Amelia Sturt-Dilley // Charlotte, NC
I’ve had an image of a man in a suit, holding a hat in his hand and gazing into the camera in my inspiration folder for quite some time now. If you guessed a Rodney Smith, then you guessed correctly and are a avid follower of this blog: congratulations!
This shoot was in a way an antitheses to a lot of this project, yet oddly enough, the same. On my way to Havana, Cuba, I had a 10 hour layover in Charlotte, NC. Normally my layovers are quick (about 3 hours if I’m daring enough to leave the airport for a shoot), so I was excited at the idea of not rushing a shoot.
Unfortunately for me, the night before I arrived Charlotte received 2 inches of snow, a marvel that rarely happens. Instead of the normal 50°F January weather, I was gifted a cool 25°F. Looking at the bright side, at least the sun was out. Come shoot time, which we delayed an hour in the hopes they the sun would melt some of the icy roads, there wasn’t anymore I wanted more than to rush the photo shoot and finish as quickly as possible. Amelia being a Colorado native was well suited for this weather, and didn’t complain a single time, a bonafide trooper.
I met my friend Alex a few months ago in California, ironically at the end of a Billy Graham month-long tour. I say ironically because North Carolina is gone to the Billy Graham library, and several roads near the airport are even named after him. He had mentioned to me that he would like to meet me for a shoot one day; although he’s an audio designer, he enjoys photography and became a fan of my ballet project after much convincing and bribing on my part. So when it just happened by coincidence that I had a layover in Charlotte, he was the first person I called - even before Amelia. He makes a great PA and chauffeur, if you’re ever in need for one.
For this photo, I asked Amelia to get into 6th position, and when she saw my iPhone proof, she asked if I would be willing to compromise and allow her to get into 4th position. I told her I’m really not a fan of crossed feet, but let’s try a test shot and see how it looks. And I’m glad I obliged her, because it ended up being better the way she suggested. What do you know - a ballerina knew better than me at what might look best, imagine that.
January 22, 2022
