Sheila Hancock
Sheila Hancock, London, 2011
A portrait of Sheila Hancock, actress, photographed in London in September 2011. As soon as she walked into the studio I knew. The voice in my head said “Yes, I can do something with her.”
The hard part is getting the subject into a place where they are willing to let go and trust you to a point where you can create the space and the atmosphere to get the thing you’re after. Fortunately for me, Miss Hancock utterly gave herself up to the process, allowing me to pull out of her the portraits that I was looking for. A rare treat.
As always, getting the subject into a place where they open up and trust you was the most important part. I do this by keeping a physical distance at the beginning. I come closer slowly. It’s like music. It’s not enough to just read the notes, you need to feel your way through it with grace and alertness. Get up to the peak efficiently, read the mood and keep reading the mood. Work with it, react to it and guide it. Once you’ve passed the peak get back down to ground level gently, say thank you and let them leave in time for lunch.
She has a truly wonderful face.
Kudos to your skills as a photographer, but equally as much to Sheila daring to be photographed in such an honest manner. Raw, revealing images – all involved deserve high praise.
Beautiful photos Chris and I love the description of the process. Like I said to you before, few photographers write so evocatively about their own work.
I meant to say ‘what a great face’ here and it ended up on the next post ;-(
You’re an excellent photographer Chris. Thanks for the words too, they help.
Amazing photos. Inspirational. Great work, Mr. Floyd.