“With the proliferation of quality do-it-yourself digital photography, the tradition of having professional quality family portraits made has headed down the same path as many other digitally inspired “evolutions”. I was recently reminded why this is such a tragedy in the making. Unlike the making of content for media or the other analogue to digital transitions of our day, capturing a family at a point-in-time is the work of an artist; more reliant on the skills of the shooter and less dependent on the quality of the subject(s) in front of the lense.

 

But the vision and insight of a more modern artist can turn the risks of our digital age into a real advantage and we learned this first-hand in working with a talented young artist, Jo Arellanes. Time challenged and at the time of a wonderful cross-roads in our family (kids graduating and approaching graduation from college), we sought out a “traditional” sitting for a family portrait. What we got was something more: a fresh look at tradition, with all the technical skills of a much more tenured master, Jo brought a modern sensibility, the best technology available and, most importantly, the eye of a master to the making of a set of images we will cherish for generations. We are indebted to Jo for adding to the chronicling of our family in such an impactful way!

 

Keep an eye on this up and coming talent. I suspect we will see more of her and her work in places much broadly significant than the Silver archives!

 

Martin and Kathy Silver.”