Lise also made it clear to me that despite her limited
amount of time, she fully expected to have a book built within
nine months. Her determination was obvious and her timeline
reasonable. Timelines are built around the number of shoots
needed, the photographer’s life beyond the book build, and a
bit of luck. Luck was not with us as we began.
Lise builds her photographs around people. She finds
interesting subjects and develops stories around them.
Locations are key to her process. Clearly, weather and the
availability of models are issues for any lifestyle shooter. On
this project, location, weather, and models were all major
factors, and in the beginning, few were coming together.
Models were unavailable, and for weeks the weather was not
cooperating.
After much discussion and many rescheduled shoots, models
were found, the weather cleared, and we finally got on a roll.
Shortly after we started to make real progress, Lise’s family
commitments grew as her mother’s health began to decline. Her
opportunities to shoot became more limited. To add to the
challenges Lise was facing, she and her agent called it quits.
While I fully expected her to take a hiatus from shooting, the
portfolio build continued. Lise and I developed new shot ideas.
We continually changed shooting dates as needed, working
around school vacations and doctor visits. The portfolio build
proceeded very, very slowly but steadily. Lise persevered and new
portfolio shoots resulted in stunning imagery.
As the months went by and the seasons changed, we
completed the shooting stage of Lise’s book. The images were
gorgeous and the book had a very clear and consistent message.
We were now ready to begin the process of building the hous-
ing for Lise’s book.
Anyone who has ever built a portfolio with a book builder
knows that the process involves choosing the size for the
finished portfolio, testing paper, and choosing the materials for
the outside covering. The process of choosing materials usually
takes a month or so. But Lise’s choices of fabrics were not work-
ing, and she repeatedly needed to review options and choose
new coverings. Her original due date had long since passed.
Often frustrated, she continued on, not satisfied to settle on
choices that simply did not fit.PART5 / PERSISTENCEChapter 26.qxd 6/25/07 7:25 AM Page 164