Trumpeter/saxophonist, Jay Thomas was kind enough to collaborate with me on the third submission to the Leading Questions Project. Jay has an international following and is among the most significant figures on the Seattle scene. Equally at home on trumpet and saxophone, he is a true, lifelong student of jazz, always pushing himself to new levels. I chose Jay for this project, not only because of his stature on the Seattle jazz scene, but because he is known for his clever and quirky thought process. I think this is clearly seen in his interview responses.
My initial concept for this project was to photograph Jay with the I-5 ship canal bridge looming behind him. This struck me as a good choice for Jay as the bridge is a prominent feature spanning Seattle's Lake Union that also seems connected to Jay, at least in my mind, as he lives very close to it. For some reason, I've always put the two together. Additionally, I think I might subconsciously see a romantic relationship between jazz and bridges, probably a seed planted by Sonny Rollins' 1959 recording The Bridge.
Early fall in Seattle is generally a time of rich, red sunsets. When envisioning this portrait in my mind, I could see the red light of the setting sun, cast upon the bridge's steel structure. This was naturally dependent upon cooperation from the weather, the last thing you can really depend on in Seattle. After a number of rainy, overcast days, Monday the 22nd of September looked promising. I called Jay and arranged to meet him that evening, allowing plenty of time to set up before the red rays of sunlight would pass.
Jay played his horn as I got my equipment in place. I took a number of test shots and then informed Jay that we would just need to wait a few minutes for the sun to begin setting. It dawned on me that this would be a good time to load a roll of black and white film that I had put in my pocket on the way out the door. I shot through the roll, watching the sun gradually diminish. After a few minutes, it became clear that we weren't going to get the sunset I'd hoped for. I continued shooting, working with the digital camera as well as shooting a couple rolls of color film. This really was my only chance to get this shot and it became clear to me that it wasn't going to be the one I had envisioned. I kept shooting, hoping that something else from the session would work, but I wasn't feeling optimistic. I told Jay that we had probably gotten what we were going to get and called it a night.
When I got home, I went through the digital images and found a few that I liked, but didn't feel that any were quite what I was looking for. This image is one that I played with:
In fact, when post processing I was even able to add a bit of the red sunlight to the side of the bridge that I had hoped would be there. I wasn't crazy about the trees in the background and felt that in combination with the wide focal length, that the picture was pulling my eyes all over the place. It just didn't come together for me. So, I just hoped that the film would yield something better.When I picked up the processed film, I was pleasantly surprised, finding several images that really struck me as strong. The color images were nice as well, but the black and white frames had something special. Obviously, you can see above that I chose the close-up shot of Jay as the lead for the project. It is not the idea I went in with, obviously there's no red sunlight, there's no color for that matter, you probably wouldn't know that the structure behind him is a bridge. But in the end what really matters is that there is a strong connection between the viewer and the subject and I really feel it from this picture. It really communicates what I see in Jay, the person. The direct view into the eyes of a guy who is all about his music and the journey through life that he follows with his horn. That's Jay. And, he's really blowing here, not pretending. I don't think Jay would look right pretending to blow.
So, the lessons to drive home here are: don't be so married to your idea that you aren't willing to try something different on the fly (in fact try some different things even when your original idea is working) and don't call it a success or failure until you've seen the files and film. You never know what might be there. In the end I learned something new and important for myself, always put a roll of black and white in your pocket on your way out the door.
Here's an alternate image I considered:
Here's a link to the interview: Leading Questions
Here's a link to Jay's site: Jay Thomas
Technical info:
Featured and second alternate image shot with a Mamiya RZ67 w/110mm 2.8 lens at f/5.0 1/15th of a second, using Kodak Plus X 125 film rated at ISO 80.
Alternate color image shot with a Canon 5D w/EF 24-70 2.8L USM lens at ISO 100, f/6.3 1/10th of a second.
The lighting for all shots was provided by a four foot octabank with a White Lightning X3200 strobe, powered by a Vagabond II.
Triggered by Pocket Wizards
