Meet Barb Levant of Barb Levant Photo in Logan Square

Today we’d like to introduce you to Barb Levant.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Barb. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I bought my first serious camera as a junior in college: a Canon F-1. I wrote an article for an assignment called “Send Your Sinuses to Phoenix.” It discussed the inversion layer and what was known as valley fever. I hired a student pilot to take me up in an airplane and cut the engine (called a slip-glide), so I could hold the camera steady enough while hanging out of the plane. I got the shot, and it, and the story, ran in the Phoenix Gazette.

I was hooked. I loved to shoot photos. My trigger finger was quicker than most and getting the tough shots WITH MANUAL FOCUS was never a problem for me.

I moved to Los Angeles in 1979 and worked for a well-known photographer as his assistant. We lit and photographed everyone and everything from Arnold Schwarzenegger for Muscle & Fitness to Price Pfister tubs and faucets, sometimes building elaborate sets complete with running water.

During that time I became a master black and white printer. Olga lingerie was our main account, and almost exclusively black and white. I developed and proofed approximately 80 rolls of black and white large-format film per week. The photos that went in their catalog were taken from 11×14 fiber prints. The discerning clients would reject any photo that did not have milky white skin and details in the lace, an almost impossible feat in the darkroom. But by combining my lighting skills in the studio and my printing skills after the shoot, we kept them happy.

After a few years assisting full time, I began to take some freelance work. That was me choking on the Mole Richardson Fog Juice as I operated the fogger during the Michael Jackson “Thriller” album cover photoshoot with Dick Zimmerman. I oversaw multiple power packs all syncing up to photograph a 747 full of people for United Airlines. The following day I’d be down in the diamond district creating a glimmer of light with a piece of tinfoil on a gemstone. I learned about light on the job. I know light. I know how to make it my friend as well as how to keep it from becoming my enemy, whether I’m shooting a baby or a building.

I gradually became a shooter in my own right. I mostly shot catalog work. I always seemed to be sweating in a warehouse shooting flannel holiday catalogs in August. My knowledge of light led to lots of work shooting bathing suits, lingerie as well as new faces for Elite and Wilhelmina Models. When my twin daughters were born in 1984, I cut back on my workload but kept a few accounts. Everyone at the lighting and prop houses loved it when I came in with them in their twin stroller to run pre and post production errands. No children were allowed on set back then. I discovered through my daughters that I just LOVED babies. I could elicit the most wonderful expressions, and, with my quick trigger finger, trusty Hasselblad 500CM, 150 Zeiss lens, I could capture it all on film.

In 1991 my husband accepted an offer to work with his family on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. That would mean a move from sunny southern California to Chicago. By then I had another child, a boy, and the LA riots had taken quite a toll on the photo industry as all of the main suppliers were in the areas that were burned to the ground.

We packed up everything and moved to Chicago. I put a display of my photographs in a small boutique on Halsted Street in 1992, and the following year, I shot over 800 portrait sessions. I think I photographed every baby and child on the North Shore, Gold Coast, and Lincoln Park. My black and white portraits, signature black turtleneck/black background headshots, as well as the hand colored traditional portraits, are still in homes all over Chicago—I am proud of the fact that my friends, family, and clients can instantly recognize a “Barb Levant” in someone else’s home.

I had always made holiday cards from my images for clients. I saw a small ad in a trade magazine for a company called DigiPrint, and they were right in Chicago. The first digital holiday card was born. No need to ask who took that great photo of your kids because the answer was right on the back of the card. By the year 2000, I was shooting 800-1000 portrait sessions per year, mostly babies and children. I loved the commercial accounts that included architects, attorneys, ad agencies, and in general people who trusted me to make them look good on media that went out to the public. I had 4 stations in my darkroom and me and my assistants worked round the clock at holiday time making beautiful prints and cards.

In 2004 I began to shoot with a digital camera in addition to my trusty Hassy. I was seriously the last one to go. I really did not need Photoshop to correct a bad photo because that is just not something I would put out there. I never met an ugly baby, I think wrinkles are earned, and if shot in the right light can contribute to a wonderful and sophisticated portrait. But I didn’t want my business to become an antique like my cameras were quickly becoming. So I started reading, experimenting, and watching a lot of YouTube tutorials.

Gradually, I learned more and more about computers and digital photography. I basically put myself back through college. All of my experience shooting film has proven to be a great asset. I still shoot manually. I can actually shoot faster in manual than most photographers can shoot in full automatic, and with more stunning results. The menu items in a modern digital camera are like having an entire camera store, film, and filter department at my fingertips. Combine that with modern Photoshop capabilities and the creative possibilities are endless. I use technology to exceed my vision every day. It is a wonderful ride, I am planning on pushing myself to keep creating visually interesting work.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Like any small business owner, one of my struggles is to stay ahead and remain relevant. The photography industry is constantly changing, and I have managed to keep my business alive by evolving it. From mastering digital to going head to head with DIY holiday card brands like Minted to growing my commercial photography clients as demand for studio portraits shrunk, I have survived by seeing every challenge as an opportunity to keep learning, keep doing, and keep making art.

I get nostalgic for shooting on film—there’s something wonderful about the anticipation that builds because you have to wait to see what you got. With digital photography, the expectation of instant gratification, unlimited terabytes of storage, and the phrase “you can Photoshop that, right?” just doesn’t feel as exciting—and the cameras are so advanced and automatic that everyone thinks they can take a great shot. But it’s about so much more than simply pointing and clicking.

Lastly, I struggle not to be behind the lens all the time. I have probably billions of pictures OF my kids, but I wish I had more with them. Although they do love looking through old photo albums. How could they not? Like I said, I know how to make people look their best.

Please tell us about Barb Levant Photo.
I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. I’ve been fortunate to transform my passion and innate talent into a lucrative career. I specialize in portraits. I bring the same energy whether it is the CEO of a major corporation, or proud parents bringing their newborn in for their first photos, or your final photo shoot with your beloved grandparent. If it is a moment that you want to cherish forever, I am the first person many people call. I’m most proud of the trust that my clients have in me to know that I’ll get the shot, and make them look good in it. My personality brings a comfort level to the table that lets the subject open up to my camera.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Me and my 4 sisters all sunburned and piled in the back of the pink DeSoto station wagon with the stuffed snakes that we had won at the Jersey Shore as pillows.

Pricing:

• Prices range from $200.00 and up

Contact Info:

• Website: Barblevantphoto.com
• Phone: (773)395-2002
• Email: barb@barblevantphoto.com
• Instagram: Barblevantphoto
• Facebook: Barblevantphoto
• Twitter: Barblevantphoto
• Yelp: Barblevantphoto