Photographer research

Photographer Research

After trying to recreate this silhouetted portrait in the studio using different lighting placements I decided I wanted to create a portrait that used a lot of contrast to create a striking image. Whilst searching for past photographers who have used shadows to enhance their portraits I found George Mayer and his appropriately named collection of portraits “Shadows”. 

Shadows by George Mayer

In this collection Mayer uses high contrast black and white photography to present an image of the “ideal woman” in a way that is not only more attractive and elegant but also much more imposing and powerful. But Mayer didn’t just stop at using a single directional snood flash to create this high level of visual contrast, he went further by using gobo masks to cast shapes on the models faces to highlight different areas of their bodies to extreme effect. By having only fractions of the models appearance visible for the viewer it adds an enigmatic quality to the portrait and also allows him to greatly highlight different aspects of their bodies, such as the shape of facial structures or the elegance of their bodies.

Numero Points a la Ligne - Solve Sundsbo

Martha Hunt - Solve Sundsbo

Another portrait photographer who uses a similar method of casting shadows on models is Solve Sundsbo from Norway, who after studying photography in London went on to be first assistant to Nick Knight. Sundsbo uses much larger gobo masks to cast patterns on his models which despite looking interesting, fail to achieve the same degree of mystery and impact that Mayer succeeded at. I think this is because the shadows being cast don’t actually accentuate any part of the models features other than removing 50% of them.

Marcin Ryczek

I decided to experiment with this method by putting 

my phones torch in a cheese grater (left) as I didn’t have access to gobo masks. I found that by using the cheese grater to shine a pattern onto my face I created a distressed feeling to my self portrait that wouldn’t of been as effective if you’d have seen my whole face. It also focuses the viewers attention onto my eye which stands out thanks to the catchlight of the torch in the pupil. It also stands out due to the placement of the eye taking advantage of the middle line. By having the eye looking directly into the camera and also being in the middle of the x axis, the self portrait stares into the viewer and follows them around the room just like the Mona Lisa does. In photography, the middle line can be used effectively not just with the eye placement but also with the composition of a photograph, such as this photograph by Marcin Ryczek.

From this experiment I’ve come to the conclusion that the key factors that will determine the success of my final portrait are highlighting certain areas of the face to accentuate them, while leaving other facial features in the shadows, and composing the portrait so the eye takes advantage of the middle line.