Manic May Day 16: #salinakansas #outdoorphotography #outdooradventure #downtownphotography #hikingtrail #peoplephotography #smileforthecamera #manicmay #photographychallenge #photographyislife

Eines von vielen tollen Ergebnissen mit Kim.
Ich mag dieses Porträt besonders, weil ihr rotes Haar und der rosafarbene Hut so schön mit dem natürlichen Licht harmonieren.

#Portrait #portraits #portraitmood #photography #peoplephotography  #model  #fashion #photoshoot #portraitphotography #shooting  #portaiture #outdoors #fotografie #germany #bavaria #sony #tamron

Manic May Day 15: #salinakansas #outdoorphotography #outdooradventure #downtownphotography #hikingtrail #peoplephotography #smileforthecamera #malemodel #manicmay #photographychallenge #photographyislife

Phylicia Rashad: “You Are That Splendor”

Phylicia Rashad helps us find good light.

Thanks to her relationship with our president, Dr. Gina Spivey-Brown, the Phylicia Rashad, who played the role of Claire Huxtable on The Cosby Show (1984-1992) served as my university’s commencement speaker last Friday. I am not exaggerating when I say we were over-excited to hear her speak.

But…

The moment she stood up and approached the microphone, a hush fell on the arena. You could hear a pin drop in a service that is usually filled with sound–shouts, squeals, callouts, air horns. Instead of taking selfies and posting on Instagram, students’ eyes were trained on her. Attuned to the cadence of her voice.

I think many expected Claire Huxtable.

Who they met was Phylicia Rashad—authentic, unscripted, soft, humorous. Through her moments at the microphone, she touched something deep within us and conjured what has been dead for many of us—a humanity deeply rooted in the waters that stretch from Africa to Europe to the Americas. She reminded students, all of us, really, of the “hopes, dreams, wishes, and prayers” of our ancestors that guided us to this point; she reminded us that they still walk with us, not literally but metaphorically, and we must honor that.

Ms. Rashad spoke extemporaneously, inspired by a midnight stroll through our awe-inspiring campus. 

Lyrically. 

Spiritually. 

We were captivated as she wove literature, oral history, and personal anecdotes into a message to the graduates–to all of us.

So much of what she said struck a nerve with me and I’ve already decided I will use one of these quotes to open one of my book projects.

You have everything. You don’t have to go looking for anything. You have it within you. Hold that. Pay attention to that. Believe in that. 

Hold fast to the stillness of midnight in midday. Hold fast to the silence in your own heart in the middle of cacophony. 

“God got beautiful splendors.” — Gem of the Ocean. You are that splendor.

Know your own worlds of being and stay within your own element.

Be true. Be beautiful. Be free. 

Come back to this place often and you will always remember who you are, where you have been, where you have come from, and what is given to you, and who is  walking beside you, behind you, in front of you, and inside you. 

Phylicia Rashad serenaded by the world-renowned Aeolians of Oakwood University

I am not a celebrity hound. We fall in love with the roles actors play, but really don’t know who they are “in real life.” She even remarked on that in her oration:

It’s easy to be the perfect mother when the children are scripted and you’re scripted too. 

Through that comment, she taught us, actors are performers. Human. Fallible. And I’m more interested in that part—connecting with how they are like the rest of us. 

I didn’t vie to get an audience with her or take a selfie–though that was the one request my hubby made as I left home. I quietly sat in the background and observed. I saw a person who thoroughly enjoys being in the room, absorbing the sounds and vibrations into her own skin; who looks deeply into the eyes of each person who speaks with her, who consents enthusiastically to every photo; who has walked this earth as many people and has settled unapologetically into herself.

What I saw was not performance. What I saw was real. Regal. Elegant. Timeless.

I did speak with her. Babbled something. I don’t know what since I was still processing her words. 

Hers was not an urgent speech that inspired listeners to run into the world and change it. It was a speech that invited us to do something more significant—look inward and decide how we will be in that world. 

Something in my spirit quieted. Another thing in it stirred. And I need to sit with it for some time and let Spirit do its work. 

#blackAndWhitePhotography #commencement #FocusOnBlack #graduation #Healing #life #love #mentalHealth #monochromePhotography #peoplePhotography #PhyliciaRashad #quotes #soulWork #speeches #writing

Manic May Day 14: #salinakansas #outdoorphotography #outdooradventure #downtownphotography #hikingtrail #peoplephotography #malemodel #manicmay #photographychallenge #photographyislife

Manic May Day 13: #salinakansas #outdoorphotography #outdooradventure #martybendernatureareatrail #peoplephotography #malemodel #manicmay #photographychallenge #photographyislife

Manic May Day 12: #salinakansas #outdoorphotography #outdooradventure #martybendernatureareatrail #swingphotography #peoplephotography #albumcovervibe #malemodel #manicmay #photographychallenge #photographyislife

Portrait of the Princess of Persia.

At Efteling, one of the actors from the themed area inspired by *1001 Nacht* asked me to create a portrait that captured her character: the Princess of Persia. A dreamy presence in a world of stories, music, and imagination.

This image was taken with the Canon 7D Mark II and Sigma 15–85mm. What made it more challenging was that she was actively working during the shoot. I couldn’t direct her in the usual way—no calling for attention, no asking for a different pose. The scene had to unfold naturally, while I moved around her and adapted to the moment.

Before she started, she gave me creative freedom. That trust made all the difference.

As she stayed in character and interacted with visitors, I looked for the moments where performance and authenticity blended together. I captured several images that, from a technical perspective, I considered stronger than this one. Sharper. More dynamic. Better framed.

But this was the image she chose.

And that matters.

Sometimes the person in the portrait sees something the photographer does not. A feeling. A version of themselves. A dream they recognize. My role was never to convince her to choose what I thought was best. She saw herself in this frame, and that made it the right one.

Her story. Her choice. Her portrait.

#Efteling #PrincessOfPersia #PortraitPhotography #ThemeParkPhotography #Canon7DMarkII #Sigma1585 #CharacterPortrait #DreamyPortrait #EnvironmentalPortrait #StorytellingPhotography #PeoplePhotography #CreativePortrait #BehindTheScenes #1001Nacht #PhotographyJourney #PortraitSession #VisualStorytelling #ThemeParkMagic #PhotographerLife #CreativeFreedom #NaturalMoments #ClientWork #FantasyPortrait #HumanConnection #ThroughTheLens #ByMaikeldeBakker #MaikeldeBakkerPhotography #WonderingLens #PortraitArt #StoryInFaces

Portrait photography. Linda.

Taken with the Canon 5DSR and Sigma 24–70mm Art, this portrait was never just about capturing a face. It was about capturing something quieter: personality.

A camera can make people tense. Many don’t quite know what to do with their hands, how to smile naturally, or even where to look. That’s normal. Being photographed can make someone suddenly aware of themselves in a way they usually are not.

That is why portrait photography is as much psychology as it is technique.

Before this image, I took several other shots. Not because those were meant to be the final portrait, but because they served another purpose: helping Linda relax. Letting the camera become less important. Letting the moment become real instead of staged.

As a photographer, your role is not simply to point and shoot. It is to create a space where someone feels safe enough to lower their guard. Comfortable enough to forget they are being observed.

Only then does the genuine expression appear.

The slight smile, the softness in the eyes, the posture that no longer feels rehearsed—that is the moment worth waiting for. And technically, the 5DSR paired with the Sigma Art renders every subtle detail beautifully. But equipment alone does not make a portrait.

Trust does.

#PortraitPhotography #Canon5DSR #Sigma2470Art #Portrait #NaturalPortrait #PeoplePhotography #PhotographyTips #PortraitSession #HumanConnection #PhotographyJourney #AuthenticSmile #CandidPortrait #PhotographerLife #VisualStorytelling #EmotionInPhotography #LensAndLight #CreativePortrait #PhotographyMentor #NaturalLightPortrait #BehindTheLens #PortraitArt #ThroughTheLens #PersonalityPortrait #StoryInFaces #ByMaikeldeBakker #MaikeldeBakkerPhotography #WonderingLens #LindaPortrait #PhotographyThoughts #HumanMoments

Manic May Day 11: #lindsborgkansas #outdoorphotography #outdooradventure #downtownphotography #peoplephotography #malemodel #manicmay #photographychallenge #photographyislife