires at a minimum a dynamic range of tones -- even if it is very high-key (bright) or low-key (dark). As I say in my previous post, art involves <em>abstraction,</em> and to abstract something is to remove something from it. The middle photo below hides the lower part of Sheldon\'s face, thereby keeping attention on the upper part. With domestic photography (like my photos of my granddaughter\'s birthday party, in my previous post), you need visual or social context to understand the image. When you photograph a pretty or beautiful woman, you create mood with the light, her pose, her expression, and her clothing. Context is less important in the studio, unless you are using props or a set (furnishings).</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15925,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1787-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15925\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15926,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1805-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15926\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15924,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2394-Edit-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15924\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>It is no surprise that models sometimes become actresses, because they know how to imply mood: apart from the lighting, the eyes, the angle of the head, the set of the lips -- all contribute to the image. Are we seeing the person who is there, or a persona she presents for the camera? A good actress disappears into her character, so the question doesn\'t occur to one.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15935,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2175-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15935\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15930,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2201-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15930\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15939,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2277-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15939\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15932,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2283-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15932\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15936,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2326-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15936\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15937,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2371-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15937\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15931,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2440-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15931\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15933,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15933\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15938,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2459-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15938\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15940,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2481-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15940\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15941,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2482-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15941\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>Consider the last two images. What is the difference between them? The second was the original pose that I saw, but Sheldon dropped her shoulder, which is what you see in the first. But I saw in the original pose a defensiveness, a frailty that I found fetching, so I asked her to put her shoulder up again, and captured what I wanted. Which one do you like more, and why?</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>As I say in my previous blog post about my family in Linthicum, Maryland, black &amp; white abstracts from life, from what we see (unless we are completely colorblind). Some images just call out for a treatment of some kind -- black &amp; white, black &amp; white toned in some way (like sepia), or some combination of color and black &amp; white and the color original.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"imageCrop\":false,\"linkTo\":\"none\",\"lightbox\":true} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default has-lightbox\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15942,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1925-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15942\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15943,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2007-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15943\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15946,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2098-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15946\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15944,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2121-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15944\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15945,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2183-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15945\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15947,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2119-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15947\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>The third-last image is the original color one, overlaid in Photoshop with a black &amp; white version treated in Nik Silver Efex Pro with a medium sepia toning, at about 90% opacity. The sepia and border treatments are deliberate throwbacks to an earlier era. The star in the background looks like that found on military vehicles, which sets the image (imaginatively) in the 1940s. The treatment in Silver Efex in the last image heightens the model\'s expression. The simple beauty is downplayed by increased texture and detail in the mid-range tones of the face, for the sake of mood. There is a suggestion of sadness in the eyes, which is the creation of the post-processing software. The beauty is still there, but it is now somewhat <em>dramatic.</em></p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:paragraph -->\n<p>I took over 700 photos of Sheldon, and it was difficult to choose the best. Here are some that I haven\'t included above. Some show the use of a \"go-bo,\" or \"go-between,\" which broke the light up so that light and shadow fell over Sheldon\'s face and form in a pleasing way.</p>\n<!-- /wp:paragraph -->\n\n<!-- wp:gallery {\"linkTo\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped\"><!-- wp:image {\"id\":15967,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1799-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15967\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15956,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1860-Edit-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15956\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15957,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1827-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15957\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15963,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1832-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15963\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15954,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1839-1-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15954\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15966,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1850-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15966\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15959,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1857-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15959\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15955,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A1920-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15955\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15971,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2057-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15971\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15964,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2069-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15964\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15962,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2076-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15962\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15972,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2114-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15972\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15975,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2164-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15975\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15968,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2280-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15968\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15969,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2284-Edit-1024x684.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15969\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15960,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2303-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15960\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15965,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2317-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15965\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15973,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2325-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15973\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15970,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2331-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15970\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image -->\n\n<!-- wp:image {\"id\":15961,\"sizeSlug\":\"large\",\"linkDestination\":\"none\"} -->\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img src=\"https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2488-683x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-15961\"/></figure>\n<!-- /wp:image --></figure>\n<!-- /wp:gallery -->', 'Sheldon in Light and Shadow, and Behind Glass', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '15917-revision-v1', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:27:02', '2025-12-20 20:27:02', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/?p=15977', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(15978, 1, '2025-12-20 20:31:46', '2025-12-20 20:31:46', '', '_O3A2449', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'closed', '', '_o3a2449-2', '', '', '2025-12-20 20:31:46', '2025-12-20 20:31:46', '', 15917, 'https://christopherhumphreyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/O3A2449-1.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0);
