Meet Kent Barker | Portrait Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kent Barker and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kent, how has your work-life balance changed over time?
I am 73, so there is absolutely no question that my life/work balance has changed. As a young man I was focused primarily on the classic definition of success. Am I getting the biggest and best jobs? Did I bill more this year than last?

Age and experience changes one’s perspective. You realize how fleeting life is and that awareness shifts your priorities. I still love working and I still enjoy making a living.

Will this make me happy? Does it bring me joy? This is my current criteria for work.

Can’t say there are a lot of benefits to aging…but thankfully, this little bit of wisdom is one of them.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I am old enough to have spent half of my career as a film photographer. That may sound a bit antiquated in today’s world…but it provided significant benefits as a photographer. There was no “fixing it in Photoshop” back then. Lighting, exposure, posing, etc. all had to be as good as is possible. Being a photographer in that era required a deep understanding of the medium…and that proficiency within the craft sets me apart today. I am comfortable in the studio or on location…and can beautifully light one, five or a hundred individuals.

I have also worked at a national level, shooting ads for clients like Corona Beer. Four Seasons Hotels & Tony Lama Boots and portraits for magazines such as Rolling Stone, Town & Country, Vanity Fair, Outside & Texas Monthly.

I bring all of this experience and knowledge to my current sessions.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
To begin…we would have coffee and pastries at Full City Rooster in the Cedars. This is hands down the best coffee I have ever had in my life!. Lunch would be at Tribal All Day Cafe in Bishop Arts. It is a small neighborhood spot and I am a regular. The food is clean and largely organic…and the wait staff is super friendly. Another stop would be Oak Cliff Bread, a small couple owned bakery in Tyler station near where I live. They are open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. The long lines that form every morning tell you all you need to know. My final shout out is the Manhattan Project Beer Company. It’s a brewery located just a block off of Ft. Worth Ave. Their beer selection is broad and tasty and their food is just as good. There is seating indoors and a large covered patio as well. Great neighborhood spot!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Irving Penn and Annie Leibovitz were both contract photographers for major magazines. Penn worked in an earlier day for Harpers Bazaar and Vogue. Annie Leibovitz (who is still alive) shot for Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair. Both photographed the significant figures of their day and the images they created are now considered definitive records of those individuals.

My own love of portraiture and recognition of its significance in regard to ‘Legacy’ emanates from artists like Irving Penn and Annie Leibovitz. Whereas their focus was primarily on famous people… my lens has always been trained on ‘the rest of us’. A project that I am currently working on is a perfect example.

By the end of this year, I will have photographed fifty women over the age of 50! I am calling the series Fifty Over 50. It is a celebration of age, maturity & beauty…and all of the 50 participants will be in an exhibition that is scheduled to open the first weekend of December!

– I created this series because I wanted to work with people closer to my own age. “My tribe” so to speak.
– My goal is to create strong, editorial style portraits of each and every one of these women. Images that will artfully
define them at this particular time of their life. Images that will become a part of the their legacy.
– I am also very invested in convincing these women to bring prints home. All of us keep our photographs on our phones
& tablets and for so many reasons… those images will not last.
– A print is an object of beauty. It is something you can hold, that you can frame, that you can pass down through
generations.

Website: https:www.kentbarker.com

Instagram: https://kent.barker

Image Credits
All photographs © Kent Barker 2025.