This is to help me to try to gain a greater insight into the mind of a portrait photographer, to look at different styles of portrait photography and to try to find a style of portrait photography that is relevant to my body of work.
From my research online, I have found a blog called Clipping Design.com
http://www.clippingdesign.com/blog/most-famous-portrait-photographers-and-their-great-photography/
Most Famous Portrait Photographers and Their Great Photography
This blog, introduces and discusses some of the most prominent portrait photographers of the modern day.
Some of these photographers include:
- Richard Avedon
- Dorothea Lange
- Cecil Beeton
- Yousuf Karsh
- Irving Penn
- Annie Liebovitz
Top 10 Best Portrait Photographers Today
This is the website of a photographer called Travis Dewitz.
http://www.dewitzphotography.com/photography-product-reviews/top-10-best-portrait-photographers-today/
I shows a list of his 10 favourite portrait photographers with very useful links to their websites.
These photographers are:
JOE MCNALLY
The image above is from one of the portfolios on Mcnally's website called ''Athletes''.
I find this image really striking from the way that it has been lit.
It appears to have been lit using 3 seperate light sources.
The main light appears to be in front of the subject but slightly offset to the let side of the shot which leaves the right side of his face slightly darker than the left.
He is also lit from both sides as well. These side-lights are positioned in such a way that they really accentuate the shape of the subjects face.
This use of multiple light-sources to enhance the shape and details of the subjects face and facial details will definitely be important in my work.
JOEY LAWRENCE
The first two images above are from a body of work called ''Portraits'' by Lawrence.
I was drawn to the first image by the dramatic way in which it has been lit.
The use of a single light-source from one side gives an element of mystery to the part of the subject that is dimly lit.
The second image appears to be lit with 2 lights.
A main light in front of and square to the subject's face and with a second light behind the subject.
As with the example above from Mcnally's work, the position of the light pointing straight at the subject's face really emphasises the cheekbones and the eyes of the subject.
This image is from a series entitled ''Holy Men''.
This image appears to be lit primarily from the right.
I like the way that the subject is looking straight into the camera instead of being posed at an angle.
SCOTT KELBY
ZACK ARIAS
I have chosen to compare the two images above by Zack Arias as I am unsure as to the final format for my images.
Should they be captured in portrait or landscape format?
The portrait format is the traditional way as it is ''Portrait'' in its layout.
The first image which is presented in landscape also has its own qualities and I think that it is a very effective way to show a portrait image.
TIM FLACH
He has a truly unique and innovative approach to his photography of the animal world.
He really makes a connection with his subject. Much deeper and more meaningful than any other wildlife photography that I have seen before.
His work really shows the character, thought and emotion of his subjects.
Technically, I this that his work is some of the best that I have ever seen.
His use of lighting is exceptional.
The lighting in each of his shots is just so well balanced, it is really difficult to work out exactly how the lighting has been set up in some of his shots. They are just lit so evenly and precisely.
The tones of the fur, feathers and skin are captured so well, there are no overbearing highlights that detract the viewers attention.
The gaze over the shoulder of the bat on the left is very clever and really demonstrates an almost human-like characteristic.
This image is particularly relevant to my own project.
I really like this images of what I think is a type of Cockroach.
The use of a landscape format gives a good balance to the image.
Due to the large antennae of the Cockroach, if this were shown in a portrait format, he would have to crop a lot of the antennae which I think would definitely diminish the impact of the image.
The image on the left of a Great-Grey Owl again has an almost human-like feel in the way that you can interpret the expression of the Owl. It has a really intense expression whereas the Owl on the right look as if it is deep in though with its eyes closed.
This image of a male Loin is a fantastic shot. Again it really does have the feel of a classic portrait. It portrays an emotion. The connection with the subject's eyes is really powerful.
The composition is also really strong in this image.
When I first look at this image, my attention is immediately drawn to the eye of the Lion.
The clarity and detail of the eye is very impressive indeed.
This set of unusually coloured Tigers works really well as a set and I think that this could be a very interesting way of displaying my final images together.
In terms of the definition of portraiture, this series allows the viewer to look at some of the subtle differences between these similar subjects.
This is another clever image of a Mandrill.
It is very elegant in the way that it has been captured. As with all of Flach's work, the level of detail and attention to detail with the lighting is superb.
This images of two Chimpanzee's embracing is simply stunning. It really captures the connection between the two animals and has a real sense of depth.
These two images of a Gorilla are really contrasting.
The first image of the Gorilla looking straight into the camera to me appears to be really sinister whereas the image below portrays the Gorilla with a much more thoughtful gaze.
This image of a Bull-Frog is very surreal.
The legs of a less-fortunate Frog are poking out of it's mouth!
The pink skin-tone of it's bottom lip has avery human-like characteristic.
Throughout these images by Flack, there is an incredible connection with the eyes of the subject.
Particularly in the images where the subjects are looking straight into the camera.
They are incredibly striking and I really feel that this approach could definitely be applied to mu own body of work.
ERIK ALMAS
This is a really nice example of a classic portrait by Eric Almas.
The subject's shoulders are slightly rotated but she still looks straight into the camera.
This shot appears to be lit using two lights.
the main light is from her left and a second, much softer light is used further back on the right hand side to highlight her hair.
CHASE JARVIS
This is an image of the musician Moby from a series called ''People you should know''
I really like his approach to this image.
The fact that the subject's face really fills the frame allows Jarvis to present a lot of detail to the viewer. this is a really important aspect of what I want to portray in my images.
On a negative note, I do not like the way in which he has almost over-exposed the image but I think that this is a question of personal taste.
MICHAEL MULLER
These are two incredible images of a male Lion by Michael Muller.
From my research, Muller is primarily a photographer of celebrity portraiture, having photographed some of the biggest names in Hollywood. Samuel L Jackson, Brad Pitt, Megan Fox and Bruce Willis to name but just a few.
these images of the Lion are a huge contrast to his usual style of human-portraiture which is very impressive.
The first image of the Lion baring its teeth is visually very powerful, the huge, sharp teeth are the first thing that the viewer sees.
In the second image, the Lion appears to be much more thoughtful.
These 3 portrait images by Muller are all lit from the front which again emphasises the facial details and structures of his subjects.
The more that I see the style of portrait where the subject is looking straight into the camera, the more I feel that this is the correct approach for my work.
ANNIE LEIBOVITZ
JAIME IBARRA
This is a very atmospheric portrait by Jaime Ibarra.
Again, the subject looks straight into the camera in is light from the front.
From my initial research, I have found a German Photographer called Martin Schoeller.
The images above are from Schoeller's body of work entitled Close-Up.
It is this consistent series of images where the composition is exactly the same that would really fit well in my body of work.
Again, they are lit from the front as some of the previous portrait styles that I have discussed above.
It is this similarity in the way that the subjects are captured by Schoeller that allows the viewer to look at the differences in the features of the subjects and this is something that I really want to portray in my final body of work.
By putting the images together like this which I have done in Illustrator, this set of single images now becomes a series and allows the viewer to see the differences between the subjects.
Could this be a possible approach for my final body of work?
Steve Pyke
http://www.pyke-eye.com
http://www.flowersgallery.com/exhibitions/flowers/steve-pyke-fc/works#3774
3 portraits by british-born photographer Steve Pyke.
The first 2 images are capture in the same, from-on approach as seen in a lot of the images above. Both the images appear to be lit from the left side with the first image of the old lady showing a much stronger source of light.
The third image above is of Punk Rock musician John Lydon aka Jonny Rotten.
This is a much more traditional style of approach to portraiture with the shoulders slightly rotated and a very strong single light source from the side.
The images above are from Schoeller's body of work entitled Close-Up.
It is this consistent series of images where the composition is exactly the same that would really fit well in my body of work.
Again, they are lit from the front as some of the previous portrait styles that I have discussed above.
It is this similarity in the way that the subjects are captured by Schoeller that allows the viewer to look at the differences in the features of the subjects and this is something that I really want to portray in my final body of work.
Could this be a possible approach for my final body of work?
Steve Pyke
http://www.pyke-eye.com
http://www.flowersgallery.com/exhibitions/flowers/steve-pyke-fc/works#3774
3 portraits by british-born photographer Steve Pyke.
The first 2 images are capture in the same, from-on approach as seen in a lot of the images above. Both the images appear to be lit from the left side with the first image of the old lady showing a much stronger source of light.
The third image above is of Punk Rock musician John Lydon aka Jonny Rotten.
This is a much more traditional style of approach to portraiture with the shoulders slightly rotated and a very strong single light source from the side.
Your expertise shines through in every paragraph. Fantastic job!
ReplyDeleteVisit Here: 3d modeling service