Photographer #386: Richard Learoyd

Richard Learoyd, 1966, UK, graduated in Fine Art Photography at the Glasgow School of Art. He has a very unique way of working which creates absolutely unique photographs. He build a giant camera that can best be described as a huge camera obscura. The camera is comprised of two rooms. In one room is the model or the object in a light source. In the other room, behind a large lens, is a huge piece of photographic paper. Once exposed, a unique, life-size direct-positive print is created. Unlike the pinhole camera images, Richard's photographs are clear of distortion, sharp and very detailed. Apart from the technical aspects, he manages to create poetically stunning imagery. He places people, clothed and nude, as well as objects in front of his lens. The exposure takes 8 hours, so the models have to sit still while being under hot lights for the same amount of time. The final and approved images, he destroys the one's that are imperfect, have a painter-like quality to them with soft tones and melancholic poses. He considers the method to be a natural step in search of the ultimate image.

Website: www.richardlearoyd.com
For more work visit: www.fraenkelgallery.com & www.mckeegallery.com

Photographer #209: Richard Renaldi

Richard Renaldi, 1968, USA, is a photographer with a large portfolio of projects and several monographs. He travels across the United States to find his images. In the book Figure and Ground he went from coast to coast. Together these images make a portrait of a population and a country. In his project 49 and 50 he went to the 49th and 50th state, being Alaska and Hawaii. It is a tribute to the character of these secluded places. In his project Touching Strangers, Richard asked complete strangers to pose for a picture with one condition; they have to touch each other in some manner, introducing an unpredictable variable in the traditional portrait. Renaldi uses a large format (8x10") camera. The following images come from 49 and 50, Fall River Boys and Touching Strangers.

Website: www.renaldi.com

Photographer #094: Richard Mosse

Richard Mosse, Ireland, 1980, finds beauty in things that are broken and in a state of decay. He went to Iraq where he made his series Breach and Nomads. He approaches the objects as sculptures instead of acts of war and drama. He has done the same in his series The Fall, where he travelled across the globe to photograph crashed airplanes. In the project Infra, he left for Congo to take images with infrared film. The images are not digitally manipulated. The following images come from Infra, The Fall and Nomads.

Website: www.richardmosse.com
Video by Richard Mosse