Candid shot of young girl totally absorbed looking at the fish swimming in the pond at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's Japanese Garden.  

 A real "church lady," in charge of the annual strawberry festival at the Zion Episcopal Church in Queens, NYC. A wonderful indefatigable character.

 I do not use telephoto lenses when shooting people. I get close and personal and do not spy on my subjects. What I love are the reactions that people have or how they pose. It very telling. When I ask, most of the time people agree to be photographed. If they do not, I walk away respecting their privacy.

 This is the wife of my super handyman in Sicily who can repair practically anything. He and his wife live in the country in a section of the territory of Castellammare del Golfo called Pilato.

 This wonderful lady was actually visiting her mother at a nursing home (my client) where they were having a hat and fashion show. I was doing publicity shots. I just love this image that was originally shot on Fujcolor 400 negative film and scanned from a 6X6 print. Before digital, my costumers wanted prints mostly. 

 A cute smiling face to brighten your day.

 Shot in Tangiers many years ago with a Leica M-$. and the 50 mm F @ Summicron on Kodachrome II.

 A candid portrait shot with a digicam and converted to black and white with Photoshop. 

 Another shot of cousin Grace from Washington DC A real character. Shot with my first Leica, an M4 with the 50mm Summicron F 2. Naturally, the film was Tri-X.

 

    COUSIN GRACE. This wonderful woman was my father in law's cousin who lived in Washington DC or as she called it, the District. I shot this image with my first Leics, the M-4 and the Summicron 50 mm F 2 loaded with good old Tri-X. I just love this image and the look on her face. A real character.

A truly beautiful woman

This is was the mother of a friend of mine. We passed by and being lunch time and because she was Italian, we naturally had to eat. What superb lunch what great hospitality. Truly unforgettable. I used my Leica M-4 and Tri-X Pan, what else.

Dignity

A photographer has the duty to preserve a subject dignity. Anything else is cheap and totally unprofessional. No long telephoto shots of people picking their noses as an example. This image was made with that classic portrait lens a Nikkor 105 F 2.5 mounted on a Nikon FTn with good old Tri-X Pan.

Sometimes you nail it

This is one of my best attempts. It was shot on Fuji 400 color negative film and the event was a graduation ceremony of sorts in a senior center of one of my clients. Everything works in this image and I love it.

Candids of a wonderful woman

This delightful woman was the mother of a close friend. We went to see her one day and naturally, being Italian, from the Puglia region, we had to have lunch. It's amazing how Italians manage to feed all who drop by. The lunch was delicious and while she was waiting for the food to be ready she would stand outside the door to the kitchen and speak to us. I took out my Leica M2 that I always carried with me and started taking these candid shots. This was back in the eighties and I'm glad I found these negatives.

Moods

The ability to capture moods is one of photography's most important qualities. Naturally one must shoot candids to fully appreciate this feature.

Mamma at 95

This is a recent photo I took of my mother who is 95 and still independent. It was made with an iPhone 6S.

Classic candid portrait

The simpler the better is my motto when I shoot. This is especially true when shooting people. Here the flash was bounced about three quarters of the way. Simple but not simpler than it has to be to do the job.