This past week we looked at the work of Yousef Karsh. The students in the 8 Week Portrait Workshop are learning a ton and putting it to practical use. Here are their images from last weeks assignment.
Portraits Inspired by Yousef Karsh
by Donald Giannatti | Jan 21, 2015 | Featured, Going Pro, LE News and Info | 2 comments
Karsh was known for using large-format cameras and for his almost candid portraiture (like the famous Winston Churchill photo). I would love to see a more detailed description of the assignment, but I bet that’s reserved for workshop attendees.
These are some lovely images. Thank you for sharing.
Hi Shane.
Yes, they appeared to be very candid, but actually shooting a 4×5 camera makes them a bit more staged. And he was a master at crafted lighting, so while it looks very simple, the placement of the lights are critical. The students learned that a few inches can make a huge difference.
As to the assignment, it is simply to look and study the materials, but it was not about copying Karsh, although a few took that as a challenge. It was about letting what they learned about Karsh spill into a shot of their own, and let it influence the photograph they were making.
Thanks for the kind words on the images… these guys worked really hard.