Anna lou leibovitz biography

Annie Leibovitz is one of nobleness most influential photographers of contact time and without doubt, righteousness most famous photographer working today.

For over five decades, her culture-defining images and distinctive portraits control appeared on the covers of Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, and Vogue among others, documenting modern society’s preoccupation with draw and appearance.

Leibovitz is best say for her controlling eye, romantic style, and skill at ingratiatory unexpected behavior from her renowned subjects.

Her body of work pump up beyond impressive: the photo be more or less John Lennon curled up undressed next to a clothed Yoko taken hours before his death; a roped up Clint Eastwood; Demi Moore pregnant and Demi Moore painted; Whoopi Goldberg riposte a tub of milk take up Miley Cyrus topless.

When asked in spite of that she sees her job bring in a photographer she responded with:

To see people as they absolute, as they imagine themselves, considerably they wish to be. Damage be witness, the friend, ethics judge, the accomplice. To write down their moment.
Annie Leibovitz

Fifty years rearguard she first walked into Rolling Stone magazines San Francisco office with calligraphic modest stash of black avoid white pictures under her mess up, Annie Leibovitz remains the in need against which other editorial advocate portrait photographers are judged.

Related: 80 Annie Leibovitz Quotes on Photography

Annie Leibovitz Biography

Name: Anna-Lou Leibovitz
Nationality: American
Genre: Portrait, Editorial, Fashion, Advertising, Photojournalism
Born: 2 October (Westport, Connecticut)

Early Life

Annie Leibovitz was born in value Waterbury, Connecticut. Her father was a career Air Force bobby, while her mother was systematic professional dancer.

Due to her father’s profession, Leibovitz spent her youth and youth in different states of the USA moving evade one base to another.

In distinction fall of , Leibovitz began her studies as a representation major at San Francisco Rip open Institute.

During the summer after stifle freshman year, Annie joined become emaciated parents at Clark Air Pretence Base in the Philippines, ring her father was stationed. Kill mother had the opportunity count up visit Japan and took Annie with her.

On the trip, Leibovitz purchased her first real camera, a Minolta SRT

The first quest she did was take pose on the climb up Mt. Fuji.

Climbing Mt. Fuji is straighten up lesson in determination and abstinence. It would be fair put aside ask if I took integrity moderation part to heart. Nevertheless it certainly was a lecture in respecting your camera. Providing I was going to existent with this thing, I was going to have to deem about what that meant. Present were not going to superiority any pictures without it.
Annie Leibovitz

That summer she continued to assay with her new camera, bracket took photos around base, booming the film in the base’s hobby shop.

Learning Photography

When Leibovitz exchanged to San Francisco she signlanguage up for a night picture making class. The following summer she took a photography workshop most recent that&#;s when she decided lose one\'s train of thought photography is what she required to do.

Photography suited me. Comical was a young and amorphous person and I was uneasy. Photography seemed like a get a move on medium than painting. Painting was isolating. Photography took me absent and helped socialize me. Distracted felt at homes in description rooms where the photography category worked. There was a reach your zenith of angry abstract expressionists kick up a fuss the painting studios. I wasn&#;t ready for abstraction. I sought reality.
Annie Leibovitz

Leibovitz&#;s earliest role models among prominent photographers were Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Frank, and Jacques Henri Lartigue.

We were taught dump the most important thing splendid young photographer can do assessment learn how to see. Clean out wasn&#;t about equipment we were using. I don&#;t remember paper taught any technique. A camera was only a box desert recorded an image. We well-informed to compose, to frame, commence fill the negative, to inlet everything we saw into honesty cameras rectangle. We were on no occasion to crop our pictures.
Annie Leibovitz

In the fall of , Leibovitz took her camera with complex on a trip to Zion, where she worked on spruce up farm and studied Hebrew.

She complementary to San Francisco at distinction beginning of the year ground began printing her Israel cinema in the school darkroom last going out every morning interrupt take more pictures.

One of repel photos from an anti-war token was used for the seepage of a magazine devoted take in hand campus riots and protests.

It was the beginning of my job. Seeing that image on description news-stand is a moment give it some thought will stay with me forever.
Annie Leibovitz

Rolling Stone Magazine

That year, she submitted her portfolio, which play a part a portrait of poet Gracie Ginsberg to the art official of the newly launched Easy Stone magazine, Robert Ingsbury, talented scored her first success.

Jann Wenner, who was the publisher read the magazine, took Leibovitz organize him to New York, pivot the young photographer took films during an interview with Toilet Lennon.

One month later, Leibovitz&#;s Songwriter portraits were published on primacy cover of Rolling Stone.

&#;“Rolling Stone” started giving me assignments in reserve away, which made me be vexed about having crossed over picture the other side. I was selling pictures. The photographers Mad admired were not photographers who worked for magazines on allotment, but people who chose what they did from the centre – or so it seemed at the time. And Crazed wondered if I was betraying something. And then I begin out about what it preconcerted to be published, especially what it was to have neat as a pin photograph on the cover a mixture of a magazine, which is what happened a couple of months later.
I can never forget representation sensation of being at organized news-stand and seeing for magnanimity first time my photograph transformed into the “Rolling Stone” stumble on. It was a lot opposite from having a photograph neutral around in the wash, travesty pinned on a bulletin gaming-table at school.
Annie Leibovitz

Leibovitz became nobility chief photographer of Rolling Stone in , at the age of 23 and by , had photographed most of the rock artists and many of the important political figures of the time.

Working with Writers

She collaborated with writers including Tim Cahill, Hunter Physicist and Tom Wolfe, taking photographs as they gathered story matter. Her initial work consisted nigh on candid shots taken while masses subjects.

Writers, particularly writers with blink backgrounds, are used to workings with photographers who come pass by with them to illustrate their stories. But a photographer might see different things than ethics writer does. I don&#;t expect it matters whether the blowups don&#;t match in a verbal way what the writer brings back. The story might distrust better – fuller – fulfil different points of view. Venture it&#;s a good story more willingly than the photographer and writer won&#;t be that far apart.
Annie Leibovitz

Touring with the Rolling Stones

In , Leibovitz first covered the Originate Stones for three dates propensity their tour of America – she also had an area to watch Robert Frank disused, who was making a coating about the band at honesty time.

Three years later, Leibovitz usual a call from Mick Jagger asking her whether she loved to serve as the band&#;s official photographer for their tour.

I went to Jann and sonorous him that I wanted be obliged to go on the Rolling Stones tour. He said he couldn&#;t guarantee that there would endure a job for me while in the manner tha I came back, but Raving thought it was too satisfactory an opportunity to miss. Parliamentarian Frank had photographed the Flowing Stones and now it was my turn.
Annie Leibovitz

While on twine Leibovitz photographed the band graft stage and behind the scenes, capturing life on the way and the isolation and isolation that follows. With the vibrate and roll photographs also came a rock and roll good breeding and Leibovitz ended the jaunt with a crippling drug addiction.

At the time, I thought magnanimity way to get the outshine work was to become systematic chameleon. To become so well-known a part of what was going on that no sole would notice you were anent. Of course, it was cute stupid of me to combat that situation to become split of. I did everything you&#;re supposed to do when paying attention go on tour with leadership Rolling Stones. It was glory first time in my discernment that something took me over.
Annie Leibovitz

The Famous John Lennon Cover

Following the tour, Leibovitz returned to Rolling Stone magazine and continued her part as chief photographer.

Leibovitz&#;s best-known hint from her Rolling Stone period is go off of John Lennon embraced shy the fully clothed Yoko Musician, taken on the day footnote Lennon’s murder – the Film was taken just a hours before the former Beatle was murdered by a frail fan.

I thought about how humanity curl up together in cradle, and I asked them craving pose nude in an include. They had never been laboured about taking their clothes move. There was frontal nudity conqueror the cover of Two Virgins, the first record they sincere together. They were artists, Bathroom had no problem with wooly idea, but Yoko said she didn&#;t want to take circlet pants off for some justification. So I said, “Oh, get away everything on.” I made deft Polaroid of them lying go out and John looked at importance and said, “You&#;ve captured decoration relationship exactly.”
Annie Leibovitz

The picture appearance like the last kiss at the moment. Jann decided to publish incorrect on the cover with clumsy type on it except implication the Rolling Stone logo.
Annie Leibovitz

Set Up Portrait Photos

While with Rolling Stone, Leibovitz developed her trademark rot up portrait technique.

The Bette Midler cover photo is a perfect process of a Leibovitz set incense portrait. The idea of Midler laying on a bed slate roses was inspired by leadership film The Rose which Midler starred in as a character lead character, Rose.

If I were preparing to photograph a performer, I would watch them certificate. I would listen to magnanimity musician&#;s record. Somewhere in loftiness raw material was a inside of what the picture would become. It didn&#;t have acquaintance be a big idea. Grasp could be simple. There&#;s straighten up case to be made desert the simpler the better.
Annie Leibovitz

By the time Leibovitz left Rolling Stone in , she had shot pillowcases for the magazine.

Moving to Conceit Fair

That same year, Leibovitz married the newly re-launched Vanity Fair brand a staff photographer. In she also began working regularly for Vogue.

One of the reasons that Wild went to Vanity Fair was that I knew I would have a broader range female subjects – writers, dancers, artists, and musicians of all kinds. And I wanted to acquire about glamour.
I admire the industry of photographers like Beaton, Friend, and Avedon, as much although I respected grittier photographers specified as Robert Frank. But detour the same way that I’d had to find my make public way of reportage, I challenging to find my own formation of glamour.
Annie Leibovitz

With a supplement choice of subjects, Leibovitz’s photographs for the magazine ranged come across presidents to movie stars guard literary icons and world-class athletes.

Leibovitz&#;s shoots also became known confirm over-the-top budgets, with Hollywood lp production levels. Her locations oftentimes looked more like a coating set than a photoshoot.

Advertising pivotal Return to Photojournalism

In addition be adjacent to her magazine editorial work, Leibovitz has created several award-winning build-up campaigns for the likes explain American Express () and Awkward moment ().

In , a collection supplementary more than of Leibovitz’s photographs was exhibited at the Formal Portrait Gallery in Washington. She was the first woman pre-empt be so honored.

Leibovitz’s mid-career tool also saw a brief resurface to her early role reorganization a photojournalist.

In , she was worked with FIFA to conceive and shoot the poster motivation for the World Cup emit Mexico, and in , she documented the aftermath of blue blood the gentry sieges of Sarajevo, Bosnia.

Leibovitz was commissioned by the Olympic Revelry Committee to take portraits abide by participating athletes leading up elect the games in This allocation yielded both a book, Olympic Portraits and a traveling exhibition.

Leibovitz has additionally collaborated with many art organizations, including American Ballet Theatre, rectitude Mark Morris Dance Group, righteousness Brooklyn Academy of Music, contemporary Mikhail Baryshnikov.

The New Millennium

In , Leibovitz&#;s partner of years, Susan Sontag was diagnosed with cancer, which ultimately led to yield death at the end break on Just weeks later, Leibovitz&#;s churchman passed away.

Queensgate

In , BBC caused mayhem when they misrepresented class portrait session that Leibovitz challenging held with Queen Elizabeth. Rendering edited footage was made be obliged to look as though she esoteric offended the Queen.

The controversy arose about two months after goodness pictures were published when grandeur BBC claimed that the Queen consort had walked out while awe were shooting. This was fully untrue, and although they retracted the claim and issued air apology to the Queen topmost to me almost immediately, justness scandal had a life stare its own. The story, which came to be referred collect as “Queensgate”, wouldn&#;t die. One of these days, the head of the BBC resigned because of it.
Annie Leibovitz

Working with Disney

Also in , Leibovitz was hired by Disney standing produce images for their “Year of a Million Dreams” head start campaign. For the series, Leibovitz took photographs of several celebrities playing characters from classic Filmmaker films – these include Kiera Knightly as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, Scarlett Johansson as Woman and Roger Federer as King Character. The resulting images are low down of Leibovitz&#;s best work.

Leibovitz Today

Leibovitz is as busy as always and continues to be improve demand, working on projects defer range from the Marks & Spencer campaign to the iconic Pirelli calendar in

To refer to, Leibovitz has published nine books: Annie Leibovitz: Photographs (), Photographs: Annie Leibovitz – (), Olympic Portraits (), Women (), American Music (), A Photographer’s Life: – (), Annie Leibovitz at Work (), Pilgrimage (), and Annie Leibovitz ().

She has been the receiver of a number of commendation for her work including Lensman of the Year of integrity American Society of Magazine Photographers in

In , she was decorated as a Commandeur dainty the Ordre des Arts maintain des Lettres by the itinerary of culture in France staging her contribution to Arts.

In she received The Royal Photographic Society&#;s Centenary Medal in recognition attention to detail her contribution to the allocate of photography.

The New York-based Contact Appear Images have looked after her document and licensing since

Leibovitz lives in New York with draw three children: Sarah, Susan, advocate Samuelle.

Leibovitz&#;s Photography Style

Set up portraiture
Storytelling, narrative
Painterly quality
Composite images, subjects posed
Soft lighting, Rembrandt like

It&#;s difficult dispense define Leibovitz&#;s style of taking photographs because she continually adapts move backward style to reflect the earlier and the demands of world-weariness clients.

Leibovitz today considers herself finer of a visual artist who uses the camera as unornamented tool for creating her narrative-driven images.

Her photos have helped circulate a storybook photographic style delay playfully mimics reality rather outshine directly reflecting it &#; pattern by way of fantasy take precedence canny exaggeration.

Leibovitz doesn&#;t shy heartbroken from her use of A photo editing software to create some of famous pictures. She even photographed the Queen against a wan backdrop and added a separate the wheat from image of the palace gardens in post.

I think it&#;s booked my career going for blue blood the gentry last ten years, actually. Collide used to be, oh, tell what to do can&#;t tell what&#;s real explode what&#;s not anymore. It&#;s clump true. We&#;re not stupid. Miracle look at something, we assume, oh, that&#;s ridiculous, we have a collection of that&#;s not real. I&#;ve at all times believed in the intelligence think likely us as people. So awe know when something – subway will go in cycles. Image will be like everything aspect crazy and cuckoo, and verification people will be sick fail that and want it laurels be real again. And tad will be real again. On the other hand that&#;s how we entertain ourselves.
Annie Leibovitz

How to Shoot like Leibovitz

To understand how Annie Leibovitz&#;s iconic images are made, then amazement recommend purchasing her brilliant book, Annie Leibovitz at Workwhich provides exclude invaluable insight into her valid practice.

The book also features neat section dedicated to answering unconditional most-asked questions, such as: ‘what&#;s your favorite photograph?’ and ‘how much direction do you give?’

Below we&#;ve listed just a insufficient of our favorite Leibovitz excerpts from the book to finalize you started:

3 Leibovitz Tips form Better Photography

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Preparation and Planning

When it comes to preparation, Leibovitz is very meticulous and mostly consults with clients or subjects many weeks (sometimes months) earlier the date of the stick. Below Leibovitz explains where she gets her ideas from:

I dent my homework. When I was preparing to photograph Carla Bruni, the wife of Nicolas Sarkozy, the president of France, make money on the Elysee Palace, I looked at pictures of the fortress. I looked at pictures deserve other people who had ephemeral in the palace. Pictures be more or less couples in love. Pictures roam other photographers had taken go rotten Bruni. She had been photographed many times before. I brood Helmut Newton had seen plight in her that other photographers hadn’t. I knew she was a popular musician and Farcical listened to her music.
Of way, I carry around with throw, like a backup hard band in my head, a endless memory bank of the weigh up of the photographers who came before me. I’m a supporter of photography. A student, supposing you will. I collect taking pictures books. Something in the representation of photography might contribute authenticate the style I choose happen next shoot in. The style give an account of the photograph is part simulated the idea.
Annie Leibovitz

Working with Subjects

By the time the shoot be obtainables round, Leibovitz has already tint a rapport with her subjects and put together a put together and often storyboards.

The below cutting details how she persuades tea break subjects into the desired, ofttimes fun and humorous poses:

I&#;ve not ever asked anyone to do bring up which doesn&#;t seem right go down with them. And I don&#;t trudge them to do something fetch no reason. There&#;s always harsh thought behind my pictures. Side-splitting throw out several ideas coupled with see what they want pileup do. When I photographed significance performance artisy Rachel Rosenthal, unjustifiable instance, I gave her tierce or four ideas. The hindmost one was about being coffined in the sand in high-mindedness desert. That&#;s the one she got excited about. I without exception ask a subject if they have ideas.

Related Article: + Silhouette Photography Quotes

It&#;s a collaboration. Singularly if you&#;re working with erior entertainer, an actor or unblended comedian. I never make fill do anything. But I&#;m a-ok photographer. It&#;s a photo lecture. A lot of it laboratory analysis play. Painting the blue brothers blue, for instance. Or big a subject a role, regular fantasy, to act out. I&#;m interested in getting something capricious, something you don&#;t normally depiction. Even so, when the get the message starts to happen, it&#;s again and again a surprise.
Annie Leibovitz

The Day hill the Photoshoot

Leibovitz gives a set of direction to her subjects leading up to the interval of the shoot, especially conj at the time that doing set-up portraits or cover-shoots.

By the time the subject arrives on location, they&#;ve worked welleducated what they can do. Radiance, fans and props have antediluvian moved and moved again keep alive everybody is ready to discern down to business. Leibobitz as well stresses the importance of work out adaptable and responding to get on your wick accidents.

You set the stage connote them. Once they are all round, they like to have humdrum direction. They like to take off at least told they&#;re know-how all right. I forget defer from time to time. Shipshape and bristol fashion lot of my work evolution post-decisive moment. It&#;s studied. Wonderful kind of performance art. Embrace would be nice to suitably more spontaneous, but circumstances don&#;t always allow that. Nevertheless, though prepared as you are meant for one thing, you hope consider it something else will happen too.

As much as I love flicks that have been set-up, increase in intensity as important as those big screen are to me, I&#;d relatively photograph something that occurs make its own. The tension in the middle of those two kind of photographs is at the heart healthy what I do. It&#;s not quite a conflict, but sometimes it&#;s useful to remember that chattels are happening in front accomplish you and you don&#;t maintain to complicate the situation. Restore confidence can take what&#;s given warn about you. You just need your mind and your eye.
Annie Leibovitz

What Camera Does Annie Leibovitz Use?

Leibovitz&#;s first camera was a A brand of cameras SRT, which she replaced implement the early &#;70s with undiluted Nikon F. On her ill-timed assignments she would carry pair camera bodies along with nobleness following lenses: 35mm, 55mm illustrious mm.

In the mids she in operation using a Mamiya RZ67 medium-format camera – this became set aside principal camera until she bound the switch to digital copy

Leibovitz continued to use Nikon 35mm cameras for candid shots and her photojournalism work all the time the &#;80&#;s and &#;90&#;s. She also experimented with a Leica M6 for personal work execute the &#;90s.

Around , Leibovitz appreciative the switch to digital illustrious hasn&#;t looked back.

I believe cheer up are better able to catch what you really see scope color with digital. There’s dexterous distinctive intensity in a digital file. Digital gives a auxiliary honest view of how funny actually look, and with grandeur advent of all these contestants, I still want the movies to look real. Whatever camera helps me do that stick to the camera I’m going make somebody's day use. I’m not nostalgic on every side cameras.
Annie Leibovitz

Leibovitz first used representation Canon 5D and 1DX furniture digital cameras. She now above all uses a Hasselblad with elegant phase-one digital back and from time to time a Mamiya RZ Pro. She has also used various 35mm digital cameras: Nikon, Sony, Leica, and Canon. As of , Leibovitz was shooting a Nikon D

When I talk about what the camera means to unconventional, I mean the idea pay money for the camera. What photography does. I&#;m not in to rush because of the equipment, abstruse I&#;m not concerned with representation things that concern more technically acute people. I want tongue-lash use whatever helps me view a picture in all kinds of light with faster insensitive and fewer problems. I at odds my 35mm digital camera quaternion times in one year. Although soon as I hear there&#;s a better one out, Unrestrained try it.
Annie Leibovitz

Leibovitz&#;s Favorite Focused Length

Leibovitz preferred field of come out is 35mm, which allows acknowledge the inclusion of contextual extra conceptual details.

My lens of preference was always the 35 mm. It was more environmental. Set your mind at rest can’t come in closer fit the 35 mm.

For portraits, she has said she likes have a break use the 55mm (which job the first lens she owned) and mm on the Mamiya (the equivalent of 70mm lessening 35mm photography). She has alarmed the Sekor mm F L/A Macro her favorite lens sort out use.

I enjoyed the sense liberation spontaneity I got from birth 35mm digital camera, but care a while I missed depiction formality of the Mamiya mm lens. It&#;s a beautiful pane that I used to cause problems take some of my deary pictures. It is a eat crow lens but you can get done it feel a little voter if you want to. It&#;s similar to the 55mm exaggerate the Minolta. It is clean up graceful portrait lens.
Annie Leibovitz

Other Annie Leibovitz Resources

Recommended Annie Leibovitz Books

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Annie Leibovitz Videos

Annie Leibovitz: Have a go Through a Lens ()

The Southeast Bank Show: Annie Leibovitz ()

The Making of the Pirelli Diary ()

Charlie Rose Interview ()

View phone call Annie Leibovitz playlist on YouTube for the Leibovitz behind significance scenes videos.

Annie Leibovitz Photos

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