I have always believed that the portrait you take of a person is also the portrait of the photographer. It is about the interaction between photographer and the sitter.
@jackies365 Everyone on 365 should watch this - what an interesting experiment - but be sure to read all the comments before reaching a personal conclusion.
I enjoyed watching it too but agree that the preconceived ideas of his personality/lifestyle had a huge bearing on the individual final image. It's also a good lesson on why we shouldn't judge or pigeon hole one on outer appearance or hearsay.
An interesting exercise and I'm not sure what to make of it... As some of the comments in the link said, there might have been just as much variation if the photos all had the same story... There are really three inherent ingredients to the witch's brew that is a portrait, no? The photog, the subject and their relationship?
The studio provided so many options that just one photog could have produced many different portraits given more time and an honest collaboration. And who's to say which portrait the "client" would prefer, regardless of the back story? It is interesting to think about this - not really surprising or revealing of truth on either side of the camera.
Fascinating to see but even more so to read the discussion thread that followed. The commenters pointed out the flaws in thinking about this as an experiment, but also noted that this did show quite clearly the collaboration that occurs in portrait-taking, even when photographers may be misled about who the subject actually is. The 365 community I believe will not find it particularly new information -- it simply demonstrates that when multiple people shoot the same thing (as in a meetup where many are actually standing in the same spot to photograph), there will always be evidence of photographers' contributions to the interpretation of the scene. I thought one comment on the video website was especially on target: these were photographers shooting a portrait, not clerks photographing for a drivers' license. If it were the latter case, likely we would not see much variation.
Simply exercise, really...but I think makes a valid point. Yes, each photographer would have brought their own spin anyway, but they also bring preconceptions about a person based on their "story."
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http://www.shutterbug.com/content/lab-pushes-boundaries-photography-decoy#ilqWH7fJvG2CPgpG.97