As I type this, I already have several ideas in mind for the profile portrait option; however I will explore the other options available to me as well.
I explored:
- The Telegraph Magazine
- The Times Magazine
- The Guardian Weekend
- The Guardian Feast
Profile Portrait
A profile portrait is a series of images which often accompanies a form of interview, usually with an actor, celebrity, or sportsperson, for example.
I found three stand-out Profile Portrait sections in both the Telegraph and Times Magazine.
TELEGRAPH MAGAZINE – Michael Caine
This seemed fairly disjointed, as after the introductory DPS, each pahge was separated by an advert. The majority of the images used here were stock, from Alamy and Getty; supplemented with three original portraits being shot by Jack Davidson. The stock images are all still frames from Caine’s various movies, which show him throughout his life and help to give a wider range of images, from his more reckless youth, right up until his more serious adulthood/old-age.
This reminded me almost of a photostory, with the stock imagery including a variety of close-ups and mid-length portraits, as well as wider action shots.
TELEGRAPH MAGAZINE – Edward Watson
Probably the best of the three – these images of ballet dancer Edward Watson follow a uniform style, and mostly show him in action – with one striking establising portrait (lit with a ring flash to the left of his face). I particularly like how each image is shot against the same backdrop, with the single light appearing to be in the same location. It likely shows that the photographer (Rick Guest) likely had little time with Watson.
TIMES MAGAZINE – BTS
As a profile portrait comes, this one of the K-Pop band BTS seemed to be lacking in imagery. Of the six images used in this segment, only one was shot by a credited photographer (the establishing and cover image, shot by Brian Guido.) This segment mostly consists of behind the scenes imagery of the band looking more relaxed, to help make them appear more down to earth (for example, the image on the third page, with the band member eating a bunch of fried chicken on the floor.)
Food – Guardian Feast
Feast magazine seemed to be a hotbed for original photography, as it is much more difficult to have stock images of each new recipe for every new edition each week. These images are evenly lit, and all shot from above to show the detail of the dish. I have never shot any food photography before, so this could be an interesting avenue to explore potentially.
As well as the profile portrait and food options, I can also shoot fashion or product photography too.
I have almost no interest in fashion photography, nor product photography, despite food photography essentially baing a form of product photography; so I will probably leave these out of the picture.
I haven’t had any ideas about food photography as of yet, however with the profile portrait, after being introduced to the agency called Ugly, which represents ‘normal’ people (despire their ‘bodies’ section). Some of the people represented by this agency seem like pretty interesting characters to photograph.
I hate studio lighting. I’ve known that since the Mono project since year one; however since I’ll be having an assistant with me put me in a better mood, and I think I’d like to challenge myself with studio lighting some more. This time though, less with the face, and more with the entire body. The ‘bodies’ section of Ugle contains some very well built individuals, whose bodies will provide a definite challenge with lighting.
That being said, I have never shot food before, so that would be a welcome challenge in itself, however I will be pushed for time when it comes to carrying out test shoots due to being unavailable at weekends.
Ryan Trower 