For 3 ½ weeks starting on May 20, I worked with Gregory Heisler and Tamara Behar  reviewing 200 portfolios of this year’s graduating class at Hallmark Institute.  We looked at 5,600 prints, doing 10-12 public critiques each day. It was grueling, but remains one of my most favorite projects and can only be described as the most fun I don’t think I can do again!  

Perspectives on Review Time at The Hallmark Institute of Photography

The truth is, I learned more from Gregory over 23 days than almost any person I’ve ever worked with.  (Sorry Tamara, but I know you feel the same way!)  It’s all about seeing the world through Gregory Heisler’s eyes.  There’s a reason why he’s had over 70 covers of Time Magazine. It’s his attention to detail, lighting, composition and printing quality.  Some times he’d rearrange an entire portfolio,  putting images together in logical groupings and it would completely change the look of the student’s work. 

The highlight of the week was May 27th, when Gregory decided to capture a new portrait of me for my birthday.  Working with him in the studio became another new experience.    This would be no ordinary run-of-the-mill head shot. (shown below)  He photographed wide open with a Hasselblad H1 with the 100mm f2.2 lens.  A narrow vertical softbox with just the modeling light on was maybe 6 inches from my face and the camera maybe 18 inches away.  An assistant held in a black piece of card stock just to keep the flair off the lens. 

head shot

Here’s where you really start to understand why he’s the “Master”.   While he toned the original print for me and used a little Photoshop to lightly clean up some of my “personal challenges”, the image in terms of exposure and lighting looked this good right out of the can. 

I couldn’t help but think about the thousands of photographers who claim they spend more than 20 hours a week cleaning up their images because their foundation in Photoshop is stronger than their foundation in photography!  What would happen if they learned how to see the light and control it before they clicked the shutter?  What if they understood the click of the shutter better than the click of their mouse?

Gregory, thank you for your contribution in making Portfolio Review such an amazing experience!  Most important of all, your birthday present is now framed, hung on the wall and a fitting memory to being able to some day tell my grandchildren how I once worked with Gregory Heisler for a month!