Props All Around

Jimmy Chow

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.

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.

Finally

Malin Akerman

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.