Woerishofer+Portrait



The photos I picked are mostly done by Richard Avedon, the reason I picked these photos is because, in most of his pictures the subject is doing something, an action or a certain pose, this leaves the brain to run free and think about what could possibly be the story behind such a pose or action. I think that's an interesting concept and I may want to take that idea and use it in my photos as well. I also noticed that most of the photos we looked at from the websites are in black in white, which adds effect to some photos but I think I will do mine in color.

The first image is a little silly, but it really makes me wonder what the story behind such an image could be. I mean, this person look at this piece of food with a crazed look, as if he's never seen chicken before, stuffing his mouth, perhaps he is a homeless person or just doesn't get a good meal too often, or maybe just really really likes chicken. As in most of these images the lighting is probably studio. There is no real background and the subject fills the image, what really pulls me into this image is the subject's eyes, and that crazy, almost psycho look, as he chows down on this piece of chicken.

The second image is a simple portrait of our 40th president, the all too well known Ronald Reagan. While the image itself is quite simple, the thing that drew me to this one is not only the simplicity, but also the look on the face of Ronald Reagan, he is looking off into the distance likewise he has an interesting expression on his face. It makes me wonder what he could possibly be thinking about and looking at behind the camera. I think color would do this black and white image some good though, especially since he is dressed in such formal wear, as he usually is, most of the image would still be black and white, as his hair is grey and he is wearing a black and white suit, the color would come from the face and probably his tie which is usually a red or blue. The light source is coming from the left side of his, as the right side is darker, but the left side is more interesting, it's where most of that weird expression is like that raised eyebrow and have smile.

I have so many questions about the third image: What is happening? Why does that grandma look so cool with those sunglasses? Why IS she wearing sunglasses? Why is the guy in front look like he's yelling? And what kind of look is the guy in the back making? What could he possibly be looking at to cause such an expression? Using all three people they fill the frame leaving only a little of the background, not that there really is one. Most likely another example of studio lighting. But the fact that we really don't know what is happening is what makes this photo so interesting and what draws viewers into it.

The last portrait is actually by Arnold Newman, and it's a side picture of an old man, again fairly simple, but the way Newman uses that black spot in the background to frame the face is excellent, and really draws the eye's attention to the face. This is an image where the black and white actually does the photo a lot of justice, and only adds interest to the portrait. This image is actually a little confusing as the the setting and where it takes place, the background looks like a rock, maybe? But it's hard to tell whether this was set up to look this way which may mean it uses studio lighting, but if this photo is taken in front of, say a giant boulder/rock, then they may be using more natural lighting. It could be a combination of both, and put a studio light where ever it is they took the picture, if I had to guess though this was set up in a studio and they used studio lighting to take the picture.