I met Sonya when she was a young dancer at Minnesota Dance Theater.
Sonya is one of the most beautiful women I have ever met, inside and out. She has a very free spirit and is very challenging at the same time. I was happy for her when she moved to L.A. but bittersweet about the end of our artist/model relationship.
We began our artist/model relationship in the waning days of film photography. Money was a little tight for me at that time and restricted how much we could shoot together. This was our first digital photo shoot. The experience was not much different from shooting film. However I felt freer to shoot as long as I felt was needed – no restrictions on counting rolls of film. I still lit my set as if I were shooting film using a hand held meter.
This image has the essential look from Sonya that inspires me so much. It’s restful, pensive and piercing all at the same time. She really knew how to deliver to me on set. A rare thing to find that in a subject. That is why she is one of my favorites.