Sarah, Mort Subite Belgian Beer Bar – Austin, Texas

I don’t remember the last time I closed down a bar, but Jim and I ended up staying at Mort Subite until 2am. It was a strange feeling. Even when I’m shooting 6th street during events, I usually leave by around midnight.

Jim and I were the only customers. We talked to Anthony, the bartender and then there was Sarah. She worked at the bar too, but was flying home to Belgium that weekend. A real Belgian citizen at a Belgian Beer Bar, how authentic, I thought. We decided to have a portrait session.

Sarah by bar light. I shot at a reasonable 1/30th of a second, though I was up to ISO 1250 at f1.4. I employed my honed low-light portrait shooting technique. We tried a few different concepts and poses, but this is my favorite.

Making portraits at Drink and Clicks are certainly fun, but I feel like there’s a certain level of authenticity shooting a real person, instead of a model-wannabe. Are models real people? Sure, but they often are easier to shoot, since they come pre-equipped with poses.