Photographer AnalysisRobyn Collinson

Past PhotographerLord Snowdon (Antony Armstrong-Jones)

Antony Charles Robert Armstrong-Jones, born 7th March 1930, is an English photographer and film maker. He is well known for being the ex-husband of Princess Margaret an ex-brother-in-law of Elizabeth II. He was the only son of the barrister Ronald Armstrong-Jones and first wife, Anne Messel. Just after Armstrong-Jones’s parents separated, he contracted polio whilst in Wales on a family holiday, aged 16. Whilst spending six months recovering in hospital, his mother gave him a camera to pass the time. This was the start of his future.He went on to study architecture at the University of Cambridge where he failed his final

exams. After this, rather than re-sit the exams, he chose to leave and become a photographer in fashion, design and theatre. In the early 1960’s, he became the artistic adviser of the Sunday Times and by the 1970’s, he had established himself as one of the most respected photographers Britain had ever seen. Although, his work includes everything from documentary images or inner city life to the mentally ill, he is best recognized for his fashion photography and portraits of world notables. His work has been published in Vogue and Vanity Fair.

Helen Mirren by Lord Snowdon, Vanity Fair, 1995. Queen Elizabeth II by Lord Snowdon, 1957.

Princess Diana by Lord Snowdon.

HRH Princess Margaret by Lord Snowdon, 1960s.

Elizabeth Taylor by Lord Snowdon.

Kate Bush by Lord Snowdon, 1980.Catherine Oxenberg by Lord Snowdon, Vogue UK, 1980,

Lord Snowdon

Past PhotographerCecil Beaton

Sir Cecil Walter Hardy Beaton, born 14th January 1904, was an English fashion, portrait and war photographer. He was born in Hampstead into a wealthy family as his grandfather had founded Beaton Brothers Timber Merchants and Agents. He was the son of Ernest Walter Hardy Beaton, a timber merchant, and Etty Sissons, and was the eldest of four siblings, Nancy, Baba and Reginald. He was educated at Heath Mount School, Hertfordshire, and St Cyprian’s School, Eastbourne. Growing up, Beatons’ nanny had a Kodak 3A Camera, which he become fond off. His nanny taught him to basics of capturing photographs and developing film. He got his own camera and practiced photography by getting his mother to sit. He then used to send his work off to high class London magazines under a different name and recommending his work.He then went on to attend Harrow, followed by St John’s College, Cambridge. He met several

people through university, one of which managed to get one of his photographs of George Rylands published in Vogue. At St John’s, Beaton studied history, art and architecture but left age 22 without a degree. He worked at the family timber business as an office employee for a matter of months, but soon proved hopeless. With no hope of a photography business taking off any time soon, he reached out for the support of English writer, Sir Francis Sitwell. With the help of a well respected patron, he set up his own exhibition in the Cooling Gallery, London. Due to an unknown photographer setting up an exhibition in an exclusive gallery, uproar was caused. After the disaster of the exhibition, Cecil Beaton, left and went to New York, in hope that more success would be found there. He was right and managed to get a contract with Conde Nast Publications, a mass media company, who caters to the needs for the likes of Vogue, Vanity Fair, GQ and Lucky, to take exclusive photographs for them. His career began here. He died in 1980.

Twiggy by Cecil Beaton.

Marilyn Monroe by Cecil Beaton, 1956.Marilyn Monroe by Cecil Beaton,

1956.

Audrey Hepburn in My Fair Lady by Cecil Beaton,

Cecil Beaton

Present PhotographerDavid LaChapelle

David LaChapelle is an American commercial, music and fine-art photographer. He was born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1963 to Phillip and Helga LaChapelle. LaChapelle lived their until he was nine years old before moving to North Carolina, where him and his family lived until he was fourteen, they then moved back to Connecticut, this time to Fairfield. During growing up, he was bullied for his sexuality. Due to this, he ran away to New York City to become a busboy at Studio 54 where his enrolled at the School of Visual Arts in New York City. Eventually, David LaChapelle returned home and moved to North Carolina again, where he went to the North Carolina School of Arts. When he was 17, he by chance bumped in to Andy Warhol, who after chatting offered him his first

job as a photographer for his pop culture magazine, Interview. Warhol said to LaChapelle at his first shoot; “Do whatever you want. Just make sure everybody looks good.”. LaChapelle did this and it gained him a lot of attention, so much attention that some of the top editorial publications around the world were wanting him to shoot for them. His work had appeared on the covers of magazines such as GQ, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Vogue Italia and Vogue Paris. In 1996, he wrote a book, LaChapelle Land, which was chosen as one of the Seminal Photographic Books of the Twentieth Century and is now highly valued by collectors.

The Kardashian family Christmas Card, 2013, by David LaChapelle

Una Thurman by David LaChapelle.

Katy Perry for GHD, 2011, by David LaChapelle.

Britney Spears for Rolling Stone by David LaChapelle.

Kanye West: The Passion by David LaChapelle. David LaChapelle

Present PhotographerMario Testino

Mario Eduardo Testino Silva, OBE, is a fashion photographer. Born in Lima, Peru on October 30th, 1954, his father was Italian and his mother was half Spanish and half Irish, he is the eldest of six children. He lived in a middleclass family which was supported by his fathers job as a international businessman. Whilst his father was travelling, him and his younger siblings were cared for by their mother, who was a housewife but who had iconic and glamorous style, which influenced Testino’s genre of photography. In 1972, when he was 17, his 10 year old brother, Gino-Angelo dies unexpectedly of Liver cancer. The death of his younger brother had a huge lifelong effect of Mario. So much that he packed his

bags up and moved to London 4 years later. He moved to England not only in an attempt to move on with his life after the family tragedy, but to also follow his dreams of becoming a well known photographer. In London, he died his hair candy floss pink in hope he would get noticed whilst funding himself by working as a waiter. His first residence, a squat with no toilet facilities didn’t suit him so he moved into a friends flat in Chelsea. After a short spell there, he took home in an old wing in a the abandoned Charing Cross Hospital where he lived for 7 years. He worked for Vickers until he got his big cover break for Over 21. 10 years after moving to London, he moves to New York where he begins to photographer male nudes. In 1995, he works with Carine Roitfeld for Gucci on his first ever fashion campaign. Using the theme of ‘heroin chic to cocaine chic’, the success of the campaign was huge and it rocketed Testino in to the fashion world. He went on to work with Vogue, V and Vanity Fair and shot for Burberry, Michael Kors, Valentino, Versace and Estee Lauder. He has worked with Diana, Princess of Wales, as well as Prince William and Kate.

Natalia Vodianova for Vogue UK by Mario

Testino,2008.

Cameron Diaz by Mario Testino.

Prince Harry and Kate Middleton engagement celebrations by Mario Testino2011.

Cara Delevingne for Vogue UK by Mario Testino, 2013.

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