I have been away from this blog for quite a while because I was assisting a client and friend of mine, Stacey Sanner, with her book project, Keeping A Blue Light On: A Citizen’s Tribute to the Seattle Police Department.   Stacey was inspired to write this book after the cold-blooded murders of five police officers last fall in the Seattle area.   These crimes led to an outpouring of support for the police force, but as time passed and life returned to normal, Stacey felt that we need to make sure that we appreciate what they do all year round, not just when there is a tragedy.  The book is her way of saying thank you.   It is a wonderful combination of photographs and interviews of 36 Seattle police officers.   Through their stories and the images, we get a real appreciation for what they go through and why they do what they do, and we get a glimpse behind the badge to who they are as people.

You can view and purchase the book on blurb.com by clicking HERE.   Stacey also has a show of photographs and interview excerpts currently running at Photographic Center Northwest here in Seattle, through January 15.

My role was to assist with the technical aspects of the project — among other things, working images using Lightroom and Photoshop, laying out the book in InDesign, building her website, keepingabluelighton.com, and printing and framing images for her show.  It has been a great pleasure, and very inspirational for me.  Stacey wasn’t a portrait photographer before this project, and had no connection to the police department.  She felt passionate about an issue and came up with an idea for a photo project, set tight timelines and high standards for her work, and did whatever it took to get it done, learning as she went.   Now with the book and the publicity it has been getting, she is changing perceptions, and therefore changing the world.

For more information, check out Stacey’s website and blog at www.keepingabluelighton.com.

Now that the project is for the most part over, I will get back to blogging about Lightroom!