Day 40 (Thurs., July 8)

I mentioned already that I will be missing the Al Dia work environment when I leave. I will definitely miss the staff, that's for sure. From Day 1, it has been so welcoming to me. I have to say that this group of people is great. Today was pretty slow, I was able to work on some behind-the-scenes on a project that I have been working on for a few weeks. The few photos that were snapped today were that of the Al Dia staff. I was shooting some studio portraits, which I do not get to do very often. I am learning a lot about photography out here, and my studio photography has improved a little. I am using some of my style and applying it to the new stuff I am learning. Like my studio photography approach. I have a little task that I follow when I shoot people in the studio. I have them stick their tongue out at me. I have learned that this method has been very effective in relaxing the subject. We have a laugh and that sets a great work environment. I believe that when you do such things you built great photographer-model relationships. The above photo is of staff member Alfredo Berrios, one of the editors at Al Dia. There's something about this Puerto Rican that I have yet to figure out. He is a great person. However, he is not all openly friendly as are all the other editors. He is the type of person that you wouldn't know if he is mad or happy when you walk by him in the hallway. He is very serious, but has a funny way at approaching things. For example, when I knew he was one of the members I would have to shoot, I figured he was going to be the hardest person to break down and would definitely not do it. To my amaze, I had no trouble in getting him to show his tongue for the camera. For the rest of the day, Berrios seemed a lot easier to approach. I know that from now on, we will have a better working relationship. I like having people stick their tongues at me. It makes my job easier and it helps the person remember me as a photographer.

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