post 101

this post marks the 101st post for this blog... the 100th slipped right by without fanfare, so, if you want to celebrate with me now, feel free. the woman by the pool here is celebrating in a serious way; this was taken on her last birthday before 50, and she was hoping to make a splash (sorry about that weak pun.) on this particular day, i had another friend adamantly refuse to be photographed on her birthday... something about never seeing a picture of herself that she liked (i will try to persuade her again later.) anyways, the birthday girl here was in the midst of a handful of days or so without air conditioning in her home (this was taken toward the beginning of september,) and when my wife, her friend, called at 8:30 that night to see if she would be willing to be a part of this project, after some hemming and hawing, she recommended we meet at the pool. it seemed perfectly odd enough for me... to date, i had taken zero poolside portraits at night. my on-the-fly lighting set up did not ace the test, but it passed. this photo could seem like some strange summer evening birthday baptism of a woman who is about to turn her life over to something... it could.