In Times of Tress

The session happened at Arthur Tress’s home in San Francisco. In arranging the shoot time, I asked if I could come when “the light was good,“ and he certainly delivered. When I arrived, there was beautiful south light coming through big windows, and it lasted the entire time I was there.

Before the session, I looked through one of his retrospective books, as I wanted to be inspired by Tress and his photography. I love his balance of being brazen but always delivering work with beauty and elegance. His content is bold, the presentation elevated.

I made a page of notes. Things like, “emerging from dirt,“ “texture on texture," and "tie something around his head, like pants."

Anytime I do a session with a photographer there is a danger of it being too influenced by the content in their photographs, or their aesthetic. In this case, I felt comfortable taking inspiration directly from his work. Perhaps I felt more naturally aligned with it, or maybe because he’s rarely his own subject, there’s more room to play in his sandbox without it looking like his pictures.

I’ve learned with these photographer meetups be a little assertive with the photography portion of the visit. It’s easy for our meeting to descend into a social call, with conversation about the photo business and mutual friends. I take the camera out of my bag, and put it on a tripod, do a couple of test frames, and then talk about scenarios, or lighting options. This is all within a polite context, but I don’t want to miss my opportunity to do a photo session. I love to meet up with someone I admire and respect, but if I don’t walk away with good pictures, I’m going to be very unhappy with myself.

Tress had the perfect balance as a sitter. Giving suggestions and moving well within frame, but also listening to my direction, and following my lead. He showed me options of rooms to shoot in, and even some clothing choices, and then let me choose. He had ideas, but did not force them on me.

They say that a great portrait is an equal mix of the sitter in the photographer, and this is one of those scenarios where that that seem to be true. So much that is happening in the frame is very Arthur, but many important choices are mine.

Of the three shoots I did on this Bay Area trip, this might be the best. The pictures are daring, and odd, and yet feel classical at the same time. They just work!

Images: Arthur Tress photographed at his home in San Francisco, January 2026. The first picture shows him holding a Emmett Kelly doll, from his esoteric collection of vintage toys. A big thank you to Tim Soter, who introduced us!