I’ve known Kimberli Burns Cummings for decades. Her energy is ever-so-bubbly (sometimes to the point of hyperbole), and her take on things is extra positive. After spending 11 years in Los Angeles pursuing an acting career, she returned to her hometown of Tampa and fell in love with pottery.  She now sells it worldwide.

My thoughts for her portrait were about capturing the “Kimness” I grew to appreciate. Her mother was a local fashion illustrator for department stores, and Kim seems to have adopted her mother's sense of style and adapted her look. Kim always appears fashionable! So, I wanted to juxtapose her vogue look with the grit and mud of turning pottery. It worked.  On shoot day her hair was coiffed, and her stylish yellow dangling earrings were a wonderful contrast to her bright fuscia shirt.  Looking through her signature red-framed glasses, she got to work. Her sky-blue fingernails popped out of the gooey brown clay as she molded it into her next creation, and the resulting photos were stellar.

Technical Information- Gear: Canon EOS R5, Canon EF 16-35f/2.8L USM @24mm

Exposure: 1/200s @ f/6.3 ISO 640 Lighting: 2 studio flashes - 1 hair light reflected off the ceiling, 1 key light softbox behind camera.