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New York-based photographer Harry Zernike recently did a shoot for The Irish Times, an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. In May this year, a photo editor from the Irish Times, Nadine O’Regan, emailed Harry, asking if he was available to photograph the Irish author Colm Tóibín in New York. The goal for this shoot was to make a cover image for the Irish Times Magazine and a few images for the inside pages.
Nadine told me Tóibín has “quite a look,” or words to that effect. Whether that meant I was in for a treat or I had my work cut out for me, I could not tell. So, once I got off the phone, I of course quickly Googled him to see this “look” and learn a few things about him and his work. And of course: how to pronounce that name.
Harry arranged to meet Colm Tóibín at his apartment near Columbia University, where he teaches. He arrived early to scout a few spots for an exterior shot and then buzzed the author’s door.
The pleasure and opportunity of an assignment like this is in connecting with a person I’d otherwise never meet.
Colm suggested the photoshoot take place in the larger of two street-facing rooms, but Harry followed Nadine’s specific requests so he spotted a more suitable situation in the smaller room – a wall with bookshelves, a desk, and some white space. Harry got a free pass from Colm to move whatever he needed to and set up while he continued his work in the other room. It gave Harry some time to plan the scenario.
Harry planned a couple of angles, rearranged a desk, and moved some storm detritus out of the shot. Despite bringing his gear (lights, stands, tripods) Harry decided not to use them, because it would be time-consuming, and he didn’t want Colm to be bored. Besides not using his lights, the window light in the space was very nice, so Harry decided to roll with it.
For one setup that I was convinced would be the cover, I had to back onto a daybed with my widest lens and press the back of my head up against the wall to get the shot. I rearranged the desk and did a tighter version of this shot, and that’s the frame that ended up on the cover of the magazine.
Colm mentioned to Harry that he writes everything in longhand, so Harry got a shot of a manuscript he was working on, and one of him working on it. He also had the chance to photograph him reading, obviously something he does often.
Colm said that most of the photographers tend to make him look like a serial killer in the photos and that he’d be happy to avoid that. Harry took the happy part of the equation and started making Colm laugh. And guess what, it was actually not that hard.
Convinced I’d got what I needed inside– maybe one or two diabolical shots, even– we then headed outside, where I did a few quick shots on Riverside Drive, said goodbye, and he headed off towards campus.
See more of Harry’s work on his website.
Credits
The Irish Times photo editor: Nadine O’Regan
Talent: Colm Tóibín
Further Reading
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