Pat Romano 

Pat shooting the old ST. Louis AB Cardinals Stadium 

Photographer Spotlight: Pat Romano

Pat Romano started shooting when he was 9 years old, and in the 69 years since he has photographed all over the world. He's also done freelance work for several magazines, and written a photography book called, "Faces of Italy. " Pat's been a pilot in the Air Force, an investigative photographer, a wedding photographer, and a policeman in New York City.

Pat is full of enthusiasm and energy. He never slows down. He has great tips to help photographers capture those fleeting moments, and he isn't afraid to share information. In addition, Pat is a great story teller. You will be intrigued listening to his photography adventures.

My favorite tip from Pat:
I always let the camera hang in front of me. If I see someone nice I set the self timer and walk right in front of this person. Then I wait the 10 seconds and let the camera shoot by itself. You need to have a wide angle lens on for this to work. Say, "Excuse me, but I’m lost, how can I get up town?" The person will look around with the funniest faces. They will also look to see who you are and Kaboop you get a great picture

Pat, on taking pictures in foreign countries:
Sit and talk with people to gain their trust in you. Then tell them, “Before I go I really want to take this back to the United States, do you mind posing for a picture?” They will want to jump for joy.

In Asia you have to be a little more careful because people are more suspicious there of Americans or Europeans or English. In the Philippines I worked with communist insurgents. I was doing stories for the missionaries there with three cameras hanging off of me. We had weapons to protect ourselves. We were down in Towhee Towhee, the furthest part down in the chain of islands in the Philippines, you can’t go any further before you’re in Borneo.
The little story there was that I had the nuns following me one morning, two of them. I went with them that day to see how they worked their whole day. They went to the children in the jungle and I went with them in a little boat. The boat broke down and we were just sitting in the bay. The sister said to me, "Pat you are going to have to get out and push us." And I said, “Push you? Do you see those sea urchins down there sister? If I get out I’ll step on one of those and you’ll hear me all the way up to heaven.” So we waited until we drifted in land. Then we got on shore and we bummed a ride with one of those little carriage bicycles.

KD: So you’ve photographed all over the world?
Pat: Yes, I started composing with my eyes as a youngster at 16-17 years old. I spent two years in the Merchant Marines before I joined the Air Force. My eyes were my camera. So when I went out to finally shoot with a camera it was easy. It was like drawing pictures. The world is your canvas and all you need is your pallet. Your pallet is your camera.

KD: I remember you telling me a story once about shooting pictures of the president back in the 60s, do you remember that?

Pat: It was back in 1962 and it wasn’t the president. It was Vice President Johnson. It was at the Waldorf Historia. Colonel Glenn was being honored for going into the space program. He was the first one to enter space. I was with Family Circle magazine at the time, in Sales and in Photography. We all made a bet to see who could go sit at the dais. I worked my way up to the dais, with VP Johnson and his aide and his secret service agents. I was asked to transfer messages for them. While that camera was on we were getting calls from all over Long Island, people calling my wife and saying I just saw your husband on TV. Well the bet was to see who could get on the dais and here I was kissing the ring of Cardinal Spellman. He came by and he put his hand down and I kissed his ring. You know you’re on the spot and you don’t know what to do you just do it. You’re the guy in charge. What are you in charge of, I don’t know but I’m here and everybody assumes that I’m the guy in charge.

KD: That’s because you have that aura about you.

Pat: You create it real quick

It’s called masterful inactivity. It’s a key word in the job. As an ex-policeman from NY State, I was always told take charge, until you get help. Even if you don’t know what is going on, just keep people aside and handle the situation. That’s taking charge.

Think of this as a photographer: If somebody is going to jump off a bridge or a building, and you are the only one there, and you could help them, are you going to photograph them first or are you going to help them? Tough situation, very tough. If you are within reach of them yah, you could try and do something and talk to them, and then when help arrives get that camera working like a bandit.

KD: Have you got some shots in mind that are your favorites that you’ve done?

Pat: Here is one I did in Italy of a lady covered in pidgeons. Here is another great shot, there is a devil in there, this guy is protecting this cave here’s his face, his eye, his nose, his chin, and it’s like, “What are you doing there” [This is the hole image to the left of Pat in the photo of him above.

KD: Where was that taken?

Pat: This is up in Navaho Nation in Northern Arizona. From Phoenix it’s about a six hour drive. It’s up in the four corners, up in Utah, New Mexico, Colorado.

KD: What would you say is the most important event that you ever photographed?

Pat: The Phillipenes. It was heart-warming. It was my sentimental journey really. I wanted to see how people really suffered living in huts, not knowing what the rest of the world is doing. It’s sad but at the same time they don’t know what’s going on and if they don’t know what is going on they don’t miss it. They have nothing to fear and they don’t see anything that makes them in fear. When you talk to people in strange lands like that it enlightens you. You say “Thank God I’ve got what I have.”

KD: We are looking at a shot of St. Louis as taken from East St. Louis. It’s a night shot and it is incredible.

Pat: The first part of the tripod is in the water. There are soybean lines that run right overhead. They feed the barges from these big silos through the soybean lines. So I have to go down lower to shoot that shot and get in the waters edge.

KD: Have you ever been in fear for your life on a photoshoot?
Pat: Yes at the Philippines, They put the gun right in my face. I didn’t know which orifice to use. Fortunately I had a priest with me and he said something real quick. We were on an assignment to see the President of the Philippines. I was there to photograph her as well and we got into her office and everything. But before we got there, it was a problem that they didn’t know who we were. He [the driver] had a letter and he was holding the letter up in the air. Then somebody a little smarter than the guy with the gun came over and escorted the way. The conscripts, they don’t know anything. If you can’t talk fast enough you are in trouble.

KD: What’s your favorite kind of photography?

Pat: Kids and Pets. There isn’t a mother who says, “Oh that’s an awful picture of my son or daughter.” Or “that’s an awful picture of my puppy.” I take a bride shot and she says, “Oh I didn’t have my make-up on.” You know they crab a lot. The guys don’t but the women want to be just right, it’s their day.

KD: That’s why I like wildlife
Pat: Yah, wildlife is great. If you said to me what do I want to do the rest of my life, I’d say, “Start shootin’ kids tomorrow.” And if I had a studio and only families with kids come, I’ll take that to”

KD: Kids are great aren’t they?
Pat: You can work gimmics with them, you lay on the ground and laugh with them. I’ve rolled all over the ground with kids taking pictures, and they laugh, they think it’s funny. Because you’ve got their attention and their trust. Same thing with a dog. Don’t look a dog in the eye when you give them an instruction. Don’t look a kid in the eye when you give them an instruction. Say, “Ok let’s go.” Don’t say, “Now you are gonna come with me.” (Pat gestures, pointing at the kid) They won't move with that approach. They’ll say, “Who are you, telling me what to do?” But if you say, “Come on with me, let’s go” and you start walking, they gotta go. They want to find out what the rest of the story is.

KD: Do you have some tips for doing night photography?
Pat: It’s so simple, I kick myself for not noticing it a long time ago. Taking night shots is a mathematical equation. I was lousy in math but the equation for night shots is so simple. All you do is control your camera if it’s controllable, and set your camera to bulb mode. I want a lot of depth of field, so start with an F-stop of, 22, 16, 11, then start decreasing. Let’s say we arrive at 22 and we're taking a scene like that picture right there. It’s night and there are some lights around it and nice reflections on a pool. So at 22 now we have the F-stop we want, so how long do we want to go? It’s simple, start at 1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds, 4, 5, 6, keep going, at 8 seconds, “Oh look at the shot I got at 8 seconds, hey come here and look at this shot.” You just learned how to take an 8 shot. You went through the trials and tribulations of the numbers. It’s nothing but a numbers game. Now go to 16 and start doing the same thing. Write them down, write them down. Then you can go over there and set it at 22 and 3 seconds and then go away, you are all finished. You got your shot because you’ve already tested it out.

I learned it through trial and error myself. Do I need a light meter? Hell no, what do you need a light meter for when it’s a day shot? When you bought a digital camera you bought your meter system. It’s built in, you don’t need a light meter. I’ll just take a dozen shots. Then I’ll use the best.

KD: Which camera do you prefer to shoot with the most?
Pat: Right now I’m stuck on the Fuji S2 Pro. Now here is the S3 Pro, I’ve got two of them. It’s got the 24 to 120 lens on it. I can go around the world with that one camera and one lens. I can take all the pictures I’ll ever need. Now if you have to shoot somebody at a distance, 300 yards away, forget it. You won’t do it with that lens, you'll need a 300 mm lens. Are you going to go on vacation with a 300 mm lens? At 2.8, that’s an $1800 lens. No you go on vacation with that one camera and the short lens. Or you can use a point-and-shoot camera for 3, or 4, or $500. You get a camera to put in your pocket. You see your shot, shoot it. If you don’t like it, buy a post card.

KD: What are your favorite places for photography?
Pat: Probably in my own back yard. Let’s say besides that, Italy. Most of the old countries because in the old countries they fix up what’s inside not outside. They don’t want to disturb time. But inside, they put in all new furniture and electrical and plumbing. You can shoot alleyways with the steps going up and you’ll feel like you are on the back lot of a Hollywood set. But do they have it here, no. So you weigh it out, what am I looking for? Do I want the old country look, the old, old look? Why don’t you go over there and you have a perfect Hollywood lot staring you right in the face. If you look for it here, we’ve got tons, and tons of areas that you can shoot. Go out to that big hole in the ground. Go out to Colorado, go out to the Grand Canyon, go out to Monument Valley, Utah, all those places are beautiful, you can’t go wrong. I’ve driven all over the country just taking pictures of beautiful stuff and it’s still there. They don’t take it away, it’s there.

KD: I’m going out in June to the Grand Canyon, I’m really looking forward to it.

Pat: Bring some boots because you really want to step in the lowest part of the water to get the best view of the rocks.

On Photo Projects:
Pat: You can do a photo essay just on bridges. One technique that’s nice in photography is to pick out a theme. You go out to shoot the theme that you have in your mind. If you go out to shoot birds, shoot the birds, if a mouse goes by let him go, shoot the birds. Learn to use one thing first. Once you get that in your mind, then you can tell somebody else how to do it, and then you’ve accomplished something. Next go to shoot trees, people places and things. Pick out the target you want and go for it. But don’t mix them all together because you won’t remember. You’ve got to be concerned about lighting, shutter speed, and what aperture you have. Use your digital camera and play with it because that’s your meter.

KD: Did you ever see a person in a candid pose that you didn’t want to disturb by asking them if you could take their picture?
Pat: It’s called the Jaded Lady. Anne and I were having coffee after it stopped raining and we were sitting down in an out door café. A woman sitting near us had a beautiful hat on and she was so Italian looking. I just had to get this shot. So I just turn around and set the camera at f8 16th of a second, and said, “Bonjourno seniora” and boop, that’s how I got it. She looked at me like, “Who are you?” but she didn’t get too annoyed, she just turned back around to talk to the lady she was with.

KD: In the US with all of these people being a little hypersensitive to security and personal information and all that, do you get more resistance in the US?

Pat: Probably more so here, because of 911.

KD: I was shootin’ pictures at a church picnic, and situation arose. I was doing night photography of kid's rides as they spun at different speeds because I like to teach people how to set your settings to get different effects. A policeman came over to me and said, ‘A lady has expressed a concern because you are taking pictures of the kids.” In reality the way I was taking them, of course she couldn’t know this, you would never see a child’s face in the picture. The blurred lights is what I was getting. But I wondered about my rights. I gave the officer my card and he said he’d come down to the store and buy a camera, and I went on my way. I wondered though, should I have stayed and stood my ground? Later I was talking to a policeman friend of mine and told him the story because there is no law against taking pictures in a public place. He said “If that had been me I’d of had to get ugly with that cop.” He suggested getting the officer's name, asking his supervisor's name and emphasizing that you are not breaking any laws.

Pat: Yah, there is no law against taking pictures in public places, except some buildings since 911. If you are on an Indian reservation and you want to take a picture they want money. You have to give them a couple dollars.

KD: Oh that’s worth it, that’s a small price to pay for a model.

Thanks Pat for all your great stories. There are more, and the full story of the gatecrasher is really fun reading. If you'd like to contact Pat, send an email to me at kdentonH@.ix.netcom.com (take the dot after the @ out) and I'll see that he gets it.

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