TCF Ep. 479 - Ken Merfeld

Ken Merfeld owns and operates a commercial / fine art photography studio where he photographs fashion, advertising, portrait, and celebrity assignments.  His work has appeared in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Mademoiselle, Angelino, Zoom, Black and White, and Los Angeles magazines. Prior to his work in the world of Wet-Plate Collodion, Ken has worked on a personal portrait project (traditional silver prints) for more than 20 years which includes: dancers, bikers, people with their pets, autistic children, “little people”, transvestites, identical twins, women wearing masks. In response to the rapidly moving electronic image world, as well as his inherent desire to keep his traditional darkroom alive, Merfeld has chosen to embrace the ultimate, historical, hands-on technique of Wet-Plate Collodion (originally known as the “Black Art”) from the 1860’s.  Influenced by the 19th. Century portraits of Julia Margaret Cameron, whereby a single defining exposure is made on a piece of glass and processed immediately, Ken has re-defined his continuing world of emotional portraiture. Merfeld teaches photography part time at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Ca., does seminars for Julia Dean Photography Workshops in Venice Beach, Ca., and conducts Portrait Seminars out of his studio in Culver City four times a year.  Ken also has a portfolio critique/review (see “Photo Soup”) service by appointment, also operated from his studio. So he won’t go absolutely crazy thinking, creating, looking at, and discussing visuals, Ken also plays an expert game of Pétanque, loves to play Djembe drums, and aspires to learn to play a blues harmonica one day.   Photographer Links:  Merfeld Photography Merfeld Collodian Julia Margaret Cameron   Education Resources: Tokyo: Explorations in the Metropolis with Ibarionex Perello & George Nobechi Momenta Photographic Workshops Ibarionex + Olaf in Vancouver, Canada   Candid Frame Resources The Candid Frame Newsletter The Candid Frame Alexa Skill Lessons from the Street eBook by Ibarionex Making Photographs: Developing a Personal Visual Workflow The Candid Frame Flickr Pool The Candid Frame YouTube Channel   Download the free Candid Frame app for your favorite smart device. Click here to download for iOS. Click here to download for Android Support the work we do at The Candid Frame with contributing to our Patreon effort.  You can do this by visiting patreon.com/thecandidframe or visiting the website and clicking on the Patreon button. You can also provide a one-time donation via PayPal. You can follow Ibarionex on Instagram and Twitter.