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Posts Tagged ‘Karsh’

Karsh, Beaton and Swannell featured as Camera Press celebrates 70 years with exhibition of famous faces

13 May

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An exhibition of portraits that chart the last seven decades of celebrity photography will mark the 70th birthday of British photo agency Camera Press. Emma Blau, granddaughter of founder Tom Blau, has searched the 12 million images of the agency’s archive to find the photographs that demonstrate how portrait photography has changed since the agency started in 1947. The first photographer to join the business was Yousuf Karsh and the first event covered was the wedding of the Queen of England by society photographer Baron.

The exhibition ‘Camera Press at 70 – a lifetime in pictures’ will feature archival work by Karsh, Cecil Beaton, Baron and Jane Bowen, as well as by more recent photographers such as John Swannell, Clive Arrowsmith, Jason Bell and Chris Floyd.

Celebrities caught by the lenses of the exhibited photographers will include Kate Bush, The Queen, the Gallagher brothers from Oasis, Amy Winehouse, Marilyn Monroe, Winston Churchill and JFK.

The free exhibition will be held the Olympus-sponsored Art Bermondsey Project Space in London from 17th May to 10th June 2017. For more information see the Camera Press website, and for more of the images see the Daily Mail website. 

Information from Camera Press

Founded in 1947, Camera Press celebrates its Platinum anniversary this year with Camera Press at 70 – a lifetime in pictures. Drawing on an unparalleled collection of images, and featuring work by some of the most iconic names in the industry this exhibition offers a fascinating insight into photography from the 1940s to the present day.

On display will be the work of photographic legends such as Yousuf Karsh, Cecil Beaton and Jane Bown through to contemporary names that include Andy Gotts, John Swannell, Jason Bell, Jillian Edelstein, Chris Floyd and Laura Pannack.

The exhibition will feature two further 70th anniversaries: 1947 was the year the young Princess Elizabeth wed Prince Philip and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) was founded. The first photographs distributed by Camera Press were of the wedding of the future Queen, and this famous image by Baron will sit alongside more recent unique portraits of Princess Diana, The Queen’s Jubilee and the christening of Prince George. The exclusive BAFTA portrait collection will shine a light on many of our best loved actors from the worlds of TV and film.

Also included in the show are photographs by three generations of the Blau family: founder Tom Blau, his son Jon and granddaughter Emma.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Masters of Photography – Yousef Karsh Portrait Photographer

27 Jan
Karsh-self-portrait

Self portrait of Yousef Karsh from his official website

This is the next instalment of my series on the masters of photography, last time we looked at The Decisive Moment with Henri Cartier-Bresson. Something that my photography instructors gave me was an appreciation and love for the history of photography. If you are not familiar with some of the masters I will be featuring one now and then to help you become acquainted with some of the best in history.

Today we’re going to look at a man that was considered to be the world’s premiere portrait photographer in his time, perhaps of all time, and his images still stand among the best today. The word “iconic” is often used when speaking of his images of people like:

  • Winston Churchill
  • Ernest Hemmingway
  • Princess Elizabeth (later Queen)
  • Elizabeth Tailor
  • Albert Einstein
  • Georgia O’Keefe
  • Mother Teresa

Just to name a few! If you haven’t already guessed, or read the title, yes I’m talking about the legend, Yousef Karsh.

Yousef Karsh 1908-2002

I’m not going to give you his bio or list his accomplishments here. I want you to do your own research. Google his name and find his famous portraits. Study them. Watch the interview below (ignore the age and quality of this video, instead really focus and listen to what he says). What can you learn from him?

As I ultimately found myself doing portraits and weddings early in my photography career Karsh was highly influential on my style. I wanted to created the dramatic lighting he used on his subjects, but more than that I wanted to strive to connect with the person in front of my lens the way he did. He was not only a master of lighting, he was a master of getting the expression and making his subject feel at ease.

Watch and learn from Mr. Karsh!

Keep in mind this is Part One of this interview. Make sure to view Part Two and Part Three as well.

Want to take better portraits? Well you are in luck! Starting tomorrow, over the next two weeks we will be doing a Portrait Photography Deep Dive. What that means is we’ll be publishing articles on all things portrait related by both regular and guest authors. Make sure you’re signed up for the newsletter so you don’t miss anything!

If you want to read some past articles on portrait photography you can try these:

  • Reflectors: Your Secret Weapon for Amazing Portrait Photography
  • Portrait Tutorial Feast – Best of dPS 2013
  • Our 14 Best Portrait Photography Tutorials of 2012

Want to read more about Karsh and see his stunning portraits?

Here are a few books. I personally have the middle three in my library!

 

The post Masters of Photography – Yousef Karsh Portrait Photographer by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.


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