In 7th grade I saved up enough money to purchase my first 35 mm Kodak camera. This was the beginning of a love of photography. My cameras evolved from Kodak, Canon, Nikon, Rollei Rolleiflex SL66 medium format, Fujifilm XT-4…and to my current camera…an Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max. Yes, an iPhone!

While in San Francisco in April, I was fortunate to see a fabulous exhibition of photographs from Irving Penn (1917-2009) at the de Young Museum. A true master of the craft, Penn revolutionized fashion photography and was a giant contributor to Vogue Magazine. The 175 photographs ranged from fashion, celebrities, trades people, to rock groups from the San Francisco Summer of Love. I’ll share a few of my favorites. (Please excuse image quality because of light reflection.)

This quote really resonates with me!

At the exhibit.

Penn was eloquent with words as well as with his camera.

The Twelve Most Photographed Models, New York, 1947. This is where he met Lisa Fonssarives (back row center, left in profile) They were married in London 3 years later.

Audrey Hepburn, Paris 1951. She was just 22 years old.

Balenciaga Mantle Coat (Lisa Fonssagrives-Penn) 1950.

Girl Drinking (Mary Jane Russel) New York, 1949.

Dior Dress (Dorian Leigh) New York, 1949.

Chamois Seller, London, 1950.

Yves Saint Laurent, Paris, 1957.

Miro and his daughter, Delores, Tarragona, 1948.

Jean Cocteau, Paris, 1948.

Pablo Picasso, Paris, 1948.

Marlene Dietrich, New York, 1948.

Francis Bacon, London, 1962,

Hippy Couple, San Francisco, 1967.

Rock Groups, San Francisco (Big Brother and the Holding Company and the Grateful Dead) San Francisco, 1967. (Note Janis Jopin on the left and Pigpen with the headband with the Grateful Dead in the photo. They both died very early on.)

Early Hippies, San francisco,1967.

Caroline Trentini in Chanel Haute Couture, New York, 2007.

Richard Avedon, New York, 1978.

Truman Capote, New York, 1967.

Yours truly shooting north of Chiang Mai, Thailand.

With my iPhone in Kailua Kona, Hawaii.