Albert Watson. The Greatest Living Photographer Today

I had the opportunity and honor to work with Albert Watson when I was a model. For those who aspire to be photographers, Albert Watson is, to me, the greatest living photographer today.

Working with Albert was always a pleasure. His focus and professionalism was always contagious, and he engaged everyone on the shoot to attain his vision of what he wanted to see in camera. I guess what I love the most about Albert is his love for photography and how he loves to share stories and insights on taking pictures. As a model, I always knew that when I was being photographed by Albert, that those photos would be masterpieces. Some of them are on gallery walls and museums now. Everything I learned about photography was from Albert. He was my greatest teacher.

I was in Toronto last week to attend the opening of Albert Watson's Retrospective at the Izzy Gallery in Yorkville. I had booked my trip months ago and was looking forward to see Albert, his wife Liz and their son, Aaron. Hurricane Sandy put a dent in the original plan for the Watson's, so they ended up driving to Toronto from NYC. It was touch and go for the opening, but they managed to arrive in one piece and everything went as planned. I was so happy to see Albert after so many years and to have a picture of me on the wall of the gallery.

When one choses a career in life, we choose goals along the way. One of my big goals as a model was to work for Vogue and to be photographed by Albert Watson. That goal (and dream) came true many times as I worked with Albert on many occasions such as Italian Vogue, Blumarine, Stern, Macy's, Clairol, L'Oreal, to name a few and travelled to wonderful locations such as Scotland, Paris and an amazing road trip through Texas.

To see my photograph on the wall of a gallery as a limited edition is the greatest honor I have ever received as a model. But even better was to be praised in front of the whole photography community at a seminar in Toronto by Albert himself referring to me as one of the most professional and patient models he has ever worked with. That is priceless.

Albert Watson's Retrospective is on at the Izzy Gallery in Yorkville until December 27, 2012.

Time to Choose.

I came across this today as I was perusing my Facebook. It was written by my friend Paul Fisher. Paul is a model agent in Los Angeles and is the host of the reality show about model agencies called  "Remodeled". It is a good read. Enjoy.

Time to Choose: Social Responsibility and the Modeling Industry

We see it happening all over the world: huge multi-national corporations changing their practices – and their public image – in response to the pressure to become socially responsible. In the past decade, as environmental awareness has increased exponentially and anxiety about global warming has grown, major industrial companies have realized they have a choice: change their practices in response to the growing outcry, or cling to an outdated and destructive model. Airlines like Virgin Atlantic, energy companies like BP, auto manufacturers like Ford: all have chosen to make major changes in how they do business. They have chosen the path of responsibility, and are discovering that being good corporate citizens doesn’t mean forgoing profits or their responsibility to their shareholders.

The modeling industry, however, remains stuck in the past. Though some old agencies have folded and new players have emerged, the essential dynamic remains unchanged: beautiful, young – very young – girls are brought into a world which has little regard for their vulnerability, and little regard for the colossal impact that the images they produce have on women across the globe. Once considered an isolated and rare phenomenon, eating disorders and body dysmorphia (distorted self-image) are now a genuinely universal phenomenon, affecting girls as young as six and seven and causing incalculable social harm. For too long, the modeling and fashion industries have either ignored the problem, or paid lip service to “being part of the solution” without making any enduring and substantive effort to bring a sense of social responsibility to the business of beauty.

It’s time to choose. The choice is not between doing the right thing and making money. As other good corporate citizens have shown, a willingness to undergo an ethical makeover can enhance rather than diminish profits. The choice is between remaining stuck in a business model that is unsustainable and destructive or embracing a new and responsible way of discerning, cultivating, and marketing beauty to the world. The Network has the vision, the program, and the tools to help modeling agencies and those whom they serve to transform an industry, to transform lives, and to transform our world.

It’s time to choose.