Today’s spotlight is on Stacie Turner, of Stacie Turner Photography out of West Hartford, CT.

stacie turner
(Image of Stacie is copyright Rich Demanowski)

You can visit her on the web at www.stacieturnerphotography.com and check out her facebook here!

stacie turner

About the image…
1. Why do you love this image?
I love the beach and the ocean. I grew up on the water in Maine and whenever I am inland, and I do live inland, I miss the smell of the salt air and the sound of the water. I took this the last day of vacation on the water – in Florida, not Maine – one year and I see that sense of “I don’t want to leave this and go back inland” that I feel when I leave the water in this shot.

2. What were your settings?
This was shot using a holga and tri-x 400 film. A holga is a plastic toy camera known for its quirky focus, lens distortion and heavy vignetting. This image is almost wholly unedited other than some burning on the rocks – what you see is what came out of the camera. Best guess settings for holgas are a shutter speed of roughly 1/100 and an aperture of somewhere around f/8 or f/11.

About Photography…
3. What brought you to photography?
I grew up around photography. There was a darkroom in my house as a kid and bottles of chemicals on the kitchen counters. Of course, I mostly disdained photography as something parental type people did. I had started to shoot a 35mm film SLR before my children were born but really got back into photography when my daughter dropped my little digital point and shoot and I got a “good” DSLR so I could take “good” pictures. You can stop laughing now.

4. What type of Photography do you specialize in and why?
I specialize in medium format film photography, primarily of children. I do use digital, especially for my own kids, but I am phasing that out and plan to be fully film in 2012. I am in the midst of revamping my web site to better reflect that which is about as much fun as you can imagine. In 2012 I am planning to significantly reduce the number of clients I accept and focus instead on my fine art work.
Why. Hmm. Now that’s a harder question. Some of it is aesthetics. I simply consistently like the work I do on medium format better. Some of it is perversity; why use a nice modern camera that makes life reasonably easy when I can use a piece of plastic junk that has a very high failure rate or a lumbering beast older than I am? Why shoot a camera where there is no increased incidental shot cost – 100 shots, 500 shots, doesn’t matter – when you can shoot a camera and head a little voice in your head go “that was $1″ every time you take a shot. Some of it is market calculation. The children’s portrait market is very saturated and there aren’t a lot of people who shoot film and even fewer who shoot medium format. It takes you right out of the “but my sister’s friend’s cousin will give me 3,000 images on a disk for $50″ universe. Not a tremendously large number of people know or value the difference but those that do are a delight to work with. And then, of course, I’m back to the aesthetics.

And your life outside of photography…
5. Outside of photography, what are your interests/hobbies?
I have 5-year-old twins. Between that and photography who has time for hobbies?
OK. I read. A lot. And I make my own pickles and jams and jellies.

6. Who or what inspires you?
Photographically I flit from inspiration to inspiration but ever since I found her work I have been enchanted by Deborah Parkin.

7. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, doing anything at all, where would you be, what would you be doing, and why?
I’d be wandering about the coast of Maine with an un attractive pack around my waist with a holga or two, a bunch of film, and gourmet snacks. Photo walks should include good cheese, wine and cured meats, right?

9. Can you tell me some quirky or little known fact about yourself?
I have a sourdough starter named George in my refrigerator.

10. If you weren’t a photographer, what other profession would you pursue?
I was a Latin teacher before I had kids. Amo, amas amat.