James Knapp

The Leading Questions project is one I have thought about for some time. I'm really excited to see it come to fruition.

When selecting subjects I try to consider not only how I think they will interview but if I feel a strong concept for their portrait. My first subject, composer/trumpeter Jim Knapp, was an easy choice. I have known Jim since 1995. I performed in his jazz quintet for some time and have always been a great fan of his compositions and playing. Jim is also a very intelligent, witty person. He really enjoys language as can be seen by some of the clever titles he chooses for his compositions.

At the end of June, 2008, I contacted Jim regarding the Leading Questions project. Because of his wit, I thought Jim would be a great first subject. I had a feeling Jim would understand the concept without my really having to explain it to him, or provide examples that might steer Jim down a less intuitive path. I feel that Jim hit the nail on the head, providing a perfect first outing for the series.

After receiving Jim's completed interview, we scheduled a photo session. I really wanted to shoot Jim with black and white film and chose Ilford FP4+ to do so. We shot Jim's photo on the stage of Poncho Concert hall at the Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, where Jim is a professor. It had been a while since I had been to Poncho and I initially envisioned shooting Jim, sitting in a chair with the trappings of the stage behind him. I imagined curtain riggings and theatrical tools littering the background, but was disappointed to find that my memory of this stage was not accurate. It has none of the things I imagined. (Note to self, never trust your memory, always do a location scout in advance) I however, made due with the situation and instead decided to turn Jim around so that his back would face the seating of the hall.

I set my lights and did a few tests. Now, the tricky part of working with subjects not used to being photographed, is getting them to look relaxed and natural in front of the camera. There is a real art to this. When conceptualizing this shoot, I knew that I wanted to get a shot of Jim laughing. Jim tends to be a fairly quiet, low-key person, who will surprise you with a sudden outburst of laughter when something strikes him as amusing. I wanted to catch this element.

During the session, Jim was his usual self, patiently waiting for me to set up my gear, engaging in a little bit of small talk. To get the image I wanted, I gave Jim a little bit of direction regarding how I wanted him to sit in the chair and then I casually started telling him jokes. (Now, I didn't just go straight into a comedy routine, I tried to keep our conversation natural, but just happened to have a few jokes to share.) I lift my head from behind the camera so that I could directly engage him but kept my finger on the shutter release waiting for the perfect moment to fire. I must admit that I had trouble telling jokes fluidly as I was trying to watch Jim closely while operating the camera at the same time. In the end, I got several images of Jim that I really like and decided to go with the shot above as it really typified what I wanted to communicate about Jim Knapp.

Here are a couple of shots that I considered as well:



Thanks to Jim for his cooperation.

Here is a link to Jim's interview, hosted by SeattleJazzScene.com

www.seattlejazzscene.com/?p=733

This is Jim's site:

www.jimknapporchestra.com/


Technical Info:

Ilford fp4+ shot with a Mamiya RZ67. 110mm @ f/5 1/400th second
White Lightning X1600 through 4' octabox as key. Alien Bees B800 through 4' strip light to rear and camera right. B800 shot into hall in background.

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