I've missed a few shots, like the time I drove by the St. Moritz, a condemned art deco hotel, and saw that the homeless had set up a row of torn beach umbrellas and broken lounge chairs out front. It looked like a shot of an abandoned ghost town out West, the tumbleweed rolling. I was late for an appointment, and by the time I drove back, the police had cleared the scene. Now, 10 years, later, the St. Moritz is part of the Loew's Convention Center Hotel.

One day, when I was just starting to take pictures, I got a call from, yes, Catherine Deneuve asking if I could take her vintage shopping on her one day off in Miami. We met at her hotel and caravaned from Goodwill to vintage shop in a chauffeured town car with her hair and makeup guys and daughter Chiara. At each location Catherine (the producer) and I ("Truffaut") confabbed in the parking lot. It was my "Day for Night." Catherine was like a kid in a toy store. I had to stop myself from taking her picture. If I did she'd be recognized. In South Beach, after a quickie Cuban lunch, she took out her tiny camera and we compared point & shoots. At Last Tango in Paradise, we tried on kooky hats and took turns posing in front of the mirror. Unfortunately, I shot blanks. I didn't know my Olympus Infinity kept clicking even though the film inside didn't advance. I can still see each frame in my head.

© 2001 cyn. zarco