Russell Monk’s Open-Air Studio

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by

Trent
in

Neighborly Portraits in Mexico

Captivated by the light in Mexico, Russell Monk set up an open-air studio in his backyard. The result is a series of whimsical black-and-white portraits.

via Lens Blog: http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/12/14/neighborly-portraits-in-mexico/?pagewanted=all

He had been living like the typical artsy expat in the center of San Miguel de Allende when he decided to uproot himself and buy a small house on the outskirts of town. There, he began doing portraits of his Mexican neighbors, starting with Isabel, the matriarch of a large family who lived on the other side of his back wall.

“People ask how you light those,” he said. “I don’t — they’re all natural light. You can’t beat that.”