#hstour 2018 photography

[ssfoc]

Sea, I am late to the party, but I keep going back to your comments about the HSLOT photography: “The poor framing, the shitty proportions, half the photo blocked by some amorphous shadow, shit on the table that would have taken two seconds to clear, black and white erasure of a beautiful, sparkly fabric, Hélène inserting herself into the photo (she has inserted her “aesthetic,” now she’s literally in the photo), odd facial and body expressions, lack of warmth.” (1/2)

(2/2) “Yet the only thing we see is Harry’s pointer. His Renaissance-era hair. His classically proportioned face.” “He looks isolated and frozen. Curated and costumed.” —Does this not EXACTLY describe Harry’s public image? I think Harry was doing that intentionally to highlight the flaws of his image in literal images. Especially erasure of color in B/W photos. All those pictures of unhappy expressions in mirrors/reflections. His resigned posture in the photo highlighting his dick/sex appeal. PS – I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate all your posts about photography and music theory. I don’t know much about either, and I’ve learned a lot!_______________________

I think the question of intentionality is a good one. At the heart of it, we don’t know whether the HSLOT tour photos’ effects are the result of auteurial intent (Hélène’s POV), of image and branding (Harry or his team’s meta commentary on his image), of a particular artistic style (“quirky”), or of photographic technique. Hélène’s can take technically good photos: her professional Instagram page shows photos of beautiful technique (though mostly not concert photos).

The function of tour photography is, in essence, documentary. Mostly it is to capture a slice in the life of the tour— an overall feeling, the spirit that the tour wants to convey. An outsider scanning Harry’s Instagram will notice that HSLOT photos aren’t like normal concert photos; they definitely show distinct editorial choices. They convey isolation, coldness, and awkwardness, and an aggressive, almost violent juxtaposition between Harry’s innocence and sexual appeal (sometimes erasing his beauty and substituting it with aggression). The collection of photos gives me a feeling of uncertainty in power and control. I wonder whether Harry is the one making choices about his tour, or whether choices were being made for him. While there are feelings of sheer joy and fun, there’s also a sense of things being overwhelming, too much, a claustrophobic sense of being hemmed in, a reluctance to be defined, a wish to be elusive. In these photos, it feels like Harry is trying to bury his real self under layers and layers of a superstar persona.

One thing is for sure, the photos aren’t boring! I think they will be interesting to look at for a long time.

[ssfoc]

I think the other thing people sometimes forget while discussing the tour photos is that Harry is an experienced photographer and that it's one of his passions. He has worked with all sorts of photographers and seen different techniques. Therefore, if he wasn't getting what he wanted out of Helene's photos he most certainly would have pointed it out to her. While I prefer the style of Niall's photographer, I do think Helene's choices were purposeful.

I’m pretty sure people have addressed it. Harry has had experience with various photographers, so he must be happy with Hélène’s work— which means the collection has been curated purposely.

So as a whole, the collection is quirky and eclectic, joyful and celebratory, but at times puzzling and ugly. The intent isn’t always easy to decipher, because of technical errors.

[ssfoc]

I just relooked through Harry’s feed to just see how I felt overall about it. Have I been too harsh, has the overall tone seemed fine in reality? And I just find it still kind of boring and detached and poorly done. And I don’t know if the directive/tone/choices are coming straight from Harry, but overall it’s such a strange and not very well captured overview of the tour. I wouldn’t want that as my memory keepsake of 4 months work. There just not a lot of authenticity/warmth/skill. Oh well.

Anonymous said: Agree with your tags. A photographer that was secure with their skills, vision, and product would not have to address anything. Dissenting opinions would be water off their back as it’s normal in art.

Anonymous said: I understand the criticism surrounding Helene’s photography. But I think a lot of that criticism is also built around expectations of current mainstream aesthetics when she delivers a style heavily influenced by analog photography which is intended to suit Harry’s glam rockstar image. A lot of them remind me of Led Zeppelin touring pictures from the Physical Graffiti era or the Wings Over America tour.

_______________________

When I look at Harry’s instagram, it makes me feel very sympathetic and sad, overall. He looks isolated and frozen. Curated and costumed. 

As a meta comment to analog photography and the 70′s era, the collection is more like Diane Arbus, maybe. Her photos were not technically perfect. But Arbus had originality and vision, and intellect. 

Young Puerto Rican couple on a bench, N.Y.C. 1962. Photo: Diane Arbus/Copyright © The Estate of Diane Arbus

See how sympathetically the camera frames them, gives them weight and dignity, gives them intimacy, and even if their expressions aren’t happy, makes them human. 

Photos from the Wings Over America tour. Taken with analog cameras, these photos had to be composed, taken from the right height, calculated for the proper exposure and aperture, using the right kind of film. Still, they have movement, rhythm, feeling. Plenty of distractions here: stuff on the tables, messy backgrounds. You can’t control for everything. But distractions on the sides are cropped out. The moment is chosen so that person most to the side is turned toward the middle, directing our attention to the guitar player, who is pointing the guitar toward the star: Paul McCartney. Right at 1/3 of the way down– will you look at that. And next to him, his wife Linda. The feeling of the photo is dynamic and warm, even in black and white. 

Here’s another:

Messy, candid shot. The perspective from the line of people and Paul points to the plane: they are traveling. Paul is at 1/3 of the vertical frame. The plane is 1/3 horizontally down. His black jacket frames him and draws our eyes toward his face. This is a quick photographer’s eye, composed perfectly, on the run. 

Led Zeppelin:

Black and white. Is there any doubt that this is a dynamic band? That they are confident in their own magic. That they shine brighter than the lights. That the music they’re playing is the baddest. The figures’ triangulation is classically composed.  It’s easy to interpret, pretty to see. Sorry about the quality, but everyone in this photo is in focus. It can be done! The background is beautifully fine, with minimal noise. The light diffuses evenly. Their expressions are natural, not forced. 

On the other hand, there is a rock star image that is theatrical and not real. David Bowie comes to mind. 

Theatricality and formal presentation– not really the tone of Harry’s tour, but a photographic aesthetic.