I thought Kelly Nolan was a beautiful person the first time I saw her, and I’m not sure why. There was the smile, of course, which is radiant and powerful, but there is also the poise and comfort level she has with herself. Kelly seems to know just who she is, and like just who she is. That is a kind of beauty that radiates from the inside out, and it is unusual to pick it up in a photograph.

By now, Kelly and I know and trust one another, that helps also. At some point during our Thursday night meal at the Bog, I pull my camera out of the bag and go and find her, she is usually at the bar or ferrying food or plates to and from the food tables and the kitchen.

Kelly is always busy, doing a hundred different things, from tending a crowded bar to taking orders, clearing tables, bringing food out and tallying the checks and making change.

At first, the customers at the bar were suspicious of me and my big camera, not they move out the way, clap me on the back, and give Kelly a hard time about being famous. We both are comfortable, it shows up in the photographs. One woman at the bar tonight grabbed me by the arm and said, “isn’t she beautiful, and she gets more beautiful all of the time.

Our culture has always defined beauty and woman narrowly, almost cruelly and inaccurately. Kelly really is beautiful, other people see it all the time in her photos. I was thinking tonight about the idea of doing a Kelly Portrait Show at the Bog, I’ll have to think about it.

It is an evolution for both of us, at first she was more at ease than I was, not we both have fun and are at ease, an essential thing for portraits.

It is important to know who you are, and Kelly is a strong woman, and the camera loves her. She always looks the camera straight in the eye and almost dares it to take her photo. The camera loves her for that.