Me & Photography

When I started doing A Level Photography, the first thing I looked at was portraiture. From then on, that has been my favourite aspect of the subject. In nearly all of my college projects, portraiture has been the main focus of my work, and through Representation this year, I have really enjoyed looking at portraiture once again!


Why do I love portraiture so much? Simple...I love the way the face can display emotion without even trying. You can see a person's personality and character in one image, even if the model doesn't purposely show it. I love setting a scene up, where I give the model a character to be, and an emotion to display - but I do prefer to catch a person at a specific moment, without them realizing. I think there is something truly beautiful about catching a person in a moment of joy, anger or excitement. By doing this, the photographer captures the inner beauty of the person without them even trying. On this note, through Representation, I came across a book called 'Individuals'. The book is full to the brim of celebrity pictures, but not how we see the people in the media. Each image is different to the next - the celebrities each show a hidden identity, that the public do not usually see.

Steve Zahn, by Christian Witkin (2001)

I love how this photography by Christian Witkin is composed. Usually celebrities are made to look more glamourous and perfect than in real life. However, in this image of Steve Zahn, the photographer has simply taken a close-up photograph of the everyday celebrity. I think that a lot of people would benefit from seeing this particular book because there is so much pressure these days to have an air-brushed celebrity look because of the media.

India.Arie, by Christian Witkin (2001)

Again, in this image by Witkin, he has captured India at a beautiful point, where she is almost in her own world, not thinking about the camera at all. Her clothes are not glamourous specifically for a shoot like a lot of magazines and newspapers. To be frank, she looks like a normal person, and I think that Witkins has portrayed this really well. It almost looks like India is dancing and not even aware of what is going on around her, which I think is beautiful. Although the image is framed like a normal celebrity shoot, I think India looks far more natural and beautiful being caught at this particular moment. 

Stockard Channing, by Christian Witkin (2002)

I absolutely love this photo of Stockard Channing. This photo does not represent glamour and elegance, but instead it represents natural beauty and portrays the seductive plus-size woman that surrounds us today. Channing almost shows a 'yummy mummy' pose here, rather than the typical 'runway pose'. I love the way that she is looking straight into the camera, therefore connecting with the audience, with a cheeky grin on her face - this shows how confident and happy she is with her body and looks, which is the most beautiful thing a woman can do. 

I think this book is really inspirational to the people of today, because it shows that when having your picture taken, you do not have to be skinny, elegant and perfect - in fact, just being yourself is more inspiring to other people, and I think that more people should be confident enough to have their portrait taken, just as themselves.