Lost & Found: Early Inspiration
My first love, I must admit was not photography. As a teen my first true passion was gymnastics and at 15 I began working as an assistant coach and choreographer for a local team. It was all consuming, at the time I lived and breathed it. In turn, I was drawn to photography as a mere tool to capture the visuals that I was so captivated by. Eventually, the tool would become the passion. I found these two early images while going through a box my Mom had saved. I believe they were in my first portfolio which I used to apply to Art Center.
By shooting a subject I loved and shooting a lot, I began to look beyond the subject and became entranced by the process. So not unlike writing, in looking for subjects, it is good to focus on what you know. The gymnast in these was one of the girls I coached, Sheryl Fitt, then about 12 years old. She was one of the most gifted girls I ever worked with, both strong and flexible, with beautiful long legs and a ton of natural talent.
A couple of years later, I invited her up to my school to photograph her in one of the studios for a series I was shooting on teenagers. Working with a Hasselbald and tungsten lights which I find in retrospect, pretty amazing. Having a strong knowledge of the skills, made it easier for me to capture the peak moment on film. I scanned these from the actual finished project, a book, I printed by hand. It was a grueling process to print three images on one sheet of paper, which makes me appreciate the ease of Photoshop all the more.
all photos & content © Lara Rossignol
Thursday, October 21, 2010 at 5:00AM
Reader Comments (9)
Beautiful! Those last 3 are just gorgeous and I can see how your skills had grown in the short time. Love this post, love all the Lost & Founds!
Absolutely, incredibly, stunningly, spectacularly beautiful! I like them...
It seems somehow natural that you started out this way. Such a visually stunning sport. Love those last three pics, especially the first one, those hands are so striking and the lighting is beautiful, which is how I always think of your work.
These are wonderful, Lara. I only wish my early work was something worth showing people.. It's actually kind of bad in a funny way. :-)
Did you get the email I sent you on October 8th?
my first was ballet ... same strength coupled with amazing grace ... your images are beautiful ... thanks for sharing your lost and founds ... i really love them!
Hey Brooks,
I did. Just been so busy. I will check it out asap.
Lara
Beautiful!
Thanks for alerting me to your post. I enjoyed these lovely shots, and I can imagine how much painstaking work it must have been to print your own book!
I remember those days when you were starting out. First it was drawings of Bettie Beattle (and friends), and then quickly moved to film...you were such the shutterbug! Is that Malynn w/Sheryl in the first photo? I remember back in the day when you won a contest w/some pics you took of me; those were fun times!
Your work is amazing.
Teri
Thanks Teri!I do remember those photos of you, just don't know where they are. I think that is Malynn. I could not remember her name... do you know what happen to her? She was such a tiny thing.