Greg Lindeblom: Artists Gotta Art

Nico

'When the pandemic shut the world down in February-March 2020, no one realized how long we would all be isolating ourselves from the world....'

Greg Lindeblom

When the pandemic first hit, I wasn't sure what impact it would have on FH.  With everything that was happening in mine, and everyone's off-line life, FH wasn't initially something I really thought too much about.  But... shut downs and social distancing actually ended up drawing so many of us back on-line, and quickly.  To get news, for school, for work meetings and most importantly for so many, for emotional and social connection. 

After briefly considering a hiatus, I realized people needed routine, and the sites they regularly look to for information and inspiration more than ever.  I know how much I hate it when sites I love, and go to daily disappear.  I quickly understood, it was the worst time for FH to disappear or go on hiatus.  For those who check in every day for sure, but most importantly for me.  I found myself working from home, and craving any escape from the fears and stresses of real life.  FH has always been a bit of an escape for me.  With a stressful job, the site has always been a great way to express myself artistically, something my nine to five job rarely permits.

At first, we thought the shut-downs would be short, maybe just a matter of weeks.  Then, we wondered if they would ever end. Despite the fact most photographers were not shooting, it was not hard to find images that inspire.  I've never been someone who gone after or sought posting the 'new' or the 'in'.  I've always encouraged the artists that I feature to go into their archives.  I really love featuring shoots that maybe were overlooked, or got the attention they deserved when first published. 

Lyam

It's a little ironic then, that the images you're currently enjoying,  were shot at the height of the pandemic last year and most, have not been widely seen. Despite  not having the ability to shoot in person with a model, an artists gotta art. Even with the limitations, photographer Greg Lindeblom found a way to create.  He not only shot, but created with models from all over the globe, models that if not for the pandemic, he most likely never would have shot, nor ever connected with.  

Greg sent on both the resulting images, and the detail of what inspired them, and how everything eventually came together.  In part 1, I'm featuring Greg's first (Nico) and fourth (Lyam) on-line shoots.  His second and third shoots, with Brian and Andrew, can be found in Part 2 on the NEXT PAGE HERE:

When the pandemic shut the world down in February-March 2020, no one realized how long we would all be isolating ourselves from the world. In south Florida where I live, things were very quiet from the beginning of March until the middle of May 2020.

I looked for something productive to do with the isolation and began to scan every picture I had ever taken. I had started taking pictures at the age of 11 in 1966, so that was a formidable task. It took me from early March until November to scan every picture and every slide. There were so many wonderful images that I had long forgotten. Fortunately, I am very structured, and I had well-documented photo albums and slide carrousels to work from. 

During that time, I also spent a lot of time conversing using social media with other photographers and models from around the world. It was fantastic to establish connections with like-minded creative people. I was particularly envious of the drawers and painters who were working with models online. Enterprising figure models all over the world were arranging sessions with drawers and painters. These collaborations were creating wonderful work!! 

I thought to myself: Why can’t I do that same thing as a photographer? Why can’t I collaborate with models? So, I approached a few models and we decided to give it a try. I have shot online with four models now. 

The first model was in the Philippines. Nico is an experienced model, having done both commercial and artistic work. Finding a good time was a bit of a challenge. The Philippines are 12 hours different from the eastern USA. We figured out a good time and did a test of different social media and communication platforms. We settled on Facebook Messenger for that first shoot because both of us had the application. Nico set up a space in his bedroom. I shot directly at the monitor in front of me. 

I decided on that approach because the camera images would be larger, and I could do more with them. But the images were soft and pixelated. More important, our connection waned as the shoot progressed. It was quite strong to start, but by the end of the shoot it was very touch and go. 

With the cautious reopening of the world, I began to shoot more normally again. Starting with outdoor shoots (where I was fully masked and we maintained strict social distancing), I graduated to studio shoots, where I continued to wear a mask and maintain social distance. So, I thought I was finished with online shooting.  But in October, I was chatting with a wonderful model in Berlin. 

Lyam is a wonderful model who has posed for many painters. He was quite used to online posing and had the most beautiful living room. Shooting with him was a delight. This time, I decided to use both my camera and the print screen function as a test. The Print Screen images were much clearer, but not as large as the camera images. However, I printed as a test, one of the print-screen images at 11”x14” and the quality was quite good. I was delighted. 

Greg Lindeblom:on Instagram

Greg Lindeblom:on ModelMayhem