This is a great time of year because practically everyone’s anticipating a fun break from work or just returned from one.  For me, Spring Break marked the arrival of two long awaited events: getting my youngest daughter on the ski slopes and launching the new version of my website.

I love snow skiing and try to hit the slopes as often as I can.  Of course it’s more fun if I can get the kids to join me.  I’ve struck out several times with my youngest because she’s apparently got a healthier sense of danger than the rest of us.  Last week Zoey finally threw caution to the wind and slid down a big icy mountain at high speed.  She totally loved it!  Although it’s clear from her face in this picture, she kept a little caution in reserve.

As for myself, I’m trying out a whole new website.  So the jury is out, I’d love to have you weigh in on the verdict.  – Michael

This was written by Ed Greenberg today regarding the death of photographer and industry advocate Paula Lerner. She was an amazing friend and colleague. If you have not seen her Emmy award winning multimedia piece, Behind the Veil, you should. She will be missed…

It is with unspeakable sadness that we inform you of the untimely death of a great lady, Paula Lerner.  Paula possessed the all too rare qualities of both bravery and courage well before the insidious cancer ever invaded her body.

While most of us are content with the safety of our daily lives, Paula was busy risking her life to bring home the intimate stories of the brave women in war-torn Afghanistan.  Dodging bombs and bullets on five journeys, Paula created the finest collection of photography ever created in or about Afghanistan. Paula won a richly deserved Emmy Award for her work as a photojournalist on “Behind the Veil” an in depth multimedia feature in 2010 which also captured an EPPY Award for Best Web Feature.

As fellow photographer and long time friend commercial photographer Michael Grecco said well,  ”Paula was fearless in the pursuit of the things she believed in, whether it was to fight for photographer’s rights, as the first Vice President of Editorial Photographers, or when traveling to the war zone to use her lens and multimedia skills to expose the plight of the women of Afghanistan. I was thrilled when she won an Emmy for her hard work. She was a dear friend and will be missed.”

Those of us who create prose rather than images, know all to well that there is simply no “appropriate” space limitations when extolling the virtues of Paula, whether referencing her work or her character.  The fact that both her images and life story will become part of the curriculum at The Harvard Women’s Studies program, is testament to an extraordinary life that precious few of us will ever even approach in magnitude.  Her images will continue to speak to us and that makes her great photographer.  Her character, charity, kindness, curiosity, tenaciousness and bravery made her a great person. Her family, friends, colleagues and clients know that her kind won’t pass this way again.

Paula Lerner is survived by her husband Thomas, and two daughters, Maia and Eliana. Lerner’s last book is now available for purchase on Blurb: www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/3024840

The memorial service for Lerner will be held on Friday, March 9, 2012 at 10 a.m. at Beth El Temple Center, at 2 Concord Avenue, Belmont, MA 02478. The photographer requested that donations be made to the Business Council for Peace or to Metavivo.

Links to work by Paula Lerner:

www.lernerphoto.com

www.linktv.org/viewchangefilmcontest/filmmakers/profile/32300

www.fotoevidence.com/interview-paula-lerner

www.digitaljournalist.org/issue0212/lerner.html

I went to this amazing opening at the MOCA / Pacific Design Center of the late Bill Claxton’s images of his wife/muse/model Peggy Moffit in the designs of 60?s genius Rudi Gernreich. It’s a must see if you like the photography and fashions from that period. The exhibition is entitled The Total Look and runs until May 20th.

The 23rd of January marked the beginning of the longest and most important holiday in the Chinese calendar, the New Year. In the spirit of this tradition, our family gathers and reunites with other families in our area who also adopted children from an orphanage in Shanghai. This year is exceptionally special because my daughter, Zoey and several of her “cousins” of the same age celebrate the sign of their birth year, the Dragon (see image below). The Year of the Dragon only occurs every 12th year and is thought to be the luckiest year in the Chinese Zodiac. Since the last Year of the Dragon brought Zoey into my life, I can hardly imagine the wonderfully lucky things 2012 will bring.

It seems that the Dragon wasted no time, striking with several multi-image campaigns for Botox that required large castings and custom built sets. I also shot Kathy Ireland for the cover of Forbes Magazine. The former super model is now quite the business mogul. Every photographer wants to shoot a super model, but I live to shoot the super model with a fabulous story to tell (see below).

Lastly, I’d like to brag about my oldest son, Dakota. He’s been putting his video game prowess to good use, adding some cash to his college fund. A few months ago, I threw him a challenge: convert my best-selling book, Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait to an eBook. Look on your iPad, Kindle or Nook and you’ll see that he did it!

If the eBook interests you, consider attending my Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait workshop in Hawaii next month. It’ll be a chance to put all of the business aside and reconnect with the art of photography.  -  Michael

Zoey, in red, celebrates the New Year

Kathy’s cover

I did it!  My Vespa experience in Paris was so great that I had to have one of my own.  Now I’m tooling around LA on my new vintage-style Vespa and my cool Ruby Helmet.  My kids used to request their goodbye hug a few blocks from school, now they’re holding on as tight as they can all the way to the front door for everyone to see.  I love that and, BONUS, it only costs me $3.89 a week for gas!

My friends from Hasselblad poked some friendly fun at my Vespa over dinner the other night so my crew and I decided show them how undeniably cool it really is. I’m sure you’ll agree…

Speaking of stylish ways to get around…  I shot some great stuff for Porsche recently.  These great shots were totally worth the hour we spent wading in the freezing cold water waiting for just the right shot.  This shot of the Cayenne S splashing through the stream in Sedona, AZ will be out in Porsche’s speed centric newsletter shortly.

I’m also proud to report that I was one of 11 photographers in a show on Capitol Hill called Recording Our History: Faces Behind the Camera. The show featured my shot of Johnny Cash, always a favorite of mine.  I’ve always been a fan and I’m still tickled thinking of how he introduced himself by extending his warm hand and saying “Hi Michael.  I’m Johnny Cash.” (just as he did on his weekly TV show)

On a parting note, I hope that you’ll wander over to my new “raves” page. I’d love to have a rave from you as well.

Take Care,

Michael

I had a little fun recently while working with commentator Andrew Breitbart on a concept for his new book, Righteous Indignation.  In the following images, we humorously illustrated his concept, the decline of the liberal media and speak to his ideology.  – Michael

This environmental portrait of a mechanics was shot relatively simply. I used one extra small chimera soft-box with a 30 º grid as a main a strobe, while blending and mixing the natural light in the environment.  - Michael