Beyond the obvious

Natural woman - the real Kim. Most photography courses concentrate on technique and equipment. Few emphasise the most important ingredient for making a good portrait; the relationship you build with the people you photograph. Once that connection is made and you've collaborated artistically it can create a link for life. By chance we recently bumped into Kim. Many years ago we worked with her as a model and we did a number of shoots together including a high fashion look advert - glossy lipstick, hats, gloves - the works.  Photographers are always moving on, meeting new people, flitting from one job to another like busy bees buzzing from flower to flower, as my wife, professional photographer, Magda Indigo often says. After so many years it was great to see Kim  again and for old times sake I shot a few quick portraits in the street. Wonderful to re-establish contact. Thanks, Paul  wwww.indigo2photography.co.uk

Portrait of Amitabh Bachchan. Click on the image to see larger version. Every portrait is different but there are also elements which are the same, whether you’re shooting the famous or the locally famous. Fame is of course all relative. It depends on profession, accomplishments or media celebrity status. Whoever the ‘famous’ individual is there are millions of people in the world who will never have heard them. For example I photographed the legendary Indian Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan, who amongst his many accolades was awarded the Legion d'Honneur, the highest civilian award of France. But I’m positive that many people in North America will not have heard of him – although he has more fans than Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson and Robert De Niro put together. I find that however well known a person is cracking through egos and insecurities is really important when it comes to getting authentic strong portraits. However I hasten to add that when it came to photographing Amitabh th...