ANNIE LEIBOVITZ

BiographyAnnie Leibovitz was born on October 2, 1949 in Connecticut. She was one of six children born to Air Force lieutenant, Sam Leibovitz and modern dance instructor Marilyn Leibovitz. In 1967 she enrolled at the San Francisco Art Institute where she developed a love for photography.

She started working for Rolling Stone magazine in 1970 as chief photographer. She then began working at Vanity Fair, the work she created here was deemed iconic and provocative.

Annie is renowned for her portrait photography, shooting many celebrities over the years, including: Allen Ginsberg, Joan Armatrading and even John Lennon on the day of his assassination. The famous John Lennon shot shows him nude curled around a fully clothes Yoko Ono.

Image AnalysisHere is a photograph by Annie Leibovitz of Meryl Streep. The shot is a medium close-up with the point of interest being her face with some kind of ‘beauty’ product. The leading lines for this image are her arms, leading to the point of interest. With her fingers she is pulling her cheeks, this signifies Meryl Streep’s aging in the public eye and how she attempts to keep her young looks. The colour scheme for this image is simple, the whites signify the innocence and pure beauty in her. The slight red on her cheeks and lipstick cut through the white. The background of this image is a very dark grey and makes the model stand out tremendously and emphasises the point of interest. The lighting of this image is high-key because of the model being very clearly in focus and the only visible shadow cast is on her shoulder caused by her arm. The depth of field for this image is shallow because the only entity in focus is the model. In terms of mise-en-scen, the only clothing we can see is her white shirt, this keeps the simplicity of the image because your eye is not drawn to anything other than her face. Framing wise, The model is centrally located in the shot. The contrast of colours for this image is high because all the colours are rich and there is no grey tint.

Photographic CategoryCelebrityPurposeThis image was used in a gallery with other famous people’s portraitsMeaning CreatedThe created in this image is that Meryl Streep is aging but she still looks young in her roles.

Here is a landscape photograph of Leonardo DiCaprio taken by Annie Leibovitz. This is a medium shot which follows the rule of thirds with DiCaprio on the right of the image and his face in the golden point. DiCaprio is clearly the main point of interest in this image, The swan’s neck would be this image’s leading lines, this helps draw the audience’s eye to DiCaprio further. The colour scheme for this image is black and white with some grey, very simple palette however works well. The lighting for this image is natural because the image was taken in a field. He is wearing a black turtleneck which is very high contrast with the white swan he is holding.DiCaprio’s face seems to be very stern and serious, this almost makes the swan seem to be the same way. DiCaprio has his arms around the swan and this provides a sense of protection over the swan, adding a captured emotion to the image. The depth of field for this image is shallow with only DiCaprio and the swan in focus while the grass is slightly out of focus, this draws more attention to the model and swan.

Photograph CategoryCelebrity PurposeThe purpose of this image was for it to be used in the popular magazine: Vanity FairMeaning CreatedThe meaning of this image can be interpreted as yin/yang and the black and white colourway supports this.

Here are two portrait images of Cate Blanchett taken by Annie Leibovitz. These images are in black and white with a slightly low contrast because there is an overlying grey tinge to the images, this could signify the authenticity of her craft.Her facial expressions signifies the ‘laugh now, cry later’ faces which are heavily connoted with acting; this anchors the model being able to express her emotion in her roles on screen. The leading lines for these images could be her muscles on her neck which lead up to her face, the point of interest. The clothing she is wearing is of a pale colour, this supports the colour scheme of the images. The lighting in the images seems to be natural because we are notified of being outside by the bush/ hedge in the background. The framing of these images is the model is centrally places in both.

Photographic CategoryCelebrity PurposeThe purpose of this image was to be used in Leibovitz’s gallery along with other celebritiesMeaning CreatedThe meaning which this image creates the sense of ‘laugh now, cry later’

Here is a medium shot of Rihanna taken by Annie Lebovitz. The image is landscape and Rihanna’s positioning follows the rule of thirds because she is closer to the right of the image and also her face is near the golden point. The point of interest for this image is very clearly Rihanna, her red hair is incredibly high contrast and stands out compared to the other parts of the image. The background is of the sea with the horizon visible. The sun is lighting for the image, meaning the lighting is natural however there is a shine upon her face, emphasised by make-up and camera flash. The dress Rihanna is wearing is essentially transparent except the roses. The red roses fit with the colour of her hair, supporting the colour scheme. Her lip-stick also supports the red aspect of the colour scheme. This has connotations of love and desire which fits perfectly with Rihanna and her affect on the audience. The leading lines for this image could be her extended arms leading to her body and face. The depth of field for this image would be considered deep, although the point of interest clearly maintains importance.

Photographic CategoryCelebrityPurposeThis photograph would have been used for promotion for the celebrity, placement in a magazine or to be featured in the photographer's gallery.Meaning CreatedThe meaning created by this image comes from the mise-en-scen and the colours in the image.

Here is a portrait, medium-long shot taken by Annie Leibovitz of a naked John Lennon curled around a fully clothed Yoko Ono. This image was the last image was taken shortly before Lennon’s assassination which only adds to the rawness of the picture. The lack of clothing on Lennon signifies a pure human in the simplest form, he isn’t conforming to society’s expectation and this shocks the audience. Yoko Ono’s clothing is very dark made up of dark blue and black, this allows Lennon to stand out even further. The lighting for this image for this image can be identified by the shadow cast from Lennon’s left foot and also Ono’s ear-ring is reflecting the light back, drawing attention to it and Ono’s face after the audience’s eye drifts away from Lennon. The background of this image is the same colour as Lennon’s naked body, this helps symbolically because if Ono was also naked, they would both blend into the background.The leading lines for this image are Lennon’s leg and arms leading to both of their faces, this allows the audience’s eye to be drawn towards the points of interest even quicker. The framing of this image follows the rule of thirds due to Lennon’s head being in the golden point whilst his bottom is in another.

Photographic Category Celebrity/ Icons PurposeThe purpose for this magazine was to be featured in Annie Leibovitz’s gallery. Meaning CreatedThe meaning of this image is to create a sense of yin/ yang between the two models.