Lou Szoke - Hollywood Portraits: Hot-Light Techniques for Professional Photographers

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Copyright 2012 by Lou Szoke.

All photographs by the author unless otherwise noted.

All rights reserved.

Published by:

Amherst Media, Inc.

P.O. Box 586

Buffalo, N.Y. 14226

Fax: 716-874-4508

www.AmherstMedia.com

Publisher: Craig Alesse

Senior Editor/Production Manager: Michelle Perkins

Assistant Editor: Barbara A. Lynch-Johnt

Editorial assistance provided by John S. Loder.

ISBN-13: 978-1-60895-305-9

Library of Congress Control Number: 2011904398

Printed in the United States of America.

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No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded or otherwise, without prior written consent from the publisher.

Notice of Disclaimer: The information contained in this book is based on the authors experience and opinions. The author and publisher will not be held liable for the use or misuse of the information in this book.

L ou Szoke started his photography business in 1980. He earned the Master Photographer designation in 1995 and Craftsman of Photography in 1996. He is the recipient of numerous awards, including Illinois Top 10 Photographer of the Year, which he won six years in a row, from 2001 to 2006; several Fuji Masterpiece awards; and Illinois Best Black & White Print award, which he received for five consecutive years. Lou was named Illinois Photographer of the Year in 2002. He has many National Loan prints and also has a photograph on rotational display at the Photography Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Lou has also been a featured speaker at numerous conventions and workshops throughout the United States and Canada.

He continues to this day to teach his advanced lighting techniques, and his love of photography continues to grow.

M any people have touched my life throughout the course of my photography career. Little did I know that some of my best and most beloved friends would come from those I met in photography groups. My comrades with cameras share an overwhelming desire for knowledge; any information they can use to create their next great portrait or art piece is always welcomed.

My wife of over thirty years, Theresa, has been my endless support system. She has kept me motivated and inspires me to keep on going. She is always the first to offer a kind word about the prints dropped in her lap to look at, even though Im sure there are some she doesnt like, and she probably cannot understand why I am so excited. I would not be the person I am today without her always-calm demeanor (well, almost always!) and inspiration. I have learned more from her than anyone can imagine. Working together for over thirty years would be impossible for most married couples, but it seems to work fine for us. (The words yes dear, you are right can make for a much happier life!) I want to thank you, Theresa, from the bottom of my heart, for all the love and support you have given me. It has made me the person and photographic artist I am today.

A special thank you goes out to my sister-in-law, Diana Esela, who dedicated many hours to help me put this book together. You are such a kind person!

To my mom and dad, I miss you both terribly. I wish you were still with us today. Nothing made me prouder than to show off my prints to the two of you.

Genetics is truly amazing. I believe I got my humor from my mother and my business and entrepreneurial fortitude from my dad. He was one of the strongest men, both physically and in regard to his determination, that I have ever known. He was and still is my hero. He also unknowingly taught me how to cuss. (Id best save elaborating on that for another book.)

To my two sons, Brad and Jaythank you for the countless hours spent posing, smiling, reposing, being serious, turning left, and turning right. Im sure you were bored to death many times over, but you helped me more than youll ever know, and I cant say thank you enough. I am a proud father. I love you both. I am so lucky to have the two of you. (Speaking of genetics, my sons seem to have inherited my artistic tendencies. They are both talented artists!)

I must also thank my sister, Pat. Anyone who knows us will tell you that we are like night and day in many ways, but we have a brother-sister bond that many people would be envious of. Thank you for your smile and contagious laugh. I swear, you can hear this woman for miles when she gets on a roll!

I cannot leave out Vonnie Kerber and Leigh Ann Kerber Hughes, two people whom I love dearly and who have always been there for me through the good and bad times. As life goes on, you learn that your true friends are always there for you when you need them the most. You have both proved that several times over. Thank you both for your love and support.

Getting to wake up and do what you love everyday is a great joy, but one of the fringe benefits is the wonderful people in the photographic community that I have had the privilege of meeting and sharing this journey with. Throughout the years of seminars, photo schools, PPA functions, etc., I have met some of the greatest photographers, artists, and visionaries in the industry. Thank you to Pat and Mary Anne Ricks, Larry Erickson, T. Michael Stanley, Maureen Powers, Pete Hybben, Gordon Underwood, Jackie Olson, Ron Lemerond, Tim Uphoff, and Bob Lloyd. To all of my great friends not listed here, forgive me.

Having friends who are great photographic artists and businesspeople has helped me to learn and explore my vision of what I am photographing. Many times I went on photo shoots with most or all of the above-mentioned people and was astounded to see that although we were all photographing the same basic image setup or person, each of us had a totally different final destination in mind for the final print. All of you mean so much to me in so many different ways. Thank you!

My journey began when I was very young. My infatuation with photography started when I picked up my first Kodak Instamatic 126 camera around the age of ten. I remember now how excited I was about shooting.

My infatuation with photography started when I picked up my first Kodak Instamatic 126 camera.

I am sure that, as a boy, I never wondered about the excitement. Now, when I look back, I understand it. When I looked through the viewfinder, I was able to express myself as I wished. There were no adults telling me what to do, how to shoot a photo, or when to snap the shutter. It was just me with the camera and film. It was a feeling of freedom and self-expression I had never felt before, and some forty years later, I still feel the same.

I remember popping in the 126 plastic film cartridges, looking through the small square viewfinder, and taking pictures of everything. I still have many of those images, and I enjoy them to this day. One of my favorites is a photo of my wonderful Grandma Fanale sitting in her favorite chair and smiling for her little Louie Joe (yes Louie Joe is what they called me). It is and will always be one of my most cherished photographs. My grandmother passed away many years ago, but that snapshot froze a moment in time. I can see her smile, her dress, her beautiful silver-gray hair pulled back into a bun as it always was, and her time-worn hands. Its all because of me, my camera, and an impromptu photo shoot.