Legends, projects and loss. Unfortunately, we have lost another Legend – Ed Pink. It is absolutely my great honor to be able to make portraits of these Legends and I am blessed to have the opportunity to make this series. When we lose one of the amazing humans that I have photographed it feels more personal than I expected. I can’t claim to know these Legends well or even to have spent more than 30 minutes or so with them personally but making portraits like these feels very intimate and I am eternally thankful that they are willing to share a very personal few minutes with me and my lens. Once I make these photographs I spend many hours editing to find the best moment and then balancing the blacks, whites and tones to make sure that the final image is a perfect as possible. I do hope that when they see these that they are proud and happy with the outcome. I see their faces on my screen for many, many hours and then for weeks and even months on my walls before I'm satisfied that they’re good enough to share with the world. I always try to make a final print and have them sign it in the hope of having a public exhibit honoring them someday.
The flip side is that when I hear that someone that has shared this moment with me is gone I feel the loss deeply, and when I see their portrait again it feels even more important and valuable–not in terms of money, but in terms of memory, history and what we have lost. Mr Pink was and is one of the Legends that has contributed and influenced so many and it is a great loss to the community with his passing. He was very kind during our session and every time every time I saw him after that. The last time I saw him was at the memorial for Alex Xydias and I said “It’s good to see you Mr. Pink!” He smiled and replied, “It’s good to be seen”. Well, Mr. Pink, you are seen and will continue to be seen as long as this portrait, this moment in time exists, and I was honored to share it with you. You are missed.
