Edda Taylor advocates ‘essential portraiture”, a highly personal and intimate approach to photography, in which photographer and subject are active participants in making the picture. Her approach as been called “body and soul” since its focus is to portray that which the camera grasps (body) in order to capture an essence of quality unique to the subject (soul), Program participants will explore a variety of techniques in styling, lighting and posing, many of which are used in commercial fashion and beauty photography but lend themselves directly to portraiture.

While emphasis is placed directing the subject, the primary thrust of the program is on artistic sensitivity and creativity. The goal of the workshop is to set aside as much cliché and gimmickry as possible in order to explore the new ways of seeing the portrait. Eddo calls her style “Portraits by Commission”, and exciting and new way to pose and photograph adults, families, seniors, and children. At the end of the lecture, Edda will discuss the art of advertising and selling this new style of portraiture. This lecture will be a guide to innovation, imagination and creativity.

Edda’s French grandfather, and avid art collector, first introduced her to the Fine Arts at the tender age of five, and she fee in love with the French Impressionists especially Monet, Degas, and Renoir. It was after coming to the United States as a young women that it became clear that photography would become the love of her life. She worked as a receptionist for at great photographer, John Giolas, who mentored and encouraged her to begin formal photographic education and inspired her to become a professional. In pursuit of her dream, she studied at the Winona International School of Professional photography, Form du Maguillage in Paris, and Color Charisma Training Center in Atlanta, Georgia. With that training and her gifted eye of color, light, textures and shadows, she began turning out works of art-not with paintbrush but wit a camera.

Edda’s charming studio, resembling and art gallery, can be found on the top floor of the historic Crown Point Courthouse in Northwest Indiana. Its enormous windows allows Edda to “Paint” photographs that are creations of light.

Edda holds the degrees of Master Photographer, Photographic Craftsman, and is certified color analyst. An international citizen, and addition to English, Eddo is fluent in French, Italian, Greek and Turkish.

Her singular style and photographic accomplishments have distinguished her both nationally and internationally as she has been an honored recipient of both the Gerhard Bakker Memorial Award and the Kurt Lieber Gold Award. Edda is sought out as a guest lecturer thoughout the world and has recently taught photography all over the world and has recently taught photography all over the United States, Europe and the Caribbean. She also leads workshops at Purdue and Indiana University.