My Favourite Photographers

Hello people!

As a former (shortlived) art history student, I very much enjoy studying photography. I'm also planning to take a BTEC course in the practical study of photography. So, looking at the work of other photographers and practising taking my own, I thought I'd share with you some of my favourites. For an interview I attended late last year for one of the BTEC courses I'm interested in, I had to put together a portfolio of my own photography work, as well as a sketchbook of other creative work I'd made. Because I'd taken a rather long break since creating anything of my own, aside from photos, I had to start something completely new. I decided that the sketchbook would take on the form of those similar to the ones I completed for GCSE art at school and filled it with sketches, paintings, collages, etc, and also artist reference pages. I did this to keep the theme of photography key throughout all the work I showed the tutors so they could see how much I'm interested in photography and media. I did pages on many photographers, and I'm going to share with you, 3 of those. Hope you like them too!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own, or claim to own, any of the photos used in this post. All were found on Google.

First of all, is Alice Hawkins. On researching fashion photographers, I came across her collection entitled "Dolly Parton is My Religion", in which she creates photo set ups evocative of the Tennessee born country singer. I liked these photos in particualr because they encapsulate a modern twist on vintage looking stylings and scenery. Alice Hawkins has worked for i-D, Vanity Fair and Vogue, along with creating other exhibitions.

Solve Sundsbo is next in this post because of his experimental use of light and dark in these particular photos. The clever use of shadows on the models appeals to me because it creates something modern and unique. Solve Sundsbo cleverly manipulates photos to create something "hi-tech" looking, and also often fantasical - such as the use of water in a shoot with Linda Evangelista which was used to make her look like she was on fire.

Last but not least, is Tim Walker, one of my favourite photographers - EVER. All of his photos look like something out of a Tim Burton movie, they are creative, lavish and colourful. In the instance of advertising campaigns that he's produced, for example Miss Dior Cherie perfume, his set ups are very much outside the box, in particular the photo of the girl holding balloons. You wouldn't know what was being advertised at first glance, however they are eye catching and memorable, which any company wants when advertising their products. This is the sort of fairytale-esque photography that I aspire to be able to create myself.

Are there any photographers that you think I might like? Leave their names in the comments for me!

Thank you for reading!

IOTD - Lily Cole, who appears in the above Tim Walker photo.

SOTD - Rollerblades by Eliza Dolittle