Tap Dancing Story

Aug 30, 2016 | Always A Dancer

Tap Dancing Story

Last week I wrote about meeting Walter Fields and incorporating him into an Always A Dancer photo shoot.

When I asked him to be a part of Always A Dancer, he said yes, as long as I came up with something for him to do while tapping. He taught almost every form of dance, but at heart he’s a tap dancer. I understood: ballet is still my heart, no matter how much time I spend in other forms of dance.

As I struggled with what would look like a tap dance, I kept coming back to sweeping. I don’t know if there’s a Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly movie involving a broom, but that’s what I kept gravitating towards. He loved the idea, and swept and danced like it was the way he always did the job.

Always A Dancer: Tap

Aug 23, 2016 | Always A Dancer

Always A Dancer: Tap

I met Walter Fields a few weeks ago. He’s been dancing for 77 years. SEVENTY-SEVEN. I can’t even wrap my mind around that. Talk about the epitome of always a dancer!

As soon as I met him, I knew I wanted to have him be a part of my project, but tap is one of the hardest dance forms to capture in still photography. He agreed, on the condition that I figured out how to make it work.

I loved the challenge, but was scared I wouldn’t be able to pull it off. After all, a friend had asked about doing tap pictures almost a year ago, and I still hadn’t figured out what to do. A library might have been cool, but what library would let me take over for an hour or two?

Then I knew exactly what I wanted. A few days later, I went back to see him and told him about my ideas.

He was game, so all I needed to do was find a mother with a young baby. As soon as that challenge was figured out and she agreed to it, we set everything up. I brought my kids along, and they were the perfect finishing touch to the shot.