March 19, 2008

Props All Around

The first thing you realize when you are new to the movie business is that there is a tremendous amount of effort going into every single thing that will be filmed. Props, costume, art direction, set decorating, lighting, the list is almost endless. It's work done by people whose talent runs deep, who's excitement is worn on their sleeve and in the case of Watchmen couldn't be more passionate. The first few weeks in Vancouver I learned tons about the process and shared my impressions with those that cared to listen. To a person they enjoyed my fresh perspective and wondered aloud if I'd still feel the same at the end of the gig. I'm here to tell you, I do.

Making a movie of any scale but certainly a complicated, nuanced one like Watchmen has been a life-changing enterprise. While there are numerous comforts and perks to the gig, the 104 shooting days were some of the longest and consistently demanding days I've ever had as a photographer. I was a deer in headlights for a good number of 'em too. Sure there's a fair bit of down-time for some but with everything being fresh and new to me, I was a busy man documenting the efforts before me. Finally, after months of shooting everything I saw, word came from the studio that I could take it easy on the behind-the-scenes stuff. Phew.

Being a portrait guy, I made a point of trying to shoot some of those folks in my Streetstudio. It was quickly dubbed "The Clay Cube" by the ADs (Assistant Directors) and now my Lightroom catalog uses the keyword "cube" to categorize those portraits. All 8000+ of them.

This first portrait is of Jimmy Chow. He was the head of the props department. Jimmy epitomizes all that was so impressive among the Watchmen crew. He was one of the more fascinating, enthusiastic, generous, articulate and caring folks and his work reflected it. He and his gang spent dizzying amounts of time and effort on every single thing they touched. To hear him tell the story of the blood splotch on the Comedian's pin is a remarkable tale of experience melded with artfulness. One day he gave me a little tour of his props truck and I was forever changed. I couldn't believe the attention to detail that was being brought to his craft. It was just mind-numbing. During that tour he said something that I hope comes true. He said, "I really think we're making the Blade Runner of the 21st century." I nodded with a new sense of clarity and hopefulness.

Make pictures.

March 16, 2008

Inspiration. Pure and Simple

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/84

I had the honor of making a portrait of James Nachtwey once and just recently ended up chatting with his college roommate at a suburban New York party with my parents. Small world.

I listened to this as a podcast yesterday walking around Berlin. (I knew the pictures he was referring to so the video wasn't critical. If you're not so familiar, stick with the video). It reminded my of all that's right with our medium. Strong, strong stuff.

Make pictures. Make a difference.

March 11, 2008

Finally

This blog has been virtually abandoned by me of late. The obvious reason is my most recent 44,000 photos have been embargoed by Warner Brothers as they prepare their marketing might in support of Watchmen. I totally understand. It's no big deal. Happily, five of my photos were just released on the Watchmen movie site so I'm presumably allowed to share them here too.

One of the fascinating things about these recent "costume reveals" is that my choice to give them a little distressed look has been attacked by a handful of fanboys unhappy with my efforts. To be honest, it's all a little funny to see the over-analysis of my decision unfold in comment threads. So to all the critics, let's make one thing perfectly clear. I just added some crap to the images to give them something in common. I took the shots over the course of months. Some are more set up, others more casual, others straight from the action.

I think the picture of Ozy is taken while Matthew Goode was just standing rehearsing his lines. He doesn't like photos so I worked around his disdain. The shot of Rorschach would have been different had Jackie Earl Haley not pointed out that his stance was out of character. It too had been taken while the cameras weren't rolling. We swapped it for one where he's in character. That's just two photos, taken months apart, in completely different settings. What's a guy to do to make them feel like they belong together. I know, Photoshop, duh.

When I heard they were going to share some shots with some studio execs, I offered to give them a little love and the producers were happy to let me do my thing. I whipped up some noise and grunge brushes, smacked 'em around and voila, they had something in common visually. It's not a Zack Snyder conspiracy. It's not an insult to Dave Gibbons (who is a fantastic guy btw) and it's most certainly not what the movie is going to look like. They're still photos for goodness sake.

Anyway, it's fascinating to know that my photos are now floating around cyber-space as the only available images for people to critique. If I'd known they were going to get the play they are getting I might have given it more attention. Then again, those days on set were busy ones. Ideas were shared, actions were taken, and we moved on. Now, in the hyper-sensitive environment of fan sites, it seems as if the whole thing had been given tremendous thought when it simply had not. It's a movie they are making, not a photo essay. I for one am glad that the focus is on that and not on some photos simply intended to wet appetites.

Make pictures, nothing to see here.

November 28, 2007

I'm Watching the Watchmen

I'm alive.
I'm in Vancouver.
I'm working.

I'm working every day of the week for a minimum of twelve hours straight and for the past week and into the next two weeks it's just at night. A night that last's longer than the day. And wetter and colder than most places this time of year.

Why? Because Zack Snyder is making a new movie and I've been asked to participate in its assembly. They call me Stills Photographer.

It's been eye-opening to say the least and absolutely unexpectedly consuming. And finally, because of the nature of the work, I can't share my images. At least until now. Over the next month or two or three I intend to release studio-approved images here and if appropriate, mirrored on the movie's blog that give a little glimpse into my efforts. This week they released four images that sent the fanboy's into a frenzy.

Amazingly, the studio released these images with little or no manipulations. I would have given them a little lovin' if nothing else. They didn't even rename them staying instead with my numbering scheme. So be it. If it were me, I'd have dipped 'em in the special sauce.

As a partial aside, the links to the fan site get me thinking about the power of photographs again. We're on lock-down on set to prevent the leaking of images. I heard rumors of people being frisked for cameras before coming onto the backlot. It's all quite fascinating but more on that later.

Make pictures. Be patient.

August 03, 2007

What's in a Gaze?

This is one of those images that lingers in your head. Maybe that's a bit presumptuous. It lingers in mine. I shot it early in the trip but didn't get around to giving it some lovin' until today. I like the obstructed, less than perfect, quick but deep gaze. The filthy shirt's texture is a bonus. Subject-wise, it's more of the same in terms of children's curiosity but the lack of smiles and fleeting compositional codes give it make it resonate more than most of the others.

Every image we make is coded with meaning. Some are more obvious or cliche than others but then, it's a rare thing to make an image that's so original that new codes of meaning can be introduced. I was showing a friend recently that just burning and dodging an image can change it's feel and thus, it's meaning.

This is perhaps a bigger issue that I'm not prepared to explore right now but I enjoy the fact that a photograph, such a common thing, can wield such profundity. This one, maybe not so much, but I hope you catch my drift.

Make pictures that resonate.

August 02, 2007

Slowing Down

I got a lovely tour of the Dormans factory in Nairobi with this man. We wandered slowly through all the different areas of the facility and then we stumbled upon this little corner where the light was just magical. I first photographed another worker in the space but only when I simplified the composition and took advantage of the white coat did the shot really sing for me. I loved the soft dappled nature of the light.

I could have spent more time there to really explore the compositional possibilities but for whatever reason rushed through it. Sometimes I think my fast approach works against me and this was a case in point. It's not to say that I'm disappointed in the image because I'm not. Sometimes I just need to slow down my vision to match my actions. Would another minute of exploration really made a difference to anyone other than me? I doubt it. But that opportunity is gone now.

Make pictures.

August 01, 2007

Mundane Tanzania

I haven't made any mundane diptychs lately in favor of full-frame efforts. This afternoon I found myself in the Dar Es Salaam airport's domestic terminal and was struck by the art on the wall. One lone illustration of elephants being lit by florescent lights spoke to me. I shot it with a square crop in mind but not sure where I'd find it's compliment. A few minutes later I realized I was supposed to be in the International terminal and returned down and out to the correct hallway. There is was. I pushed some furniture out of the way to get the same distance on the new illustration and completed my pair.

I was worried that someone would scold me for taking pictures as it was just to the left of where the passport control desks were found. In The States at least, there is a strict no-photography rule in place in such locales. Happily, there's no such silliness here.

Make pictures.

July 30, 2007

Take Three

I loved this guy the second I saw him. His blue eyes, wrinkles, big smile, the works. I made some candid shots but the light just wasn't working for me. He was game for a more direct portrait so I brought him to an open doorway and started shooting again. At first I made vertical shots but they just weren't doin' it either. Finally I spun my camera horizontally and it all clicked. I allowed him to just stare out at me and then in a flash of distraction his eyes glinted to the side. Click. I had my shot.

Make pictures.

July 27, 2007

Collective Visual Consciousness

Nactwey has his Pieta, I have my Rockwell...sort of.

I haven't spoken with Jim but I have no doubt when he saw that terrible scene he was immediately struck by it's visual similarity to Michelangelo's work or others like it. When I scanned the crowd of this meeting in Kenya and I saw this man I was immediately reminded of Norman Rockwell's study for "Freedom of Speech". I know my guy should be standing and he shouldn't have his hat on but perhaps that is what he will do. This is the photographic back-story to that famous illustration. Plus, I just had it in my head. The details weren't important. As I looked out and saw that face and that hat, Rockwell's work popped into my mind's eye.

Next thing you know I'm going to be stalking the suburbs for a pre-turkey-dinner shot.

Make pictures.

July 25, 2007

Red Alert

Yesterday's shot had some lovely reflected light and I remembered this one had that same warm red mud brick light. I was shooting inside a little coffee warehouse when a young boy came to the window to see what I was doing. I immediately saw the warmth of the light and the handsomeness of his face combine to make a potentially strong image. I swung the camera up fast, composed quickly and apparently decided to use just a sliver of the window in the frame. I can't say this was an altogether conscious decision. He didn't stick around long enough for a second frame so I'm glad I got it on the first.

Make pictures, think fast.

July 24, 2007

Keeping My Word

I shared a shot of this girl early in my trip and promised to share another one. Here it is. I don't do fashion or beauty much but this one sure feels like one. She has such an air of confidence and patience and the light bouncing off the mud bricks gave everything a lovely warmth.

Being early in the day, the light was still low in the sky. It was pretty hard to make a bad shot and then given the subject matter, it was mine to screw up.

Make pictures.

July 23, 2007

One Plus One

There's something about an empty classroom that I love. The left image is taken by peering through a chain link window before I was allowed in. The right one is a close up of the teacher's desk. You can tell by the chalk that not a lot goes to waste in this class. For no particular reason I put the two shots together. They've got a nice commercial feel when they're together.

The board was covered with some pretty wacky logarithms that I couldn't begin to decipher even with the basic steps of logarithmic calculations written in English. Math isn't my thing. Instead, I enjoyed the even light coming in from either side of the room, the cool breeze passing through and the simplicity of the subject matter. All the while, quietly pondered the mystery of where the heck all the student were.

I haven't seen one uniformed school-kid within twenty miles of Kalinzi.

Make pictures.