Capturing the essence...

"Truly all Art is the result of having been in danger - of taking a situation all the way to the end - to where you can go no further". - Rilke 

“The essence of a person, their truth, their beauty - can only be seen when the subject is unaware.” - M.Herbertson

Venice saved me. It continues to re-energize me and save me in times when I paint myself into a corner. Venice is home to me. The Boardwalk is my favorite place in the world.  It's magical and it's also incredibly scary - tragic - the desperation, criminality... con artists at every turn. You have to be on your guard every second. This constant dangerous element and homelessness are familiar and home to me for some reason. The duality of great beauty with the tragic is a real rush for me. In person - there's this palpable danger but in pictures everything is shiny, colorful and gorgeous with none of the despair.  In the push of a button - I can lift out all the anguish - it's a incredible powerful feeling. Yes, the men walk around in no shirts and that's fantastic for a gay man. And Yes,  I feel as though I'm shooting fish in a barrel. But that's only a part of the reason I go there. It's healing for me to take out the awful and leave the just the beauty. 

True Beauty ... The Essence of a Person can only be seen when the  subject is unaware. 

Yeah, I like men - I love men - I'm attracted to men.

Shooting them is always fun and interesting. Sometimes challenging even - especially the divas - the really beautiful ones. Men have become very specific about how they see themselves and what they are selling. Usually an ultra masculine, media driven, image driven representation that bares no resemblence to MEN IN REAL LIFE.

I prefer to show men as they are and find the innocence, softness, the playful, the humor and fun / sexy rather than the dark and bruiting  - the ultra tough, that I think is an unhealthy and unrealistic image to kept propetuating. 

 Thank you. 

I'm a writer, I've modeled, I've acted, I've directed theatre, I've managed actors, I taught acting for years. I've surrounded myself, stayed connected and been influence by all kinds of art throughout my life: film, music, dance, architecture, poetry, classic sculptures, visual art's and of course photography. I've stayed engaged and inspired by extraordinary talent. 

Photography is the the thing that represents me fully. It is the one thing I do that I don't need a lot of approval with  -  if I like it  -  that's enough.  I see things clearly, directly, and honestly; never cliched - never chasing someone else's work. My photos are spontaneous, alive, authentic and hopefully something fresh and new. 

I hope we can work together  - I know you'll be satisfied with the outcome. 

Sincerely,

Michael Herbertson

I love working with models, stylists and designers. They inspire me. I love working with talented group of artists putting their all and expertise into a project for a common goal. 

Jobs 

My Signature Pieces...what I think people associate me with is my Candid shot - Street Photography of beautiful men & Candid Portraits. The combination of both Portraits of an Unaware Subjects as well as the known subjects or models in a publicly private unconscious moment. That freedom, alive, spontaneous, private place I hope to help a model get too without looking too choreographed and staged -with bad acting. A place that only the subject/actor/model can go to.

I'm trying the merge those two worlds: the unknown (my Street Photography) with the aware (Actors, models, subjects) . To be truly private in a public setting. To capture that inspired moment. The Silhouettes i just started doing (2019 to present) -& love it - some of my favorites. I have to think ahead and sometimes wait for the light or composition to be there, which I don’t like doing - but it’s worth it.

Candid

Real

Alive

Spontaneous

Fun