"A picture is worth a thousand words."

"The dollar is almighty."

These are ideas we have been raised with in America. As we all know, or are now learning, values are not fixed. Worth is a kinetic force whose beauty truly lies in the eye of the beholder.

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then its value is to be found in the story it tells and in the truth it reveals.

The abundance of images which surround us are largely lacking in truth, which suggests that they are lacking in value. These images reveal more about the intent of those who created the image than the subject of the image.

As consumers abandon the print world and scour the internet for raw images, from any source which might convince them of its "realness", we can see how deeply truth is missed. Americans are so hungry for truth that they have shown their willingness to abandon beauty and style in its pursuit.

Yet, beauty is not separate from truth! Beauty exists within truth. It does not float grandiosely somewhere above it. Beauty without truth can be fun and frivolous; It is a shiny bauble without much meaning. In times like these though, how much value does a shiny bauble hold for us?

One need not forsake the beauty and style of good photography in order to create an image which reveals the truth of its subject.

The photographic portrait is an art form that has embraced the notion of sharing 1000 words of truth while maintaining style and reveling in beauty.

Portrait artists throughout history have struggled to maintain a balance of these three ingredients: style, beauty and truth.

In our modern era of portrait photography, an overladen portion of style has crushed the revealing truth that portraiture should hold.

Baqi and Natalia Kopelman offer their combined experience in art, photojournalism, documentary photography, commercial advertisement, lighting, and oddly enough wedding photography to create truly telling portrait worth 1000 words.