In Los Angeles, California:
Robert Gallagher’s portrait of John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols, is picking up all sorts of awards. It took home awards from Communication Arts, American Photography, and Creative Quarterly.
Robert photographed John for a story about his life and the release of his memoir, Anger is an Enemy. Robert grew up with music and influence from the Sex Pistols; he says working with John was an adventure, and it was amazing to meet this cultural icon in the flesh.
Most people in the public eye arrive with at least a handler or two or a publicist. He arrived with a plastic bag, like he’d just been to the grocery store. Ha. Awesome. I even ended up giving him a ride home after the shoot. Of course he insisted we stop and pick up some beers along the way! There’s a debate about who started punk: The Ramones or Sex Pistols…but when it comes to pure attitude, there’s no doubt it’s the Pistols. And punk is nothing without the attitude.
See more from Robert at gallagherphoto.com.
In The Sertão, Brazil:
Lianne Milton is enjoying the closing weeks of her reportage gallery at the Photo Festival La Gacilly, a festival in France celebrating people and nature. Lianne is the recipient of the 2015 Yves Rocher Foundation Photography Award, an award which funds an individual to take on a project that examines environmental issues and humanity’s relationship to them. For her project, Lianne chose to explore the Sertão region of Brazil, where a drought is taking hold of the land and the farmers who live off of it.
Her project, Hinterland: Stories from the Caatinga, consists of her own photography and her husband’s short documentary films, which weave together the photographic narrative. They both traveled around the area, learning from farmers, children, and families, about their experiences with the devastating six-year drought. The Sertão region is historically and artistically significant for Brazilians. Traditionally, it has been a haven for refugees—escaped slaves and indigenous people who have been overtaken by the sugarcane industry. It is also the place of focus in the Brazilian literary classic, Vidas Secas, as well as countless other stories and songs.
Lianne has extended Hinterland: Stories from the Caatinga beyond the scope of the gallery. It is now a fundraiser where people can buy a print from the series and the proceeds will go directly to the communities pictured.
See more from Lianne at liannemiltonphotography.com.
In Buffalo, New York:
Kim Smith learned that her architecture shoot for Architectural Resources won them an ASID NYU / CE design award. Kim says the owner of the home is a “multi-award winning marketing guru,” so he’s very particular about the best lighting and color temperature. She had to be precise about her color balancing so that it was spot-on with the aura of the location.
Kim used a model for this shoot so that the photo with the glass spa room would read as an elevated, spa/bath area even from a distance. For the interior shower, she relied heavily on post production to create the right lighting for the water fall to show up bright against the black background. Kim created a behind the scenes screencast of the editing process where you can really see the shower coming to life at minute 8:50.
See more from Kim at kimsmithphoto.com!