When Photographer Marianne Martin of Real Life Portraits first picked up a camera, it was just to have fun taking portraits of pets.
Now, 15 years later, the consummate professional, her portraits of pets are rendered as large canvas works of art. And weddings, portraits and family portraits have become an equally important addition to her repertoire.
“I started with pets but then my clients started having children and friends were getting married and everything kept evolving," Marianne says. "At the time, very few photographers worked in the candid, lively style that I do, so my business grew very fast. People wanted more than what someone looks like, they wanted to feel the person's (or pet's) soul.”
That is what Marianne loves to capture. She emphasizes that the best photographs aren’t necessarily the ones that are most technically correct, but the ones that hold the most life and emotion.
“Elliot Erwitt is one of my favorite photographers. He did photograph a lot of dogs, which first drew me to him, but mostly he photographed life and the many emotions that make up life. You could feel something in his photographs. That is what I strive for,” she says.
Most of her portraiture is printed in the warm brown sepia tone that many early photographers preferred. “The monotone focuses the viewer more into the heart of the image without the distraction of color," Marianne says. "There are certainly times that I prefer color, but for the most part I prefer sepia due to the warm feeling that it creates. Someone once called my portraits 'yummy,' and I thought that was such a nice compliment.
Marianne travels extensively to photograph weddings - to France, England, Mexico and throughout America. She has had the honor of creating portraits for celebrities such as Robert Redford, Dave Mathews and senator Mark Udall. Her photographs have appeared in a variety of print media including USA Today, Mountain Living, Modern Bride and The Knot. She says she feels fortunate to have been able to travel and to have these great opportunities, but she prefers to stay in her hometown of Boulder, Colorado, creating images of the simple "baby next door."
"That's real life," she says.
"When I was looking for a new house I had a few very specific requirements: three bedrooms, a fenced yard, trees and the perfect photography studio," Marianne says. "My ReMax of Boulder agent found me my ideal home. It has all of my requirements and more!"
Find out more about Real Life Portraits at http://www.reallifeportraits.com/ or call Marianne at(303) 447-3341.
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