Perception

[+ Gar1eth]

6 Photographers Asked to Shoot Portraits of 1 Man… With a Twist

 

Canon recently conducted an interesting experiment on the power of perspective in portrait photography. They enlisted the help of 6 photographers and asked them each to independently shoot portraits of a man named Michael. But there was a twist: each photographer was told a different thing about Michael’s background.

 

The photographers were told that Michael was: a self-made millionaire, someone who has saved a life, an ex-inmate, a commercial fisherman, a self-proclaimed psychic, and a recovering alcoholic. Michael, an actor, did his best to take on the personality of each character.

 

Here’s a taste of what the 6 resulting portraits looked like through 6 different perspectives of who Michael is:

 

Fisherman

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/fisherman.jpg

 

Alcoholic

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/alcoholic.jpg

 

Millionaire

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/millionaire.jpg

 

Convict

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/convict.jpg

 

Life Saver

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/lifesaver.jpg

 

Psychic

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/psychic.jpg

 

“A photograph is shaped more by the person behind the camera than by what’s in front of it,” Canon says. This experiment, titled “Decoy,” was intended to prove that point and “shift creative thinking behind the lens.”

[+ Gar1eth]

The video

 

 

Gman

[BabyBoomer]

Ex-con.

 

~ Boomer ~

[+ Gar1eth]

I posted this. I know what they are getting at-you can perceive the same person differently depending on what you think you know about them. And that can translate into your 'vision' of them. But I am not as amazed by the different photos as the article seems to think I should be. The photos all look like the same guy to me. I am not astounded by the artist's different viewpoints. That could still have happened even if they had given the all photographers the same backstory. Plus photographers usually take multiple poses-and that's what it looks like to me-multiple poses of the same guy.

 

So for me this little experiment in perception was an epic fail.

 

Gman

[marylander1940]

6 Photographers Asked to Shoot Portraits of 1 Man… With a Twist

 

 

Canon recently conducted an interesting experiment on the power of perspective in portrait photography. They enlisted the help of 6 photographers and asked them each to independently shoot portraits of a man named Michael. But there was a twist: each photographer was told a different thing about Michael’s background.

 

The photographers were told that Michael was: a self-made millionaire, someone who has saved a life, an ex-inmate, a commercial fisherman, a self-proclaimed psychic, and a recovering alcoholic. Michael, an actor, did his best to take on the personality of each character.

 

Here’s a taste of what the 6 resulting portraits looked like through 6 different perspectives of who Michael is:

 

Fisherman

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/fisherman.jpg

 

Alcoholic

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/alcoholic.jpg

 

Millionaire

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/millionaire.jpg

 

Convict

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/convict.jpg

 

Life Saver

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/lifesaver.jpg

 

Psychic

http://petapixel.com/assets/uploads/2015/11/psychic.jpg

 

“A photograph is shaped more by the person behind the camera than by what’s in front of it,” Canon says. This experiment, titled “Decoy,” was intended to prove that point and “shift creative thinking behind the lens.”

 

It makes sense, except the "fisherman"...

 

The close up looks like "person of the year shot" by times magazine.

 

Billionaire

 

http://img.timeinc.net/time/magazine/archive/covers/2010/1101101227_400.jpg

[+ FreshFluff]

I posted this. I know what they are getting at-you can perceive the same person differently depending on what you think you know about them. And that can translate into your 'vision' of them. But I am not as amazed by the different photos as the article seems to think I should be. The photos all look like the same guy to me. I am not astounded by the artist's different viewpoints. That could still have happened even if they had given the all photographers the same backstory. Plus photographers usually take multiple poses-and that's what it looks like to me-multiple poses of the same guy.

 

So for me this little experiment in perception was an epic fail.

 

Gman

 

Gman, it's not that he looks different in the various portraits. It's that each one captures the stereotypical pose that photographers use for each role. For example, for the self made millionaire, the photographer uses an ultra closeup and puts the focus on his eyes, as if they contain some sort of special insight.

 

The close up looks like "person of the year shot" by times magazine.

 

Zactly.

[+ purplekow]

Gman, it's not that he looks different in the various portraits. It's that each one captures the stereotypical pose that photographers use for each role. For example, for the self made millionaire, the photographer uses an ultra closeup and puts the focus on his eyes, as if they contain some sort of special insight.

 

 

 

Zactly.

The psychic has an unoccupied chair as though someone is there or he is expecting someone to be there.

The scowl of the convict.

The proud smile of the life saver.

 

Additionally, is it the photographer or the actor which is giving personality to the character he is playing. Better would have been to not tell the model to be anything but what he is and sort of take him out of the equation.

[+ Gar1eth]

Well I'm glad it makes sense to y'all. To me it just seems like different poses that a photographer might take of any single subject during the course of a sitting.

 

Gman

[+ purplekow]

Is it clear that the photographer took many pictures or was it that he was told to take one, as you have a point that he may have taken many but if he was told to select the one that best represents the man, then the number of photos taken has less bearing

[+ poolboy48220]

I read a joke about an actor who sent a bunch of headshots to an agency, titled "expressing sorrow", "expressing joy", "expressing love", etc. The agency sent back a reply that said "Expressing regrets".