This environmental portrait was taken in 1963 by Arnold Newman, creating a menacing feel due to the low lighting and specific shadows around the mans face. The man is Alfried Krupp, a Nazi war criminal who owned many factories, mass producing dangerous arms, vehicles and other weapons. He is also known to have heavily profited from the racist slave labor imposed by the Nazis. The images intimidating atmosphere comes mostly from the dark shadows surrounding Krupp’s eyes, created by butterfly lighting, giving him a sinister appearance. His eyes are also the focal point of the image. The dark, more negative essence is further emphasized around Krupp as the background is obviously much brighter. The background is a post war view of one of Krupp’s factories. Newman uses all sorts of techniques to give the image this unnerving feel. Firstly he deliberately positions his camera so Krupp is central in the image, ignoring the rule of thirds. This, combined with the depth shown going into the background gives Krupp a sense of undeserved power.
I grouped the above images together as they portray the same vertical leading line architecture both with each other, and with the gallery they are displayed in.
These images I decided to display in a digital zine format. They follow the same tonal and textual features showcasing the sandpapered clouds in a dark underexposed style.
The above images follow the same desaturated and geometric rectangle features which coincides with the gallery I chose which features grey walls and geometric rectangular architecture.
These images feature the same experimental focal style. They all have unconventional focus features with varying depths of field which made it suitable to use the immersive gallery which provides depth of field as some images look closer than the others.
The above images are curated together into that setting for the way they look like a portal into a different universe.
Method
I first gathered my my images according to how aesthetic they would look simultaneously, into five sub-galleries
I then chose a fitting empty background to stitch the clusters of images onto. I chose backgrounds that possessed similar shape and form of the images and also any other visual elements such as similar cloud patterns.
I then used photoshop to transpose these images onto the coinciding backgrounds by making use of free transform and warp to make the images look naturally apart of the background. I also added a drop-shadow to the images to help achieve this.
August Sander was born in Herdorf, a small rural village east of Cologne, in 1876. He was one of nine children of a peasant and miner family. Sander is now viewed as a forefather of conceptual art and a pioneering documentarian of human diversity. In his project entitled ‘Menschen des 20. Jahrhunderts (People of the 20th Century)’, a project that spanned four decades of his life, Sander strove to systematically document contemporary German society. (https://www.hauserwirth.com/artists/2859-august-sander).
The photo above is one of the images taken by Sanders in his lifetime of a Varnisher. The background is black which allows all the detail of the person and objects to prominent. The image also has high contrast and is in black and white due to the time in which it was taken.
‘I hate nothing more than sugary photographs with tricks, poses and effects. So allow me to be honest and tell the truth about our age and its people’ – Sanders
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expression is predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person
What makes a portrait a portrait?It should say something about the person you are photographing or the person you are creating with the camera
An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings. The term is most frequently used of a genre of photography.
The best to take an environmental portrait is to spend time getting to know the individual you’re photographing, chose the perfect location, use props if you need to, posing, direct eye contact to make sure the subject is engaged with the camera and use good camera settings.
LOOKING AT ENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAITS-
“An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subject’s usual environment, such as in their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings.
Examples of some well known environmental photographs –
Arnold Newman : Leonard Bernstein , 1968
August Sander : Brick Layer, 1928
The photographer I chose to look at – Mary Ellen Mark
Mary Ellen Mark was an American photographer known for her photojournalism, documentary photography, portraiture, and advertising photography. She photographed people who were “away from mainstream society and toward its more interesting, often troubled fringes
Analyzing one of her photographs–
looking back at a master Mary Ellen Mark, 2010
In this portrait you can see that the young boy isn’t posing and it’s not a formal shoot as he’s leaning back on the camper van behind him. It’s a half body portrait and it’s been taken further away than a normal head shot would be taken. The portrait is taken from the same angel as the boy’s perspective. It’s in black and white which in some way creates a sad effect and mood as there’s no bright colours.
An environmental portrait can tell you a lot about the subject being photographed, for instance, in this photo you can assume that the boy hasn’t been raised in a wealthy area due to the background around him and the dirty clothes. The boy is holding an animal which implies he might have been raised on the countryside. On the other hand the dove he’s holding may symbolize innocence and hope as he’s only young and is living in poor life conditions. He isn’t directly engaging with the camera as there’s no eye contact but his facial expression is sad as he isn’t smiling which might indicate fear.
Composition- in the photo the black and white lines behind the boy on the camper van are drawing the attention directly towards the boy as they’re slightly slanted and go directly towards him making him the main subject. The campus he’s at is quite dirty and depressing as there’s nothing pleasing to look at.
My photo-shoot action plan-
who– a stranger/worker in their everyday working environment or a family member
what– an individual working and someone was is surrounded in their working environment.
when– after school , go to the market or shop and ask permission to take photos.
why- to capture people in their everyday environment and the background that surrounds them on a daily basis.
how- take them on my camera in natural lighting.
MY CONTACT SHEET-
I went into town , to the market and fishmarket, to take photos of workers in their working environment. I photographed a few different sections of the market to get a variety of different backgrounds.
Some of my favourite and edited photos;
These are my favourite photos I took because I think they all capture the working environment perfectly as well as it being a portrait. Only one photo I took was a full body shot and the rest you could only see half of their body as they were behind desks. I wanted them to smile to create the mood of a happy working environment instead of them looking sad.
Street photography, also known as candid photography, captures unstaged incidents often in public places. Street photography can focus on people and their behaviour in public, or used to record people’s history. However, people being featured in the image is not a necessity within street photography. For example some photographers often produce photos without people included in the frame, but their presence is suggested by the subject matter.
“Jeu de Paume” – Garry Winogrand (Circa 1980-1983)
Helen Levitt
“NYC” – Helen Levitt (1938)
Helen Levitt, born in Brooklyn, NYC, in 1913, was known as “the most celebrated and least known photographer of her time”. Whilst teaching art classes to children in the 1930’s, Levitt became fascinated by chalk drawings that were part of the New York children’s street culture at the time. This led her to buying her first camera to capture the drawings and the children who made them. This resulted in her publishing these images in 1987, naming them “In The Street: chalk drawings and messages, New York City” (1938-1947). Levitt continued to take photos throughout the 30’s and 40’s, with her work first being published in the Fortune magazine’s 1939 issue. Helen Levitt received her first grant in 1946 from the Museum of Modern Art in 1946, and received two grants in 1959 and 1960 from the Guggenheim Foundation fro her colour photography work. She then published her first major collection, “A Way of Seeing”, in 1965 and became a Photography Fellow of the National Endowment for the Arts.
Analysis of Helen Levitt’s work
“New York, 1940” – Helen Levitt (1940)
Helen Levitt started her career by taking photographs of the inhabitants of poorer neighbourhoods in New York, such as the Bronx and Harlem. Here she photographs children in the streets of their neighbourhood.
The lighting used in this image is very low and dull. This suggests natural lighting was used as there is little representation of shadows or highlights. The use of natural lighting adds a sense of rawness to the image, as she captures the scene in its pure form, almost without purpose but simply to capture the moment.
There is little example of line within the photograph, however it could be argued that the placement of the pavement can be seen as a leading line to direct the viewers eyes to the focal point of the children, and the frame.
There is no form of repetition in the photograph as the composition is not purposely set up. There is also no use of echo or reflection in the photograph for the same reason.
The only use of shape in this photograph is the geometric square shape in the centre of the frame that the children are holding in the centre third of the image. Otherwise, the shapes in the photo are all organic and don’t have any relation to each other.
There is a wide depth of field within this photograph as both the background and foreground are in focus, this provides a strong sense of depth as the environment further displays the culture and meaning behind the focal point of the children.
There is little sense of texture in this photograph, however some may say the leading line of the edge of the pavement has a more uneven and rough surface, giving the overall image a harsher texture. However this is contrasted with the smoother surface of the pavement, on which the children stand.
There is a limited range of tones in this photograph as the image has a monochrome filter. The lightest parts of the photograph are the lighter-tones clothing of the people, which is juxtaposed with the harsh, black frame in the centre of the image. The dark frame takes up the majority of the photo, causing the image to tend towards the darker tones.
There is a lack of colour in this photograph, which is a common factor for Helen Levitt’s earlier work. This is most likely because colour photography was only made accessible in the 1930’s, therefore the majority of Levitt’s work was black and white until her later work in the late 1960’s. The lack of colour accentuates the strong contrast between light and dark.
The composition of the image is unbalanced and unorganised. This is because Levitt’s main focus in this shoot was to capture the joy and interest of the children in the poorer neighbourhood’s of New York, therefore the image is not set up and captured in the spur of the moment. Although there is a lack of thirds in this photograph, the focal point (that being the black frame) is coincidentally placed in the centre of the image.
Portrait photography draws attention to the subject. This is normally achieved through some combination of a shallow depth of field, composition, color, and lighting. It is aimed toward capturing the personality of a person or group of people.
Mood Board
These are photos are inspirational, and I plan to take some of my own in a similar style.
Images from Google “famous/iconic portrait photography”
Complementary Photography
Complementary photography is marked by the current time period, and reflects our values and, challenges at that point in time.
Environmental Photography
Environmental photography is when you take a photo of someone working in there environment, wearing there uniform, to create a more informative and dramatic photo.
Images from Google “environmental portrait photography”
Steve McCurry
He is an American portraiture photographer, he was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He made many trips to India and Pakistan, he was also smuggled into Afghanistan. He is best known for his evocative colour photographs that document both human struggles and joy. Having travelled the globe for over thirty years, McCurry has photographed warzones, burning oil fields, refugee camps, ship breaking yards and monsoons all over the world.
All images were taken by McCurry and published on https://www.stevemccurry.com/
Photo Shoot Plan
I plan to go into town and ask people that are working if i can take photos of them working naturally or stage a quick photo shot with them.
I plan to ask post men, bakers, shop assistants, fishmongers, and anyone else working in there environment.
I can take photos of them from the other side of the counter, which means the products they’re selling will be on display. Which helps the viewer understand their work environment.
My Photos
My Favourite Image
I like this because it shows the fishmonger in front of his filleted fish. The colours are vivid and they pop out as the rest of the image has a cold atmosphere as there are mostly cooling blue colours. The subject is centered, which sets the image up nicely. The whole image is in focus as it hows the work environment off. To take this photo I had to ask if it was ok to photograph them, I had to take it quick so it wasn’t to staged, although there is eye contact with the camera.
An environmental portrait is a portrait executed in the subjects usual environment, such as their home or workplace, and typically illuminates the subject’s life and surroundings. The term is most frequently used as a genre of photography.
Environmental Portrait Examples
Arnold Newman
Arnold Newman was an American photographer, born in 1918 in New York, well known for his environmental portraiture work, which showcased a formal image of a subject surrounded by their work space or environment. Newman stated that he viewed his photography as an expression of himself, reflecting him and his fascination with people and the world around him. Newman was also often named the “Father of Environmental Portraiture”, with his work being displayed in museums all over the world.
Arnold Newman Environmental Portraits
Analysis
Arnold Newman – Erhard Weyhe – 1948
This black and white, half body portrait, taken by Arnold Newman, clearly displays the genre of environmental portraits, due to the subject of this image being Erhard Weyhe, an art book dealer, sitting among his immense book collection. Furthermore, here the subject, Weyhe, is displaying direct eye contact with the camera showing engagement, also whilst smiling suggesting an informal image. These stacks of books allow for short and interrupted leading lines, that guide your eyes around the background of the image, whilst making what would be empty space around the portrait feel cluttered and meaningful to the story of the subject. These books, that show the essence of his profession also act as a repetition of shape throughout the photograph.
In Addition, the lighting of this image appears to be the natural lighting of the work environment due to the highly contrasting tones between the book pages and the shadowed areas around the room, which would perhaps mean that it could be described as underexposed. Here you can see that Newman has chosen to take this picture with a small aperture, therefore allowing for a large depth of field meaning that the subject’s workplace environment is clearly showcased. Furthermore, the shutter speed used for this image is presented as fast, due to the fact that it is a clear and detailed photograph without any blurs.
In this photograph Newman has intended to present one of the great book dealers of his time, Erhard Weyhe, and to give an incite on his way of living and working. This lifestyle has been presented by Newman as a somewhat labouring and almost chaotic one, due to what looks like an interminable tunnel of books, pilled high. This depiction of Weyhe could be a sign of respect and appreciation from Newman towards his profession.
Environmental Portrait Photo-shoot
Plan
Photo-shoot plan
Contact Sheet
For this photo-shoot I used a fast shutter speed aiming to capture sharp images. Also, I used a small aperture for these portraits so their work environment would be clear due to the nature of the background. Here I have crossed images out in red that I will not edit, either because the subject is not engaging with the camera, or it is too over exposed or blurry. I have also highlighted the images I will edit in green as I believe them to be my best from this shoot, showing the fundamentals of environmental portraiture.
Edited Images
Final Image
I believe that this is my best environmental portrait as it displays a clear half body image, with the subject surrounded by their work environment, shown on the board on the right. In addition, as the subject is smiling it causes the image to feel welcoming, reinforcing the profession qualities of teaching.
For this introduction to portraits, we had to take photographs of key workers or modern day heroes in their work attire. These key workers can come in all forms from the nurses and doctors who work on the front line, to the postmen and women who continued to do their job under such hazardous circumstances.
Contact Sheets
For this project I decided to focus on construction or repair workers that might have had to continue working during the lock-down stages of the pandemic to keep the island running. Here I have crossed out the images in red that I will not edit due to them being to blurry or not focusing on the topic of key workers. I have highlighted the images I will edit in green as I feel they best showcase the essence of the topic.
Edited Images
I believe that these are my best images as they display how life needs to carry on even in a global pandemic, and how people like this allow for that to happen. It could be said that they also incorporate this years theme of hope, as they are building for a future in which this pandemic no longer exists.
Portrait photography is a style of photography which is used to capture and document people, personalities and groups. This can be done through various methods such as environmental, candid, studio, photo montage, staged reality, and controlled condition photography. This genre of photography is important as it allows us to preserve history or display how we wish ourselves or others to be perceived.
Mood Board
Contemporary photography can be defined as a style in which photos showcase our own time period or the current world, rather than from earlier time periods.
