Portrait of Annie Leibovitz

Posted by John Keatley | Filed under Celebrity, Editorial

Annie Leibovitz Portrait by John Keatley

In the course of a conversation this past summer, it was mentioned that Annie Leibovitz was going to be in Seattle that November.  As soon as I heard this, I was gone.  Blank stare.  Absent from the conversation. I was thinking, “What would it be like to photograph Annie Leibovitz?  Would she let someone else take her portrait?  I don’t think so.  She is one of the greatest photographers ever.  The only pictures I have ever seen of her were self portraits.  How nervous would I be if I got to take her portrait?”  A couple of months later, I received an email from a photo editor at Seattle Metropolitan; “Do you want to photograph Annie Leibovitz?”

I thought a lot about how I would photograph her.  But after dreaming about some grand and sizable production ideas, I decided not to try to do too much.  I would just do what I do best, and keep it simple. We were scheduled to shoot in a private meeting room in a downtown Seattle hotel, with no chance of moving to a different location.  Because of her full schedule that day, I knew she would be tired.  An interview with Steve Scher on NPR (listen here) right before the shoot, and speaking at Benaroya Hall for ‘Seattle Arts & Lectures‘ right after.  I had a small window of time to work with her.

When Annie came into the room, she looked around at the lighting setup, and said,  “Wow, this looks scary.”  My thoughts exactly, but it wasn’t the lights I was thinking about.  We talked a few minutes about photography and cameras before she sat down.  Then I told her about my idea for the portrait, and asked if she would mind taking off her glasses. She said that was fine, and I started to shoot.  It was a balancing act trying to find the line between being in control to get what I wanted, and not being pushy.  I could tell that she was not comfortable being photographed.  She moved around a lot while I shot, and I decided to be flexible rather than push too much to hold a certain pose.  Things don’t always go exactly to plan, and sometimes this can be a pleasant surprise.  It felt like the shoot ended up being a collaboration in making the pictures.  It’s not often that I work with someone who is so willing to be expressive and experiment as she was.  Shortly after we started, the shoot came to an end, and I knew that I had the shot.  I thanked her for her time, and she said, “You did good.”  I’ll take it!  What a compliment.

The article that was published in Seattle Metropolitan, and written by Steve Wieking can be read here.

*Update* - After I posted this, my portrait of Annie Leibovitz was selected by American Photography for AP25, due out November 2009.  This is a huge honor for me!  (Here) is a post with more about award.

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Permalink | January 7th, 2009

12 Responses to “Portrait of Annie Leibovitz”

  1. Eric Schlange Says:
    January 7th, 2009 at 3:35 pm

    Very nice, John. A once-in-a-lifetime thing for sure, and it looks like you nailed it!

  2. David McCarty Says:
    January 9th, 2009 at 9:03 am

    Great shot and story. Thanks for sharing. Nice work.

  3. Sarah Williams Says:
    January 9th, 2009 at 2:06 pm

    What an honor!

  4. Alexander Wigley Says:
    January 10th, 2009 at 12:19 am

    You are the best.

  5. Portraying the Portraitist | [EV +/-] Exposure Compensation Says:
    February 20th, 2009 at 8:05 am

    [...] describes more details on the shot at his blog: When Annie came into the room, she looked around at the lighting setup, and said,  “Wow, this [...]

  6. April Ritchey Says:
    February 23rd, 2009 at 9:14 am

    I think the portrait is very interesting, you captured a person who looks through a camera with the same eye for a living brilliant. I compliment you on the simple way that you photographed her. I think that if you were to go to overboard then it really would not be here.
    You say that she wasn’t comfortable being in front of the camera but in the photograph she just as comfortable in front as behind.
    I’m glad that you worked with the way that she was moving about and kept fidgeting I think that if you were to just photograph her from head straight it would look like it was a school photo and not a proper one.

    Very Brilliantly done.

  7. Jessi Says:
    February 26th, 2009 at 7:29 am

    Wow! What a daunting experience! Seems as if you were given a challenge and you definitely made the best of it! Love the way she is portrayed here, absolutely fabulous!

  8. Alleh Portland Photographer Says:
    February 26th, 2009 at 10:15 am

    What an amazing experience to photograph Annie. I feel lucky just to have had the opportunity to assist for someone that assisted for her. I probably asked too many questions about her.

  9. Sodabowski Says:
    February 26th, 2009 at 2:30 pm

    Oh man, what a stunner. You both did an excellent job here. Thanks a lot for sharing it!

  10. tracy bickhaus Says:
    May 15th, 2009 at 1:16 pm

    great story and picture…congrats!

  11. John Keatley Blog » Blog Archive » American Photography 25 Says:
    May 19th, 2009 at 8:26 am

    [...] in the AP25 book.  The book will be distributed world-wide in hard cover this November.  My portrait of Annie Leibovitz is the picture that was selected from my submission.  Annie Leibovitz also has work in AP25, [...]

  12. John Keatley Blog » Blog Archive » “How Could This Happen to Annie Leibovitz?” Says:
    August 19th, 2009 at 10:25 pm

    [...] November I had the privilege of photographing one of the photography greats, Annie Leibovitz.  (Here) is an earlier post about my experience photographing her.  Then just a few months ago, I found [...]

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