004: Stan

Stan is my uncle. Well, not really, but kind of. Stan is my wife’s aunt’s husband. His last name is also King, just like mine. Stan and I have always had a great rapport, and this project afforded us some wonderful one-on-one time where we shared deep thoughts, profound pains, and intense support.

Originally from Chicago, Stan has lived in Vista for many years. He really likes that Vista is a safe and affordable place to live, and he appreciates the amenities that Vista offers.

I really loved the portrait session that I had with Stan, and it marks a change in process and stylistic choices for this project. My original intent was to photograph all the participants alone and against a white backdrop, but I have found that I wasn’t quite getting to where I wanted to be. I guess I’m just not Avedon or Platon, lol! I decided that moving forward, I would add more atmosphere to the backdrop, and allow the participants to bring something that was important to them.

For Stan, that meant bringing his cello, which he has been playing for about 50 years. The cello is such a beautiful instrument, and I was blessed with the sweet tones that Stan played while I was setting up for our shoot. The results of the session ended up being my favorite so far. I really think that we created some special images for this project, but also some others that, while they don’t quite fit the feel of this body of work, will certainly be added to my portfolio. One of them will be framed and put up on permanent display in the Palomar Photography Lab.