Inspiration for Portraits

[Todd.Hanz]

Ran into Steve McCurry's website the other day, if you don't know who he is you will when you peruse his gallery. I don't shoot many color portraits, but if I did I'd want them to be like his.

Click here: http://www.stevemccurry.com/

Todd

 

[Beniliam]

The work of McCurry its excellent. In my opinion the most of his better portraits are strictly frontals. His glance has this habit, in my opinion its not a fault, is a custom, one aesthetic vice.

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Very famous work. You could start with some Leica lenses (or Nikon gear, no flames, please) and Ektachrome 64 for the same look for starters...

 

[VinceC]

McCurry's very famous 1984 portrait of the green-eyed, red-scarfed girl from Afghanistan was shot with a Nikkor 105mm f/2.5 lens, so I assume much of his portraiture uses that glass as well. Really enjoyed the site ... it also has a wonderful photograph of the same young lady in a much less serious pose.

 

[Beniliam]

I love the power of the second portrait

 

[Gabriel M.A.]

Did I say Ektachrome? Kodachrome 64. I'm still a little sick.

 

[Roman]

Incidentally, just yesterday Ronnie ('hoot') pointed out to me a remake of the first pic, the one of the Afghan girl, done in pencil, in the window of an oriental carpet shop here in Vienna...

Roman

 

[canonetc]

What often amazes me is the VIBRANCY of color in his work; there are incredibly rich and bright colors within an often dim photograph. I don't have the clips, but there's one of some monks walking in the rain at Angkor Wat where the red of the robes is incredible, and a flower seller on a boat in Kashmir, where the flowers literally glow. I often wondered if he had the film pushed or pulled and specially processed to get those results. Or...maybe it IS the Nikon lenses....?

Chris
canonetc

 

[Doug]

Incidentally, just yesterday Ronnie ('hoot') pointed out to me a remake of the first pic, the one of the Afghan girl, done in pencil, in the window of an oriental carpet shop here in Vienna...

I think sketch/drawing/painting efforts using this photo as a model must not be uncommon. In our county fair, going on right now, there is a large charcoal sketch as one entrant in the "fine arts" competition that is based on that McCurry photo.

 

[djon]

I've seen a lot of his prints...Tibet, Afghanistan... big shows here in New Mexico. I had the impression some at least were 6X6...maybe not.

I suspect he's been using Agfachrome.

The eyes in many of his photos seem post-processed. Photographers have done this theatrically since Matthew Brady's time (B&W eyes whitened with cochineal or new-coccine on the neg, now with Photoshop).

I'll believe his eyes aren't post-processed when he says they aren't.

 

[djon]

Also, I think his tendency to shoot frontally is sign of his respect for his subjects...making connection with them as individuals. This respect helps account for the whites of eyes.