Wood sculpting artist carving his own path since 2004

In his shop LaCasse concentrates sculpting away on his latest carving of a Native man.  

Alec LaCasse poses with his latest sculpture that he is working on.

 Being able to read emotion and feeling connected to a picture, is something I feel is captured throughout a series of moments. Moments allow you  preview into someone's personal life. A moment that needs no words, but yet relays a message.
   Pictures are moments in which we capture the beauty of those surrounding us.
   The portrait assignment was thrilling and extremely enjoyable for me. I felt this project tuned into my inner creativity and allowed me to think outside the box. Yet, this time I will say the feeling of unfamiliarity did not consume my emotions.

LaCasse focuses under the light while continuing to sculpt.

   The camera operations are still tricky, but overtime I feel that I will become confident and master them.
  The aspect that challenged me the most was the headshot. Between the lighting and trying to set the camera settings, I was having a hard time.
   Alec is a man of great character. He is quiet, yet radiates creativity and speaks words of wisdom. I captured pictures of him for this assignment because to me, he is such a unique human being, with an extremely beautiful talent.
   We pondered our way out to his shop. Once inside, we chatted for a few moments. Stooping to his knees, he tossed a few logs into the fire. Surrounding us was different collections of wood, wood shavings, tools and pictures. The atmosphere was cozy and inviting.
   I believe people and what they do for a living, tells a story about who they are. Alec's story is unique and crafted with genuineness. For a living, he handcrafts wooden sculptures of all sorts.
   Throughout the night, we exchanged thoughts about his journey and how he came about creating wood sculptures. A journey that started back in the fourth grade and has brought him here today.
   Aside from being frustrated with my camera settings and the lighting, this project was extremely fun for me. Portrait photography is an aspect of photography that requires you to be creative and have fun. Though I will say having people person skills is something that helped throughout this assignment. Without being able to interact with people, I feel that portrait photography would be extremely challenging.
   Overall, portrait photography, in my eyes, is an aspect of photography that tells someone's story through what they love doing.