It's All About Beauty
Thomas Hauser established a genre of photography not to be imitated. A grotesque symbiosis of a unique personality redefined by the seemingly absolute lack of emotion. Stripped from the halo of the transmitted feelings shared with the outwards environment, the person faces their inner thoughts buried under the weight of societal norms.
The depth and complexity of the character, the uneasiness of the moment astonish leaves a beholder somewhat perplexed and questioning. The research of the human is extended to fashion photography modifying the rules of the game. The exquisite approach to the human experience, the indomitable desire to explore beyond - propose to forget all once known about photography.
Thomas Hauser is a Berlin-based photographer, formerly a painter, who focuses on portraiture, fashion, and still-life. WÜL discusses with Thomas his approach to working with the atmosphere on set, shifting the emotional background, photographing on the large format cameras, and the decision to engage in fashion photography. We speak about arts, the importance of every element to create a fashion photo, and about beauty as a central thought.
‘Achieving the atmosphere that you have in mind is, in my opinion, to find the motivation for your work, no matter if it's painting or photography.’
Painting
You’ve entered the creative sphere as a painter, deciding at a certain point to turn to photography. The processes of those mediums to reach the result are very different both technically and in terms of the time it takes. What are some of the methods you apply to create the set, the atmosphere, and the aesthetics in photography that are connected to painting?
The methods are so different that I cannot say whether there is a connection at all. I use canvases as backgrounds for my portraits, and I sometimes even use my own paintings or drawings on set during a fashion shoot. But these are formal things.
Achieving the atmosphere that you have in mind is, in my opinion, to find the motivation for your work, no matter if it's painting or photography. Why am I taking pictures? What am I trying to say? Why am I doing this at all? What am I really interested in?
I ask myself such questions, and then I have to look for the tools and create an environment that leads to the result I'm looking for. Trying it out, leaving it out, doing it again, sorting it out, and then starting from scratch again and again and again.
At a certain point, I decided to take photos, and I realized that the images I made with a camera are far away from what I had in mind to be art. But what I also realized was that these images were MINE. The photos spoke to me: WE ARE YOURS!
‘I try to influence the atmosphere in my studio in such a way that the sitters don't feel too comfortable. I never play music, which pretty much pulls the mood down, especially when it comes to fashion shoots.’
Beauty and Stillness
The concept of beauty is being challenged in an attempt to change the norm, present different aesthetics, defend minorities, or discover something new. In your work, the objects' and subjects' beauty is captured in stillness however the dynamics can be perceived through the models' gazes and their inner energy. Do you speak with the models on set to facilitate the release of certain energy and capture the atmosphere you strive to create?
I don't speak very much while taking pictures. I also do not give any explanations in the sense of a stage or movie director, at least not at the beginning. For example, I say, "Please always look into the lens, do not move a lot, and have a completely neutral facial expression". Sometimes it works right away. If I am dissatisfied, I make suggestions in the sense of: "Think about something very terrible, think of something that really affects you or scares you." Or the opposite, "Think of something that makes you happy, something you enjoy" (happens rarely).
I try to influence the atmosphere in my studio in such a way that the sitters don't feel too comfortable. I never play music, which pretty much pulls the mood down, especially when it comes to fashion shoots. Some models and part of the beauty team complain and can hardly believe that I am serious. But it creates a concentrated and to a certain extent also uncomfortable mood. The mood is also uncomfortable for me! But I almost always achieve that the faces are serious and focused. That is at least one aspect that creates the mood and atmosphere I try to achieve.
Technique
Most of your photos are black and white and shot in a large format. Black and white is not a specific color, it can be changed chemically to become lighter or darker. What are some of the cinematographic experiences or film directors who have influenced your work and your exploration of the exposition you create on set?
Of course, I have a list of favorite movies and movie directors - but they don't play a major role in my photographic work (at least that is my impression). And one would have to mention as well the photographic directors to answer the question completely and correctly.
Unfortunately, I have to admit that I know very few cameramen or women who have worked for my favorite movies. One great team was R. W. Fassbinder and Michael Ballhaus, though the movies were captured on color film.
‘And when I print, I also try to reproduce the information captured on film (or a sensor) as directly and as unchanged as possible. I believe in something like truth and honesty, especially in photography.’
The First Camera
When you’ve decided to enter the photographic sphere, what was the first camera you used?
The first camera I used after switching to photography was a Nikon Coolpix 5000. When I started, it almost seemed impossible for me to take good photos with this slow and ugly camera. But the confrontation with the technical problems that suddenly appeared to me also led to the fact that I quickly came to completely new results, and I took photos that I did not originally have in mind.
The struggle with technology (camera) and the struggle with the model (person), or in the worst case with both, made photography very interesting at the beginning. I had to focus on both of them almost equally, and in a way that makes working easy. After a while, you realize that something has to be changed, and I bought and tried out many different cameras in a very short time.
There is a statement from N. Araki that reads like this, "If you want to change your pictures, change your camera". There is a lot of truth to it. The camera changes your behavior when taking pictures, it forces the way you are framing, and of course, the speed on set. When I use a large-format camera, it also influences how the photographed person is moving, how he or she is looking and feeling, etc.
But you shouldn't make too much fuss about the camera. I like to work with the two extremes of the spectrum: high-end digital cameras at one side and large-format analog cameras at the other side, if possible, the 8x10 inch camera.
Could you describe the process of testing different cameras and developing your work in the darkroom to reach the final format you mostly use these days?
I hardly work in the darkroom anymore. However, I have never been a fan of experimenting with film (pushing and pulling and all these kinds of manipulations). I expose and develop my film material according to the standards of the manufacturers. And when I print, I also try to reproduce the information captured on film (or a sensor) as directly and as unchanged as possible. I believe in something like truth and honesty, especially in photography. That's why a straightforward and simple working process is important to me.
Fashion
Creating images for covers and fashion magazines has brought some consideration to working with color. What is your main interest in the world of fashion?
I didn't start using color for fashion photography! My first photos were already shot in color. I gradually switched from digital to film and in the third step to black and white. The cameras I used became bigger and bigger, and black and white large format film was my preferred material for several years.
When I was asked to shoot fashion, I had to concentrate on color again. I went back to the "underwear photos” I had taken 10 years earlier, these photos showed already some elements of fashion and styling, at least I would say in this very first series of photographs it was important how the model was dressed (or not dressed). I went to lingerie shops or ordered online the pieces I liked to see in my pictures, and quite often, the model already brought exactly the clothing I wanted to have. At that point, I was not expecting at all anyone could ever be interested in my photos for fashion editorials, let alone for commercial purposes.
However, I've always been interested in fashion, and already in my paintings, I used to work with motifs taken from fashion magazines and ads. In a certain way, to me, it seems as if the circle had closed when I was asked to shoot for fashion. I take fashion very seriously and count fashion in the arts. In it's best moments, it's on the same level as fine arts, cinema or theater.
‘There is something I love about fashion, which I find very hard to understand or to describe. Admittedly, it happens very rarely, but the interaction of a wonderful dress and the right model, the right make-up, hair styling, and light can create very unique moments.’
How do you see your style and technique develop with the exploration of this genre?
The magazines and brands didn't want me to take classic fashion photos. So I was lucky and could almost seamlessly continue to work in the same manner I was used to. Of course, you have to fulfil certain expectations, but that was never a problem for me – it was more of a challenge.
But it's also the case that the garments and the styling are really important and interesting to me. It is not a necessary evil, it's definitely the opposite. I wouldn't call myself a fashion victim – not by far. There is something I love about fashion, which I find very hard to understand or to describe. Admittedly, it happens very rarely, but the interaction of a wonderful dress and the right model, the right make-up, hair styling, and light can create very unique moments. When all of these elements just make up a beautiful picture, that’s what makes fashion photography so attractive and sometimes fascinating for me.
In the best sense: it's all about beauty – and capturing this beauty is just great.
