In today’s post I would be discussing Demi Moore and Beyoncé’s maternity photograph . Firstly, when you observe these two images, we clearly see difference in the styles of Annie Lebowitz (Demi Moore) and Awol Erizku (Beyoncé).

To begin, I would to like to confess that Annie Lebowitz is an artist that I follow and tediously study. Her style is rather quite simple and straight to the point however, she does to such great extent, that work becomes legendry. Annie tends to work with one to two lights. This makes her images very bold, and “constrasty” with a kiss of light. We can see her style reflected on Demi Moore’s maternity photography. The light was positioned in high- right, tilled down onto the subject. And if you look, the subject is position relativity close to a grey background. We then can see Demi looking up into the light, which can symbolise God’s gift to mankind, a child. She looking into the heavens as she proud and courage while she holds her womb. Despite the sheer simplicity of the setup, it accurately portrays ­the underlining message of the photograph; a new chapter in a woman’s life.

On the other hand, we have Beyoncé’s image taken by Awol Erizku. I’m going to rather frank but, I absolutely and positivity hate this image and the artist behind it. To me, Erizku’s work looks rather amateurish and all over the place. Most of the images are not sharp, not in focus, dull, oversaturated, undersaturated and completely makes no sense. It’s like a toddler with crayons drawing all over your wall. Looking at Beyoncé’s image it’s too simple. The flowers are distracting, your eyes go all over the place and it takes away from the experiencing the emotions and feeling a connection to the photograph. The light is just a simple 1:1 or 1:2 with no gradual effect or mood to the subject. Overall, a simple snapshot with nothing to connect to.

Annie Leibovitz’s portrait of Demi Moore for Vanity Fair and Awol Erizku’s portrait of Beyonce are similar in that they both capture famous female celebrities during their pregnancy. There are many differences between these photos but I still think each is successful in communicating their given message. Leibovitz’s portrait is much more dramatic and simple. It forces the viewer to focus mainly on Demi Moore’s emotion and appearance. She is portrayed nude against a neutral background is lit in a Rembrandt style of light at a 4:1 ratio. Her body is in profile while her face is turned in 3/4 view. This allows the viewer to fully engage with Moore’s expression while also highlighting the shapes and curves of her pregnant body. One could say she looks hopeful in the photo, (which any pregnant mother should be.)
This is in stark contrast to Awol Erizku’s portrait of Beyonce. In this photo, Beyonce is clad in lingerie and is posed against a background of colorful flowers. The overall tone is much less dramatic than Lebovitz’s. This is also due to the much softer less contrasting lighting. Beyonce is posed similar to Moore, with her body in profile but her face is fully facing the camera. The flowers that surround Beyonce also portray a different narrative, one highlighting the beauty and nature of birth/pregnancy. While Lebovitz is more concerned with the viewer’s connection to Moore Erizku’s has undertones about the theme of pregnancy.

In these shots I see strong women who are proud to be mothers. Each of these shots has a unique feel which conveys what I see here. Annie Lebowitz and Awol Erizku’s maternity photos of Demi Moore and Beyoncé are both beautiful and impactful images.In both portraits they appear to be holding their babies as a sign of secuity and comfort. Lebowit’z portrait seems to show rembrandt with high contrast  in the image and it looks as if the light may be a bit diffused.

Awol Erizku’s portrait of Beyonce has a bunch of props compared to Annie Lebowitz photo. I guess the props along with Beyonce’s gesture are a sign of being nurturing and being protective. What really catches my eye is how the silk drapes is over her body especially when it is not covering when holding the baby.

One of Leibovitz most famed portraits was the one of Demi Moore during her pregnancy. This was due to the nude nature which was groundbreaking during its time. Some people supported the beauty of her pregnant body and others opposed it and considered it to be pornographic. In my opinion, the photo is absolutely stunning! Leibovitz uses a classical setup in which he has a plain black background. Using a broad light setup, she places the main light above her left shoulder and shines it down on her face. She then places a very light fill light on the other side and probably a very dim backlight to separate her from the background. This lighting creates a beautiful contrast with Demi’s curves and most importantly her baby bump. Moore looks like she is glowing and she represents the raw natural beauty of pregnancy.

Erizku took a completely different approach with his also popularized pregnancy shoot of Beyonce. Erizku stages his shoot with a backdrop of flowers and a bed of earthy greens. The shoot is very colorful and playful. He also places a veil over her head which to me makes a representation of the Virgin Mary, which I must say I find a little odd. In order to highlight the colorful backdrop, Erizku uses Rembrandt lighting. It seems like the lighting is head on and the fill-in lights are strong enough to remove any shadows. There may also be a background light lighting up the blue sky. Beyonce’s pregnancy portrait depicts the more cheerful whimsical of giving life.

A snapshot of a mother to be proudly displaying that bump has been created a million times before and will continue. Each photoshoot is as unique as the mother, to convey as much as she needs to say. Annie Lebowitz and Awol Erizku’s maternity photos of Demi Moore and Beyoncé both produce stunning images. Both portraits feature a beautiful woman in ¾ pose clutching their body but that’s where most of the similarities end.
Demi Moore in Lebowit’z portrait is a high contrast image with diffused Rembrandt lighting illuminating both the subject and the backdrop. The light brings focus onto Moore’s baby bump, framed by her hands. This portrait is striking yet simple, the subjects are emphasized only by light. I feel a sense of strength and courage, two things needed to bring life into the world.

Awol Erizku portrait of Beyoncé, is overflowing with props and light. This image is displaying abundance but not for Beyoncé, for the life that she is nurturing. Erizku drapes the face of the mother to emphasis the focus on the bum that’s only protected by loving hands. Around the belly itself is void of distractions like flowers to help bring the eye to the subject.

Beyoncé is saying I am giving you all that you need to be great. Demi Moore is saying I am giving you my strength. Both portraits are a message of the devotion and sacrifice. Perhaps these portraits are a reminder for the mother to look back on and renew the ideals she held.

For our homework, we have to compare and contrast two photographs. Demi Moore by Annie Lebowitz 1991 and Beyonce by Awol Erizku 2017.

Besides that these photographs are about pregnancy, they are different. The lighting, the way they look at the camera, and their surrounding. When I look at these photos I see the different locations of the lights. For example Moore’s photograph, She has three lights. The main light that is on her right side of her face, a fill light that brightens her shadow on the left, and a hair light that brightness her hair more. When it comes to Beyonce’s photo, I feel that she has more than three lights, because she doesn’t have a lot of shadows like Moore’s photograph. In my opinion, she has a light in the background because I can see the clouds and the blue color perfectly, two lights  45 degrees, a hair light, and reflectors in the front.

When it comes to the surroundings. In my opinion, the background of these photos show the different personalities of the artists. ( Demi Moore is an actress and Beyonce a singer) Moore’s photo shows a more quiet and powerful photo because of the black background and the three lights. Also, I think because this photo was in the 1991 Moore preferred this kind of style. However, Beyonce’s photo shows a more playful background with flowers and a green veil on her hair. She has a lot of colors that makes the photo more interesting.

Besides all of that, they have two things in common, and that is the placement of the hands and the pose. Their bodies are to the left and their hands touching their belly. When it comes to photos of pregnancy this is the best posture because it shows a relationship between the mother and the child.

Yousuf Karsh, a canadian photographer best known for his portraits of celebrities.  He has been described as the greatest portrait photographer of the 20th century.  OVER 20 PHOTOS by Karsh appeared on the cover of LIFE magazine..  I really enjoy his work b/c you can see great detail in his shots. its dramatic and if feels as if there is a sense of motion in all his portraits.

Navad Kander. A London based phtographer known for portraits and landscape.  The usage of vivid colors and tones in astounding!  It makes his work very cinematic and dramatic.

Richard Avedon’s work has a very recognizable visual style. All of his subjects are (usually) composed against a plain (white) background and are high contrast. His style creates emphasis on the subject’s emotion and personality. Mannion’s portrait of Jay-Z is reflective of Avedon’s style because it uses a plain background and is high contrast and as a result shares the same emotional quality as the portraits done by Avedon. While this may not be correct to say I feel Mannion’s work doesn’t really differentiate himself from Avedon in any way. Besides the more contemporary subjects and more frequent use of color.

Richard Avedon’s all pictures are in black and white. When I looked at all his work, I feel like he reflected some particular emotions, feelings and thoughts to his photos. He tried to catch people’s behaviors in a natural way because one of his quote’s is “The moment an emotion or fact is transformed into a photograph, it is no longer a fact but an opinion.” He had known for his work in the fashion world and for his minimalist, large-scale character-revealing portraits. He was the portrait and its ability to express the essence of its subject.

Jonathan Mannion used some black and white pictures and portraits, like how he photographed Jay Z with a old style fashion. Other than that he had pictures in color, people from 20th century and had a different concept. He also took from different perspectives of the subject rather than just taking as a portrait.