31.05.11
Jake Chessum: What makes a good portrait
From family gatherings to snapshot portraits there’s one key skill required above all others that will help you to make a great image. Professional photographer JAKE CHESSUM has shot some of the world’s top celebrities and here he reveals his secret to portrait success. By SEAN SAMUELS.
“WHEN SHOOTING BIG GROUPS OR FAMILIES, ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS YOU HAVE TO DO IS pick on someone. Find the person who has a big personality and can take it so you develop a rapport with the group. This unites everyone and they’ve got something to laugh about.”
This may sound mercenary, but speaking to Jake over the phone I can tell through his cheeky laugh that this is an approach that serves him well. He is a people person. He has to be. How else could he have become one of today’s most successful portrait photographers?
Jake celebrated his father’s 70th birthday recently and shot a family portrait of about 50 people. By working out the identity of the joker in the group and forming a one-on-one with them he was able to get everyone to relax and capture the shot before boredom set in.
“In the back of my mind I’m always thinking how I can get this done quickly, even with family or friends. The longer it goes on, the harder it becomes. So talking keeps it feeling spontaneous. You have to remember that some subjects may be sick of having their picture taken because they’ve had it done a thousand times. It’s important to remember there’s no immediate reward for them.”
When shooting such a large group there are several factors to consider, such as making the most important person the central figure, with the closest relatives around them. Being able to see everyone’s faces is also important, but in essence Jake treats group portraiture in the same way he deals with individual portraits. He maintains a stream of encouragement to keep everyone involved, which often requires a lot of good-natured yelling. He has realised his approach to a shoot is really to form a little relationship with the person he’s photographing. When you meet someone for a shoot, it is usually for the first time and there’s a limited window available to assess the most effective way to get the most out of them to make the best photographs. To shoot a successful picture the subject has to trust you.
“I was once commissioned to shoot an actress, who had had huge success and then kind of disappeared. She was on a comeback and there was a lot of pressure on her. I chatted to her, we got ready and then I shot a few Polaroids... they were horrendous. I could see the fear in her eyes. I had lost her trust and there was no way back. I learned a big lesson: don’t show anything unless you are confident they will like it and always overexpose the first images you show!”
Whether the subject is an actor, a director, a model or somebody who is not used to being photographed at all, they are putting themselves on the line and are very vulnerable when they step in front of the camera. It is the job of the photographer to represent them in a manner in which they might like to be seen. It’s a collaboration.
Jake says: “Sometimes I say look bored. People have this intense desire to smile in pictures and I try to disabuse them of that. On the family shoot I remember shouting ‘anyone who can get up and down without help sit on the floor.’ It was a dig at the old folk, but it worked.” Jake has worked with some of the biggest names in film and music, from Robert de Niro to Mickey Rourke, and Natalie Portman to Coldplay. He has shot on locations ranging from studios to rooftops to car parks. A particularly striking image is his shot of US band The Strokes (see page 88). The setting is a nondescript hotel room and Jake decided to use this plainness to his advantage.
“I didn’t want to redesign the room or change anything but rather use the room as I found it, so I chose to work with the depth of the room for this shot. I tried to make the room look as boring as it is and to get the lines working backwards and forwards with different heights. Not everyone is in the middle or on a line in the middle. With shots like this some may say you have depth of field issues, but it really doesn’t matter if the guy in the background is out of focus. It’s more important that the composition is interesting and the picture is engaging rather than pin sharp.”
It’s important to look for the most dynamic angle in the environment. Jake is always looking for a graphic composition that would be an interesting image even if the people weren’t there. He looks for converging lines, the diagonal or a drop into the back of the picture that forces the eye to move through it.
“I believe the thing that brings people back to their pictures is the memory of the event so it’s about incorporating enough of the environment as is relevant, but more importantly allowing people’s personalities to come out. Allow the group to interact with each other. Allow them to become involved in the process.”
There are two approaches to shooting in this way. Either you go for the surreal or for the completely real and use the environment in an abnormal way. If it’s a bedroom, consider having people jumping on the bed. The alternative is to have the subject simply hanging out. What’s important is the subject and that you won’t know how they will react. Some people never like having their image taken and it’s at this point that the relationship you form with them comes into play. Talking can distract the subject from the reality that they are being photographed. Jake will talk about whatever comes to mind to establish a rapport.
“I realised in the last few years on any kind of shoot a lot of the environments you look at are beautiful, but they can overwhelm the person. They can be interesting, but can’t become more than the person, because the picture becomes more about the environment and the props than the person. I freak out, then I have to get such and such in the picture, or such and such has to be in focus because already you’re trying to solve a problem rather than take a good, spontaneous, personality-based picture. Personality comes first and if someone wants a picture with a particular chair or background in it, you can shoot a few images like that and then go back to what you want to do.”
For the shot of The Strokes Jake went with the available light, which produced the orange colour palette that some might consider off-putting, but colour balance is not something he cares about, preferring instead to run with what he’s able to get.
“If it looks warm, great, if it looks yellow, that’s it. Use it to your advantage. You embrace the horrendous elements and go with it. Make a positive rather than a negative and try not to be daunted by the time, light or weather. The background I come from is all about trying to make a triumph out of adversity.”
Often Jake works in environments where he has no control over the situation at all. For an image of US talk show host Oprah Winfrey he knew he wanted to make sure the viewer could see a huge line of Emmy Awards in the background of her office and a dog with a bandage on its leg. He wanted to make sure he included those two elements, which is why when shooting groups he always uses a wide-angle lens so he can get everything in. Oprah knew Jake was going to be there and was comfortable with him in the room and he was left to pad around looking for the angle that would accommodate everything he wanted.
It was the same thing for the shot of Conan O’Brien (see page 91). Jake was allowed to follow the host of The Tonight Show for four or five hours. He simply blended into the background and is particularly proud of an image depicting Conan and two assistants discussing the script for an episode of the US TV show.
“Someone observing me said my body language was completely unobtrusive, but then you don’t come in with lots of gear announcing yourself. You stand against a wall. You try to disappear so they forget you’re there. It’s reportage but in a controlled way. I was walking around trying to incorporate the environment, and while it may appear mundane, it portrays the mood.”
Being a photographer is an act. It’s a performance during which he or she must keep up a constant chat all the time to keep the subject interested. Jake is lucky, he can do so endlessly even when taking a photograph. He has found that the more relaxed the subject is the less they’re worried about being photographed and the longer they give him. Keeping the subject happy means you get better pictures.
“It’s always better to be honest and express your doubts, involve people in the process rather than dictating the direction of what’s happening, but you have to be tactful. It’s more difficult to tell someone with a big ego they’re wrong. I’d say 50% of what I do is about dealing with people. The technical side you take for granted. It’s instinctive and once that’s in place it’s purely about getting people to do what you want.”
This doesn’t mean you should argue or fight until you have your way. Humour is often the best weapon for disarming an obstinate subject. This is even easier in a large group when a close family member can be recruited to entice the awkward party back in line.
“Use other people in the group; get the team involved in the process. Ultimately you’re the one pressing the shutter, but you’re working with everyone to get the end-result. It’s a collaborative effort. Remember, the more people present, the more you are relying on others to make the picture.”
Jake regularly seeks the input and opinions of others. It used to make him anxious that the contributions of others undermined his claim to authorship of the pictures, but that was insecurity and lack of self-confidence. Now he sees the team he works with like a security blanket. If somebody has a good idea, he is only too happy to use it. Unruliness is good for spontaneity, but this also means shooting many more frames than you think you need, because you are unlikely to get the shot you want in one go.
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The next time you are shooting a portrait, whether it’s an individual sitting or a group, remember to engage the subject. Get to know them, find out who they are and what makes them laugh or cry. You are the director and need to know how best to use the actors before you. Putting the subject at ease means you can distract them long enough to get the image you want, which means they will enjoy the experience and so will you, making it easier the next time around. Portraits are about the unique personality of the subject, but successful images are a team effort.
Jake Chessum is a professional photographer based in New York. He was born in South London and studied photography at Central St Martins College of Art & Design before starting to work for style and fashion magazines such as The Face, Arena and Elle. He then moved to New York to shoot celebrity portraits for American magazines and movie companies.
www.jakechessum.com
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