 |
Disarming Celebrities
By Jerry Avenaim
I love celebrity photography because I have such a great respect for actors and their craft. I love planning it, I love shooting it
and I love the results. But arriving at these results is not always the "shortest distance between two points." Every session is
unique and every individual is indeed, an individual.
There is, of course, a bit of a psychologist in all photographers. This is never more necessary or apparent than during a celebrity
session. Celebrities are very strong-willed people and can be demanding; and to a great extent, they have the right to be. Their faces
and forms are their fortunes. If it's not captured, rendered and reproduced appropriately, it registers less than zero. When it comes
to photography, celebrities have the pick of the litter (even in a magazine editorial, they can choose any photographer on the planet),
and a failure on this level can truly nip a budding career prior to blooming. To avoid this, I have always shot every session as though
it were my first.
Fortunately, I get along well with most people. Couple that with a lifetime of dedication to this wonderful art, and I feel that my
equipment becomes an extension of my being and of my soul. Lens selection, camera angles and lighting are second only to vision and
passion that is akin to breathing. This is critical because it allows me to dedicate my entire energy to becoming at one with my subject.
Because they are all unique and equally appealing to me, I am dedicated to making them love the way they look in my photographs, and
they know it. That alone is transmitted without fail to every subject who appears before my lens.
The ultimate "trick" for making a celebrity feel comfortable is, of course, a life's history of photographing great celebrities. Nothing
succeeds like success and nothing gives a celebrity a greater feeling of confidence than knowing that he or she is being photographed by
a wily veteran, someone who has been in the trenches, working with and pleasing "the industry" for years. And of course the obvious reality
is that one good session with an individual makes the next an absolute piece of cake (well, not exactly...but it sure makes it easier).
My sessions are catered, and each and every celebrity knows it is about them, not me. There's always plenty of good food and drink, the best
hair and make-up artists and the best clothing stylists in Hollywood, all to make the celebrity comfortable, confident in my abilities and
ultimately relax. I engage my subjects, I talk to my subjects. I direct my subjects, I kid with my subjects and I try to disarm my subjects
whether by joking, prodding, or anything else I have to do to come away with an image that captures the very essence of what I perceive that
individual to be. If I don't know them already, I spend time studying them long before the day of the session. And my greatest desire is to
capture an entire career in a single image.
At the end of the day, most celebrities are not truly comfortable in front of the still camera. To a great extent they would rather have a
lobotomy. But they are all performers, and over-achievers. Given the opportunity to perform and a strong relationship with their photographer,
the results can be incredibly rewarding and ever-lasting.
Jerry Avenaim Bio
|
|
|
|
