“Sometimes concert pianists can describe the feel of the keys the first time they sat to play- how they held their breath on the bench before they pressed, and the way the note sang. Apparently it’s the same for certain photographers because Adriana Cruz can remember the moment when she first felt the camera cord around her neck, the grip around the lens and the weight of that 35 mm… It. Just. Felt. Right. And from that Pentax she took with her on a walking trip out into a field beneath electrical wires, she knew the slight buzz in the air and the hair rising on the back of her neck as she framed her shot wasn’t from the cords above her but from what she held in her hand. She still gets that feeling now, even as she’s gone from amateur adventurer and wanderer to professional photographer. From a simple Pentax to her favorite Canon 5D – with a bit of Polaroid, Hasselblad, and everything else in-between – Ms. Cruz brings a sense of understanding to her work.

Some might say an understanding of the psychology of photos, others of the moment she is shooting in, or some, the person in the frame. A professional photographer can judge the light right or shoot from the hip, shoot at the right angle, balance space, contrast black and white and lead the eye, but she does it all with an underlying suggestion of depth and story. It has been said that writers are the engineers of the soul- well, as a photographer, Ms. Cruz goes ahead and puts it on display. Able to not only handle the technical aspects but also the underlying root, the intangibles, the slight nuances that flit out of reach of so many others, she brings to the job her expertise, her ability to make others instantly at ease whether it’s in front of the camera or over coffee, and that extra factor that is continually pervasive both in her relationships with others and her craft. While many wedding photographers might call what they do their “hobby”, their “work” or even their “passion”, it is clear from either a session with her or a simple view of of her photos that it is her “art.” She uses every opportunity with a camera to try something expansive, original, or immersing. And along the way, she manages to make us all look really good…”

herenorth