Mimi Tompkins // Phoenix, AZ

The first of all the firsts. Roll #001, January 8, 2018. Almost exactly 4 years to the day. I had no idea what I was doing then, and truth be told, I still don’t have any idea now what I’m doing now. Why ballerinas trust me, I don’t know. I truly believe that the analogue medium that is the Hasselblad 500CM, combined with Ilford HP5 film was/is? enough of a novel marvel to this generation that ballerinas overlooked my untrained eye and gave me a shot. 

At least now I’ve proven enough of myself to continually con ballerinas into thinking I know what I’m doing. “Here’s a small body of photographic work - here’s this really cool moon camera - May I make your photograph?” This public confession isn’t meant to dissuade future ballerinas from working with me, just a confession of my awe in them trusting my lack of ballet-knowledge.

97.72% of all my shoots in this project have been ambient lighting. Before I knew that I might engage in this long-term project, I thought to experiment with ballerina #1 using off-camera lighting, switching my Pocketwizard radio triggers between my Nikon D4 and Hasselblad camera. Experiment I did, even making this double exposure. I had never made a double exposure before with my Hasselblad, and was intrigued with the novelty of the idea for a portrait. Although off-camera on-location lighting is my bread and butter, I’ve almost completely ditched it for finding good ambient light. *

Going back through my messages with Mimi, I see what a good sport she initially was. I even confessed to her that I would “start a new project: photograph one ballerina in each city that I travel to with my ‘brand new favorite camera of all time’”. That I had the audacity and gall to dream that big amazes me even now. As I was then, I am eternally grateful to Mimi for having trusted me. The Hasselblad turned into Hasselblad Ballet, and it would never have occurred without the good heart of people like Mimi. 

PSA: Cousin Tianah, I apologize that my promise to fly you around the world and be my lighting assistant never truly panned out.

January 8, 2018