My name is Richard Diaz, known in the world of photography as “Shadowman”. I come from the beautiful island of Puerto Rico and spent my childhood in the mountains. When I traveled to the capital, San Juan, to visit my grandfather, I spent hours in his dark room that he used to develop his work. I had good memories of those special days, watching my dad experimenting with new equipment and developi
ng techniques. He also used me as a model for portraits. I believe this early childhood experiences offered me the inspiration to become a photographer. Photography runs in my family. From my grandfather, who designed the photography curriculum for the University Of Puerto Rico, back in the days, to my father, a dedicated photographer; and now me. I’m studying photography with one of the oldest photography schools in America, The New York Institute of Photography. I have a passion for photography, especially the wildlife. As an outdoor guy, I love to capture nature and wildlife in its essence, as God created; so you can also enjoy it. When is about styles, I consider myself as an eclectic photographer. I love to experiment on each one of them, letting my creativity loose to compose a frame. Some people say that my favorite photography styles are minimalist photography and portraiture. Some of my best photos are from simple things. I like to capture those things that we take for granted and overlook. About Portraiture, I would say, I love to photograph people, but more important, to capture their essence and let the soul be exposed. Capturing the person’s character is the most challenging task of a portraiture photographer. I love shoot portraits in black and white. I like to use a wide array of techniques, from black and white to HDR, falling in surrealism. Capturing the beauty of morning dew on a leaf, a tiny speck of color on a dark background, shapes, etc., to create masterpieces. I am a firm believer that a good photo comes from the passion for simplicity and the composition of the frame that one creates before you shoot. “A good photographer is not measured by the equipment that he uses, but by the ability to compose a great picture from scratch.” As an old school photographer, I compose my pictures on my head, then I shoot, not depending on software’s to do that part, but to enhance what I just created. I see beauty in the simplest things around me, I do not have to travel far, or visit famous places in order to create a photo with a thousand words. On the eye of the beholder, my pictures captures the essence of the subject on my thoughts, and transferring the unimaginable to a real, visible canvas.