Model Exposure: Archana, The Indian Model

Archana Kumar came up on my models.com feed and my, what a beauty she is! You rarely see striking Indian models on the Western model circuit as they are usually Bollywood actresses (who are glamorously gorgeous). However Archana possesses both feminine and masculine beauty with strong jaw and cheek lines; it is no wonder she's getting featured in the top fashion magazines including Vogue India, Elle India, Harper’s Bazaar and Marie Claire. Her natural beauty is charming and distinguished. It's always refreshing seeing a face so captivating and interesting.

All photos from: http://models.com/newfaces/dailyduo/30836

Image Exposure: Charlotte Free by Terry Richardson

For one of my other modules on my photography course I was looking into fashion photography and style and thought of Terry's work. One of the images that caught my eye whilst looking through his wealth of images on Terry's Diary was one of model Charlotte Free.

Charlotte Free at my studio #9

December 29th, 2011

Image Source: http://www.terrysdiary.com/post/14977007565/charlotte-free-at-my-studio-9

This particular photograph stands out from his vast archive of images where he posts practically every day. It dates back to December 29th, 2011 with a caption of ‘Charlotte Free at my studio #9’. I like how simple the set-up is with a single flash attached to the camera body as the only source of light. This set-up is most common for his studio portraiture where he shoots many of his friends, acquaintances and models in his home studio. Usually he shoots black/white for this set up however there are examples of colour portraits such as the above photo. Terry prefers taking pictures in a landscape format showing only the torso and face. I think this particular set-up of shooting is Terry’s trademark style and is reminiscent of his portrait editorials for big magazines such as Rolling Stone. There have even been editorials using this simple set up for magazines like Purple Fashion. Despite Charlotte Free being an up-and-coming model being shot for various advertisements I originally thought she was one of Terry’s acquaintances who had quirky style so decided to shoot her over again. The reason why I chose this shot is I like the off white background and the slight vignette from where the flash fades outwards and her carefree expression. Terry has a great knack of getting the most of his subjects and showing off their personality on camera. He isn’t afraid of highlighting the fun side of ‘untouchable’ celebrities and portraying them as normal people who want to have fun too. In relation to my project about photographing people with style and loving what they wear, Charlotte Free is a great example of individual style. This photo isn’t made up and she hasn’t got a make-up/stylist team on hand; she is herself wearing clothes she enjoys wearing. The salmon pink colour in her t-shirt goes with the aesthetics of her hair and pale skin. Though this image only reveals one item of clothing, a person’s style is in much more than the clothes they wear, but how they wear it as well as the characteristics of their hair and skin. The viewer feels the essence of being a kid and having childlike freedom from her ‘The Ren & Stimpy’ t-shirt (which is seen as vintage today) and the motion of flying her hair around.

Useful Links: 

Terry's Diary http://www.terrysdiary.com/

Terry Richardson http://www.terryrichardson.com/

models.com - Terry Richardson http://models.com/people/terry-richardson

Read More:
V.E.S.T: Blog Exposure: Terry's Diary http://nishahaqvisualexploration.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/blog-exposure-terrys-diary.html

Blog Exposure: Terry's Diary

My new feature 'Blog Exposure' will look at my favourite blogs all over the net alongside my other 'Exposure' posts such as 'Artist Exposure' and other snazzy new features coming soon! In a society slowly obsessed with blogging, a free platform to share our thoughts and snippets of our lives, there's been a sudden emergence in photographic blogs, fashion and all things 'artsy'.

This post will look at one of my favourite photographers: Terry Richardson, a fashion portrait photographer whose style is very bold, suggestive and fearless in his approach. He has photographed from the likes of Lada Gaga, Jared Leto, Katy Perry, Amy Winehouse, Kate Moss and even Barack Obama... (just to name a few!) I love his candid portrait photography especially those of celebrities as he shoots them in such a fun manner you wish you were there joining in with the laughter.

Print screen of Terry's diary home page 15/05/12 00:47 (GMT)  http://www.terrysdiary.com/

On his infamous Tumblr blog: http://www.terrysdiary.com/ which he updates daily the reader gets to see his life in photographs. Its an insight into pop culture's icons, the people we are obsessed with and Terry's diary is a window into that crazy world. He gets access no other photographer has gotten. I love the simple clean layout allowing the photographs speak for themselves and the consistently multiple daily posts. There's currently 599 pages on his blog with 15 images on each page; doing the math that's like 8985 images! Being a portrait lover inspired by pop culture this is the go-to blog.

Print screen of Terry's diary archive page 15/05/12 00:49 (GMT) http://www.terrysdiary.com/archive

Let me know what you think of Terry's Diary and your favourite images from his blog!


Useful Links: 

Terry's Diary http://www.terrysdiary.com/

Terry Richardson http://www.terryrichardson.com/

models.com - Terry Richardson http://models.com/people/terry-richardson

Read More:
V.E.S.T: Image Analysis: Charlotte Free by Terry Richardson http://nishahaqvisualexploration.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/image-analysis-charlotte-free-by-terry.html

Artist Exposure: Photographer Benoit Paillé

So I've decided to create a feature: 'Artist Exposure' which basically 'does what it says on the tin' sharing great work by great artists. This post will highlight amazing photographer, Benoit Paillé's who's work I've been following for a year now on Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/benoitpaille/ and his work just grows from strength to strength. In particular I love his sincere portraits and creative conceptual art series. He's created strong projects such as Night, Alternative Landscapes, Light Experimentation, Stranger, Self-Portrait Stranger, Art Installation Japan and one of my favourites; Rainbow Gathering (below).

Rainbow Gathering is a series of portraits of his family. He states [1]

'I decided to photograph my family, my brothers and sisters. I have been going to rainbow gatherings for 7 years now, and I have taken pictures of it for the past 3 years. The pictures you see are very precious since photography is not usually allowed during the event, so please be respectful to my brothers and sisters

People are love,

are magic,

are beauty

these sister and brother are the people of the future.'

Being a portrait photographer myself I am instantly drawn to captivating expressions and characters and Paille captures this in the faces of Rainbow Gatherers. It is interesting as a viewer to get an insight to an event that doesn't usually allow photographs taken so the project itself is a rarity making it completely unique. We are transported into a world of 'peace, love, harmony, freedom and community'.[1] It is understandable to see why photography isn't allowed, as it can be seen as a medium of 'consumerism, capitalism and mass media' [1] however as Paille is a part of the family he isn't exploiting them, he is showing us and educating us that there are alternative lifestyles and great diversity in the world. In this series he travels to various locations for Rainbow Gatherings from Spain to Mexico and Canada which I think is amazing this project spans across the globe.

This is my favourite from the series:

Rainbow Gathering Québec,Canada 2010

(C) Benoit.P

(Above photo) I am instantly drawn to the beauty of her female form and how she seems so at peace with nature. The colours are beautiful and how he creates a serene landscape is remarkable balancing both portraiture and landscape in one composition. I like how natural she looks and how this doesn't seem posed. The fact this mysterious woman isn't looking at the camera hides her identity yet reveals everything but. This is what makes the photograph intensely intriguing. The details also make the image come alive, from the minute water droplets on her back, to the pink of her erect nipple and the reflection in the ripples adds to the beauty and serenity. This photo represents: 'peace, love, harmony, freedom.' [1]

Other favourites of mine in the series

All work (C) Benoit.P

All images from Benoit.P Flickr

References

1. http://www.behance.net/gallery/Rainbow-Gathering/1193675 [Accessed 10/05/12]

Useful Links

Benoit P. Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/benoitpaille/

Benoit Paille Behance http://www.behance.net/Benoitp