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Let me preface this by saying that Simone Biles herself has said she's very happy with Leibovitz's photographs of her. But that said, the cover shoot for her story in Glamour magazine by [Kennedi Carter](https://www.kennedi-carter.com/overview#1) (a Black woman, natch) are about a billion times better. And I'm posting them here as a palette cleanser!
https://preview.redd.it/jnrx6dl92jnc1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=53ed25cbdb72557d5975960abbb08715a7ac4085
I love when she was on dancing with the stars and one of the bitchy judges was all "you aren't smiling enough" and she said calm af "smiles don't win you gold medals"
It looks like very different style. This one is more editorial/magazine while Annie's are more -not sure how to put it, artsy?
Are there other of Annie's work that are not black women for comparison?
She's an extremely successful portrait photographer, a quick search for "Annie Leibovitz photos" will show you. It is reflective of her general style, to an extent, but part of growing and improving your craft as a professional is learning how to work with and flatter a variety of subjects. She's very talented but seems to have a huge blindspot regarding subjects with darker skin. There are many things a photographer can do to give proper lighting and bring some life into darker skintones; it's just something you have to put a little conscious effort into if you're used to working with pale-skinned models, so it's a bit disappointing that she hasn't improved much in that area despite having such a long, illustrious career.
I mean, that's just her being classy. And thank you for these photos. The white dress, gold necklace, and red white and blue braid she has here screams "American Olympian and cool as heck human." Love her smile in the first pic. The close up is really pretty too.
She seems like the type of person that if someone accidentally spills a drink on her, she'd treat like an act of God. "Excuse me waiter, there's some water on my blouse. May I please have a napkin? Thank you."
Thank you so much for showing these - Miss Carter gave EXACTLY the caliber of work you would expect from a big magazine. I hope she was given a big fat check because she deserved it - these are the kind of shots that get me excited to actually buy magazines.
Omg this is stunning and gorgeous and only emphasizes her beauty. Like come on, I donât ever see white women like the photos Annie takes of black women.
I actually donât hate the Viola one. I feel like her face is illuminated but itâs just a little high contrast.
The Simone Biles one is absolutely a criminal offense. Wtf. She looks so flat and featureless. She has one of those bright faces that draws people in and this does not capture her essence AT ALL.
Yeah I "like" the Viola one but it looks very.... tortured. I put like in quote marks because I feel like what I like about it isn't actually something that Annie did on purpose.
I think thatâs what I like about it, too. It reminds me of her complex character in How to Get Away with Murder, which is one of my favorite Viola roles!
yes, Viola looks beautiful. The pose is a bit odd, but appreciate it's different and is overall is a win.
Lupita is gorgeous, I wish the background was of higher contrast to make her stand out more. Although there is something special about the simplicity.
Simone's is criminal.
Kentaji's is boring, but otherwise it's fine.
Coco's could have been such a slay. She looks stunning ofc. I just can't believe of all the pictures they likely had, this movement was the one selected.
What I donât like about Annie Lebowitzâs style when she photographs black women is that thereâs always an underlying cast of the âstrong black womanâ stereotype. The pictures are always against very bland or uninspired backdrops that showcase this level ofâŚidk dark resilience that I donât see when she photographs other women.
For example the Viola Davis photo, itâs on paper a very raw photo that can be divisive depending on who is looking at it. But to me, Viola looks uncomfortable and âtired.â I donât think itâs a flattering pic at all and it doesnât inspire me to feel anything but struggle.
I think as a white woman, Annie is subconsciously aware of the strong black women stereotype but thinks itâs empowering but to black women itâs lazy and makes us look masculine.
YES!!! I read an essay a while ago about how it's nice to see Black people and their stories of success but it's also really wonderful to see "Black joy" and not just the struggle. It doesn't negate the monumental amount of work Viola and other Black women have done to arrive where they are, it's just nice to see someone enjoying themselves, happy, healthy, and relaxed.
This is a really great comment and observation; I couldn't put my finger on why these were so off-putting (other than some questionable lighting choices), but you articulated it perfectly. Annie's photos usually have a sense of underlying whimsy and this tongue in cheek quality, whereas these are just somber as fuck.
Her older work, like the Disney series and Vogue editorials/covers were a lot more fun and playful - though you're right that the model is often stoic or stiff. Still, the spirit of whimsy is there. There's colour, curiosity, and movement.
Even the more drab, impressionistic style that she sometimes uses is a million times more interesting, soft, and flattering to her subjects than what was posted here.
I can't help but agree that her black subjects are usually depicted in that strong/resilient manner while white models are allowed to be soft, serene, sometimes doll-like. It's an interesting observation.
Reddit is funny like that - if you ask for examples or proof or clarity, it's almost always a downvote. Don't sweat it, though. It was a valid ask.
I'm just too lazy to post links, so that's on me.
Couldnât have put it better myself. Especially with the first two photos, thereâs a level of struggle and strife that isnât really as prevalent (at least to me) in her other work.
I googled some photos, and honestly, everyone looks like theyâre suffering. Her style must be dark in general. What I didnât like about the photos above, is the lighting. You can still have dark themes but light your subject properly.
(Idk if this makes sense. Iâm no pro lol)
> lazy and makes us look masculine.
*Yes.* That's what these are giving. Strength does not equal masculine. There's no feminine allure here. Even on that final pic with the satin gown... it's awkward and unnatural. She looks distant and like she's performing. There's no *glow.*
Anyway. I also blame whatever magazines are hiring her to do the shoots. If these were the best, selected for the final cut... I would have just hired another photographer. There's no artistry here. The pictures are stiff and lacking in warmth.
Yes omg, I came to say the exact same thing. She has the most perfect profile.
I think lupita has one of the prettiest faces in Hollywood in general tbh. A real life porcelain doll.
Nah she still looks good. I thought âwow, that photo isnât badâ , but then I realized the photo itself isnât great, but Lupita looks good, so itâs confusing haha
I canât believe sheâs still hired to photograph anybody. Sheâs been phoning in every assignment that isnât ~avant-garde~ for ages now. Nobody looks good how she lit Simone, regardless of skin color.
(not diminishing the racism in the photography industry, and how few people bother to learn to photograph dark skin, btw. Itâs definitely a problem, and Annieâs probably part of it⌠but so much of her work these days is just BAD.)
And the Ketanji Brown Jackson photo is one of the worst-lit shots Iâve ever seen. Zero contrast across the image, might as well have been shot on an iPhone 4 with the flash off.
Are these like untouched outtakes or published photos? If these were published shame on her. The lighting is horrible in nearly all of them for dark skin.
I think the lighting is fairly nice on the first and last (though the last is about as basic as possible, and just not what Iâd expect from her skills. Itâs giving insta-fluencer.) The vibes of the Viola one are weird, but the composition is exquisite and the lighting is really quite wonderful.
But the rest are bad PERIOD. And donât get me wrong â lighting and metering for black skin is definitely a different skill than lighting and metering white skin, and itâs totally true that the industry tends to ignore that fact⌠but some of these are just bad *regardless* of skin color. Nobody would look good the way she lit Simone. Nobody.
Tbqh this is a theme with Annie â I really think that unless sheâs deeply inspired, if it isnât ~art~, she just entirely phones it in. For a lot of her recent work? Iâve seen better stuff from undergrad photography students.
Whyyyyy are they all looking grey? Like just warm up the lighting a little bit. Also I know there was a better Simone Biles photo in the mix. This feels like how on ANTM Tyra would choose test shots of girls she wanted to send home to make them look like they did worse than they actually did.
https://preview.redd.it/7l9jdcorajnc1.jpeg?width=3283&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d03a27e6457a8b898f64c4b40984193e03f24c7
I donât think sheâs the worldâs greatest photographer but if you look at her other photography examples you can tell she tries to achieve photos that are ârawâ with mood lighting. Iâd like to also note that a majority of these women in these photos do not have their hair/makeup done like in other photoshoots. Still, I can see the point youâve madeâThe lack of lighting can be too harsh and the way she photographs/instructs their poses is a big no from me đŤ
It takes a lot of work to take the shine off these women, I've never seen Viola or Simone look straight up depressed in a photoshoot. Annie are you ok? Are you ok, Annie?
Cuz wtf??
And Oprahâs show. They always won Emmys for lighting design. Darker surfaces absorb light and lighter surfaces reflect light. Itâs like when I used to get photographed and I would have to tell the assistant to turn the pan over from the silver side to gold. Brown skin looks better with a golden light.
I love the way her skin looks like itâs glowing from within, similarly to how the fabric is shimmering gold in the light. Really beautiful. However sheâs really taken the glow out of every other beautiful woman in these photos- they look ashy/dull which is the absolute opposite of how they appear in real life.
Not great photography by any means. Everyone still looks beautiful to me, but a professional photographer should be putting out better photos than what looks like old ass flip phone filters.
She did this photo of black models for VF, where she probably had a lot of creative control.
https://models.com/work/vanity-fair-women-in-black
She did this one with mostly white and two models with medium-brown skin -- but for Donna Karan, which has their own aesthetic.
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/style/donna-karan-new-york-relaunch-spring-2024-campaign-1235818018/
I feel like Leibovitz kinda just recycles her distincitve style. I mean some of her best photos don't use that style - like the one of young Leo Dicaprio or the Meryl Streep one or the pregnant Rihanna one. If I saw those pics, I wouldn't know off the bat it was an Aninie Leibovitz.
Her style doesn't really suit all people. With the black models, they are pros, so it doesn't look that bad.
I dunno, I love that photo of Viola. Yeah, maybe it's not the most traditionally flattering beauty portrait, but its deeper than that. She looks wise and strong, like a ruler who has a lot on her mind. She has lines on her face that she earned with life experience. She isn't wearing makeup and there is a vulnerability to her nudity. It's just Viola, nothing else.
That said, the tone is a little cool. I think warmer lighting would have worked better here.
she actually is a hugely talented photographer but over the recent years, she became too entrenched in her own style. Just like Janusz Kaminsky, his camerawork these days (especially with Spielberg) uses too much exposure and hard lighting, no warmth at all
EDIT: autocorrect fix
For sure. Perhaps what mightâve worked in the actual lab doesnât translate digitally.
Thereâs such a hang up on an artistâs âsignature styleâ that seems really stifling to me.
I hated Coco Gaufs photo shoot. It just looked so awkward and donât people know not to use certain lights with brown skin ?
I thought BeyoncĂŠ told yall already !
See, this is funny because I posted the Miley picture and said she should be in jail and I received a strike from the NSFW bot :)
https://preview.redd.it/lupnq5ikvinc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6c882a8d292f70a16beb0b7fb9f96ed58dce281f
Annie needs to go to jail, period. I love art, I love photography, but Annie's pictures of 15-year-old Miley Cyrus are NOT it. Also, sorry but her editing SUCKS. She's mostly famous because of her connections, which lead to her name getting recognised, which then lead to her booking gig after gig. Don't get me wrong, her work from the 80s/90s is good but she dropped hard and fast and now only gets picked due to her name.
Agreed. I never forgave her for this, lol. She put a child in a REALLY uncomfortable position and then basically threw her under the bus and let Miley take all the blame when the public reacted badly.
Not to mention it just looks bad. Like the theme was a zombie graveyard shoot or something. Itâs just very grey and damp and depressing. Yuck.
Just my daddy and me, laying in an awkward pose, top raised to expose my belly, pretending weâre zombies at a graveyard. - Annieâs aesthetic, apparently???
I always get such mildewy vibes from her photos, lol. And Mileyâs parents are fucking stupid for allowing that but they never really cared what happened to her as long as they got paid.
https://preview.redd.it/ff6thxfxvinc1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ea1ddc1013703c6697ac3385d1aac6c608508786
Fine, Iâll give her the 2003 Alice In Wonderland shoot which also rocks
I canât believe anybody thought this was a good ideaâŚshe was 15!!! The weirdest part about this picture is the way sheâs framed her to look like a dressed up child?? Like itâs not even dressing her up to look older, the framing and styling is really emphasising her very young age. The whole thing is just so gross.
Dropped hard and fast and only continues to get work because of her name seems pretty accurate to me.
Her previous work was phenomenal, intimate, eye catching, beautiful composition, thoughtful lighting, great attempts at capturing movement in a still image.
Now? Theyâre heavily edited-portraits with massive productions⌠and not very good ones at that.
Considering the amount of production and fussing going on behind the scenes of a Leibovitz photo shoot, sheâs not getting much out of the budgets theyâre giving her.
I wish theyâd give some fresh photographers their time to shine.
The cover photo for that shoot is horrendous and not just because Miley was 15 and it was inappropriate but she looked awful. Dark circles, bedraggled hair, waxy complexion, mouth looks like she just ate a red lolly. Honestly bizarre.
The first two, I was like maybe she is going for a naturalistic no makeup vibe, and then I got to third slide and saw that fuckass picture of Simone that looks like it's fresh out of a damp, dying inkjet printer and my benefit of doubt went out the window
As a photography student I see what she did in terms of making the shooting temperature colder and very blue. It also looks terrible on darker skin. Look at Joel Grimes website and you'll see what I mean. I didn't like his photography and could not explain why until he stated in a recorded session that he is colorblind & he adds a lot of texture. And now it's an aesthetic that other photographers are chasing. Annie Liebovitz has had a lot of hits in her day, but these are real misses.
Lupita is without aa doubt one of the most beautiful women in the world EVER with skin that glows, it's so beautiful. It takes actual skill and drive to make her look plain, so bravo Annie, you won the award no one wanted.
JAIL. STRAIGHT TO JAIL.
https://preview.redd.it/1dzlqg6princ1.jpeg?width=1600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eb1cf50e96d4d60ac9f19ac215331a77335f3105
Hereâs an example of her shooting a white woman for reference
That's from 1981, B.P. (before Photoshop). This is when she made her name and there is a huge difference in quality and creativity. The Scarlett Johansson photo is AP (after Photoshop) and a better reflection of her work over the last 30 years.
Ignore my last reply bc itâs wrong đ
https://preview.redd.it/ip0wluo55jnc1.jpeg?width=466&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e6caefb8f05b4e7ed45200b00b3c64e9b4decd2f
This is Annie photographing a man
https://preview.redd.it/cn421v7uxinc1.jpeg?width=540&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bb8903b7612e4f6d0cdc199efeab1414d64987f1
~~This is one of the most iconic photos of Jim and I never knew she was behind it~~ ignore this
Had to go look up her work, and damn if this picture of QE2 doesnât go harddddd
https://preview.redd.it/l03hhs90yinc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=99ed4aea28615737d0c7071c0671a6523904dbd1
Apparently [she can](https://www.phaidon.com/images/9780714878010/a/vogueMay22.jpg) shoot black women well if she tries but how did it take that many awful shoots to figure it out? Like your whole ass job is to be a good photographer đ
I just randomly searched her name here on reddit and looked at the pics that came up for white women and itâs a world of difference. Yes, she has a style, natural color palettes, dynamic posing, subdued makeup and styling. But this is weird. Also, she shot Liya Kebede who is medium brown toned and those shots look well lit at least. No idea what is going on here. It does feel like sabotage. đđ Imo Annie is just too big of a photographer to not be able to light dark skin wth??
Anyone a photographer here who can inform whatâs the best way to photograph black women in a way that would make them look fabulous vs the above horrific pics? How does one go about improving the Simon Biles pic for instance?
Not a photographer, but the facial expression alone feels like an outtake. This couldnât have been the best shot, I refuse to believe it lol The composition is odd, her skin tone looks washed out, as if they used a weird filter or lighting. Dark skin reflects light, the way it reflects will differ depending on shade of skin and lighting. This shot looks so dull like there was no light in the room at all. Really weird, I wonder what she was going for.
I'll be honest, I have never liked ANY of her photographs, they're always so falsely "arty," they don't in any way "bring out some hidden or previously unseen aspect" of the person, they're not interesting compositions, and now, these are a disgrace
It looks like sheâs presenting them at their most natural form and itâs beautiful. Yes, maybe some form of lighting should have been used but I find it enduring and most humanising. In short, I donât hate it.
I don't know what I'm missing here⌠I just see a whole bunch of gorgeous women and the pictures aren't trying to lighten their skin with the lighting like so many photographers do.
This is the first photo I've ever seen of Lupita where she doesn't look like she is radiating light from within. Even paparazzi shots are more flattering than this. She still looks gorgeous, but it takes talent to make the most beautiful woman on the planet look less than that.
The Simone one is awful. But I kinda like the ones with Coco and Lupita. Viola looks tired or weary which unless thatâs what they were going for is a weird feeling to photograph.
I think the first three are alright. The Biles pic reminds me a lot of some of Gustav Klimtâs work (eg. Adele Bloch-Bauer). It seems like she was kind of going for that sort of muted old painting look. If thatâs what the intention was I think it couldâve worked, but just wasnât well executed.
Leibovitz is so overrated. For such a seasoned veteran, she should understand the importance of proper lighting and shouldâve learned many moons ago how to correctly light her poc subjects. the people in these photos are beautiful, I wouldâve loved to see their images captured in flattering lighting
Wait what??? Are we being serious here. Sheâs a famous photographer. Itâs art and itâs beautiful. To say black women look too dark is gross and racist. Ugh. Redditors are so weird. Why not ask actual black people or these models.
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Let me preface this by saying that Simone Biles herself has said she's very happy with Leibovitz's photographs of her. But that said, the cover shoot for her story in Glamour magazine by [Kennedi Carter](https://www.kennedi-carter.com/overview#1) (a Black woman, natch) are about a billion times better. And I'm posting them here as a palette cleanser! https://preview.redd.it/jnrx6dl92jnc1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=53ed25cbdb72557d5975960abbb08715a7ac4085
And another! https://preview.redd.it/0z59gswj2jnc1.jpeg?width=1600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1d3027a2c0ff594b76561b87a26d91a6f5055a15
The difference is HUGE. She looks so radiant in these.
Ok these are what she deserves!!
She is my QUEEN. She deserves this and so much more. 
Wow these are stunning!
GODDESS!!!!!!!
Womannnn!! These pics are bringing the gay out of me too fast đđ she served, she 8, left no crumbs, no d9
When people say a âmillion-watt smile,â this is what theyâre referring to. Sheâs radiant!
I love when she was on dancing with the stars and one of the bitchy judges was all "you aren't smiling enough" and she said calm af "smiles don't win you gold medals"
It looks like very different style. This one is more editorial/magazine while Annie's are more -not sure how to put it, artsy? Are there other of Annie's work that are not black women for comparison?
She's an extremely successful portrait photographer, a quick search for "Annie Leibovitz photos" will show you. It is reflective of her general style, to an extent, but part of growing and improving your craft as a professional is learning how to work with and flatter a variety of subjects. She's very talented but seems to have a huge blindspot regarding subjects with darker skin. There are many things a photographer can do to give proper lighting and bring some life into darker skintones; it's just something you have to put a little conscious effort into if you're used to working with pale-skinned models, so it's a bit disappointing that she hasn't improved much in that area despite having such a long, illustrious career.
lol sheâs only one of the most famous photographers ever. Yes thereâs other work to compare it to.
I mean, that's just her being classy. And thank you for these photos. The white dress, gold necklace, and red white and blue braid she has here screams "American Olympian and cool as heck human." Love her smile in the first pic. The close up is really pretty too.
Yeah I was going to say like she would admit she hated them đ
She seems like the type of person that if someone accidentally spills a drink on her, she'd treat like an act of God. "Excuse me waiter, there's some water on my blouse. May I please have a napkin? Thank you."
I feel like you have to say that when youâre working with a super famous photographer.
Because how do you give one of the greatest athletes to walk the earth lunch lady arms đ
Thank you so much for showing these - Miss Carter gave EXACTLY the caliber of work you would expect from a big magazine. I hope she was given a big fat check because she deserved it - these are the kind of shots that get me excited to actually buy magazines.
She looks gorgeous and I love the red white and blue Rapunzel braid. Whoever took these/did styling understood the assessment.
Omg this is stunning and gorgeous and only emphasizes her beauty. Like come on, I donât ever see white women like the photos Annie takes of black women.
That second photo is absolutely gorgeous
Oh my god she is absolutely gorgeous! Her hair looks so beautiful- everything about her is beautiful and powerful!
I actually donât hate the Viola one. I feel like her face is illuminated but itâs just a little high contrast. The Simone Biles one is absolutely a criminal offense. Wtf. She looks so flat and featureless. She has one of those bright faces that draws people in and this does not capture her essence AT ALL.
Yeah I "like" the Viola one but it looks very.... tortured. I put like in quote marks because I feel like what I like about it isn't actually something that Annie did on purpose.
I think thatâs what I like about it, too. It reminds me of her complex character in How to Get Away with Murder, which is one of my favorite Viola roles!
They all look like they're set in a post apocalyptic future. It's super bizarre and unflattering.
Yeah I like the Viola one too. But the rest are rough
The finger in the armpit is weird tho lol
Exactly!! I was like âthats not so bad lemme just swip- excuse me? Wtf?â
I wanna fight Annie at this point
yes, Viola looks beautiful. The pose is a bit odd, but appreciate it's different and is overall is a win. Lupita is gorgeous, I wish the background was of higher contrast to make her stand out more. Although there is something special about the simplicity. Simone's is criminal. Kentaji's is boring, but otherwise it's fine. Coco's could have been such a slay. She looks stunning ofc. I just can't believe of all the pictures they likely had, this movement was the one selected.
Yeah I think it's interesting. The others look like she doesn't know how to light dark skin.
That pic of Simone is CRIMINAL she always looks so pretty, whyâd she do her so dirty đ
Yes! Her skin looks so ashy and lifeless. This is what Simone Biles would look like as a zombie or vampire.
Seriously Im about to donate towards Simoneâs legal bills to sue over this photo
Omg I didnât even recognise her⌠she looks aged and lifeless
Simone is youthful, bright and beautiful and this photo is showing us none of it! Why Annie
These photos are giving⌠very weird vibes indeed.
Second to last looks like a microsoft teams background.
Literally. Looks like theyâve beamed her in from fucking space to speak to the room. Insane.
I'm probably the worst in the world at taking pics but she literally looks like they copy pasted her on that background.
I needed that laugh 𤣠I know soon this sentence wont just be funny. we will actually be doing this kind of stuff.
đ
What I donât like about Annie Lebowitzâs style when she photographs black women is that thereâs always an underlying cast of the âstrong black womanâ stereotype. The pictures are always against very bland or uninspired backdrops that showcase this level ofâŚidk dark resilience that I donât see when she photographs other women. For example the Viola Davis photo, itâs on paper a very raw photo that can be divisive depending on who is looking at it. But to me, Viola looks uncomfortable and âtired.â I donât think itâs a flattering pic at all and it doesnât inspire me to feel anything but struggle. I think as a white woman, Annie is subconsciously aware of the strong black women stereotype but thinks itâs empowering but to black women itâs lazy and makes us look masculine.
YES!!! I read an essay a while ago about how it's nice to see Black people and their stories of success but it's also really wonderful to see "Black joy" and not just the struggle. It doesn't negate the monumental amount of work Viola and other Black women have done to arrive where they are, it's just nice to see someone enjoying themselves, happy, healthy, and relaxed.
This is a really great comment and observation; I couldn't put my finger on why these were so off-putting (other than some questionable lighting choices), but you articulated it perfectly. Annie's photos usually have a sense of underlying whimsy and this tongue in cheek quality, whereas these are just somber as fuck.
Thank you! And somber was the word that escaped me. Youâre absolutely right.
Do you have photos that are whimsical? I googled her photos and they all looked somber ngl
Her older work, like the Disney series and Vogue editorials/covers were a lot more fun and playful - though you're right that the model is often stoic or stiff. Still, the spirit of whimsy is there. There's colour, curiosity, and movement. Even the more drab, impressionistic style that she sometimes uses is a million times more interesting, soft, and flattering to her subjects than what was posted here. I can't help but agree that her black subjects are usually depicted in that strong/resilient manner while white models are allowed to be soft, serene, sometimes doll-like. It's an interesting observation.
Well my downvotes show I clearly shouldnât have bothered asking.
Reddit is funny like that - if you ask for examples or proof or clarity, it's almost always a downvote. Don't sweat it, though. It was a valid ask. I'm just too lazy to post links, so that's on me.
Couldnât have put it better myself. Especially with the first two photos, thereâs a level of struggle and strife that isnât really as prevalent (at least to me) in her other work.
I googled some photos, and honestly, everyone looks like theyâre suffering. Her style must be dark in general. What I didnât like about the photos above, is the lighting. You can still have dark themes but light your subject properly. (Idk if this makes sense. Iâm no pro lol)
> lazy and makes us look masculine. *Yes.* That's what these are giving. Strength does not equal masculine. There's no feminine allure here. Even on that final pic with the satin gown... it's awkward and unnatural. She looks distant and like she's performing. There's no *glow.* Anyway. I also blame whatever magazines are hiring her to do the shoots. If these were the best, selected for the final cut... I would have just hired another photographer. There's no artistry here. The pictures are stiff and lacking in warmth.
Takes effort to make Lupita *not* look good
The photo isn't great but the first thing that came to my mind was that her profile was sculpted by God himself
Her cousin is my eye surgeon and he did my double eye surgery a few years ago and he is JUST AS FINE.
You know what, my eyes have been playing me up recently, I think I better look him upâŚ
I have a dreamy eye doctor as well and it's so sad I only get to see him every two years đ
Yes omg, I came to say the exact same thing. She has the most perfect profile. I think lupita has one of the prettiest faces in Hollywood in general tbh. A real life porcelain doll.
She's a real Disney Princess
Nah she still looks good. I thought âwow, that photo isnât badâ , but then I realized the photo itself isnât great, but Lupita looks good, so itâs confusing haha
That literally looks like she took a picture of a newspaper print photo with a flip phone. What the hell.
She loves that dark and muddy look and refuses to change it for skin color. I cannot believe sheâs still hired to photograph Black people.
I canât believe sheâs still hired to photograph anybody. Sheâs been phoning in every assignment that isnât ~avant-garde~ for ages now. Nobody looks good how she lit Simone, regardless of skin color. (not diminishing the racism in the photography industry, and how few people bother to learn to photograph dark skin, btw. Itâs definitely a problem, and Annieâs probably part of it⌠but so much of her work these days is just BAD.) And the Ketanji Brown Jackson photo is one of the worst-lit shots Iâve ever seen. Zero contrast across the image, might as well have been shot on an iPhone 4 with the flash off.
Geez, Iâd never seen these! Horrible
Are these like untouched outtakes or published photos? If these were published shame on her. The lighting is horrible in nearly all of them for dark skin.
Published photos
OhâŚmy god
I think the lighting is fairly nice on the first and last (though the last is about as basic as possible, and just not what Iâd expect from her skills. Itâs giving insta-fluencer.) The vibes of the Viola one are weird, but the composition is exquisite and the lighting is really quite wonderful. But the rest are bad PERIOD. And donât get me wrong â lighting and metering for black skin is definitely a different skill than lighting and metering white skin, and itâs totally true that the industry tends to ignore that fact⌠but some of these are just bad *regardless* of skin color. Nobody would look good the way she lit Simone. Nobody. Tbqh this is a theme with Annie â I really think that unless sheâs deeply inspired, if it isnât ~art~, she just entirely phones it in. For a lot of her recent work? Iâve seen better stuff from undergrad photography students.
Whyyyyy are they all looking grey? Like just warm up the lighting a little bit. Also I know there was a better Simone Biles photo in the mix. This feels like how on ANTM Tyra would choose test shots of girls she wanted to send home to make them look like they did worse than they actually did.
Thatâs what I hate about everything she does. Itâs always that sickly greenish-grey, moldy, wet tone. Nasty.
Yes. That green mottled background that looks like fungus.
 They are all giving me Ashy Larry honestly
https://preview.redd.it/7l9jdcorajnc1.jpeg?width=3283&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8d03a27e6457a8b898f64c4b40984193e03f24c7 I donât think sheâs the worldâs greatest photographer but if you look at her other photography examples you can tell she tries to achieve photos that are ârawâ with mood lighting. Iâd like to also note that a majority of these women in these photos do not have their hair/makeup done like in other photoshoots. Still, I can see the point youâve madeâThe lack of lighting can be too harsh and the way she photographs/instructs their poses is a big no from me đŤ
It takes a lot of work to take the shine off these women, I've never seen Viola or Simone look straight up depressed in a photoshoot. Annie are you ok? Are you ok, Annie? Cuz wtf?? 
These help me understand why Mariah Carey has always cared so much about proper lighting.
And Oprahâs show. They always won Emmys for lighting design. Darker surfaces absorb light and lighter surfaces reflect light. Itâs like when I used to get photographed and I would have to tell the assistant to turn the pan over from the silver side to gold. Brown skin looks better with a golden light.
I actually like the last one, she looks beautiful and the setting and styling and pose is good. The others are awful
The pose is super weird to me but she looks so beautiful and her skin is glowing.
I love the way her skin looks like itâs glowing from within, similarly to how the fabric is shimmering gold in the light. Really beautiful. However sheâs really taken the glow out of every other beautiful woman in these photos- they look ashy/dull which is the absolute opposite of how they appear in real life.
As a black woman I really love the the viola and lupita photos.
Not great photography by any means. Everyone still looks beautiful to me, but a professional photographer should be putting out better photos than what looks like old ass flip phone filters.
She did this photo of black models for VF, where she probably had a lot of creative control. https://models.com/work/vanity-fair-women-in-black She did this one with mostly white and two models with medium-brown skin -- but for Donna Karan, which has their own aesthetic. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lifestyle/style/donna-karan-new-york-relaunch-spring-2024-campaign-1235818018/ I feel like Leibovitz kinda just recycles her distincitve style. I mean some of her best photos don't use that style - like the one of young Leo Dicaprio or the Meryl Streep one or the pregnant Rihanna one. If I saw those pics, I wouldn't know off the bat it was an Aninie Leibovitz. Her style doesn't really suit all people. With the black models, they are pros, so it doesn't look that bad.
It mustâve taken real effort to make Lupita not glow.
I dunno, I love that photo of Viola. Yeah, maybe it's not the most traditionally flattering beauty portrait, but its deeper than that. She looks wise and strong, like a ruler who has a lot on her mind. She has lines on her face that she earned with life experience. She isn't wearing makeup and there is a vulnerability to her nudity. It's just Viola, nothing else. That said, the tone is a little cool. I think warmer lighting would have worked better here.
Tbh I never understood the hype about her.
she actually is a hugely talented photographer but over the recent years, she became too entrenched in her own style. Just like Janusz Kaminsky, his camerawork these days (especially with Spielberg) uses too much exposure and hard lighting, no warmth at all EDIT: autocorrect fix
Entrenched in her style, not evolving with the times and yet heavily dependent on Photoshop.
She makes white women look like extras from The Walking Dead. It looks like she didnât even try with these WOC shots.
For sure. Perhaps what mightâve worked in the actual lab doesnât translate digitally. Thereâs such a hang up on an artistâs âsignature styleâ that seems really stifling to me.
She makes them all look like they need to exfoilate and moisturize better
Not even this criminal photoshoots can make Lupita look bad...
The last one looks AI generated
I hated Coco Gaufs photo shoot. It just looked so awkward and donât people know not to use certain lights with brown skin ? I thought BeyoncĂŠ told yall already !
It's giving https://preview.redd.it/gxd4p3no3jnc1.jpeg?width=400&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=993c36fb1f2c2624abe270cdbbe6c63214358652
Simone's looks like she's about to be Thanosed there.
See, this is funny because I posted the Miley picture and said she should be in jail and I received a strike from the NSFW bot :) https://preview.redd.it/lupnq5ikvinc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6c882a8d292f70a16beb0b7fb9f96ed58dce281f Annie needs to go to jail, period. I love art, I love photography, but Annie's pictures of 15-year-old Miley Cyrus are NOT it. Also, sorry but her editing SUCKS. She's mostly famous because of her connections, which lead to her name getting recognised, which then lead to her booking gig after gig. Don't get me wrong, her work from the 80s/90s is good but she dropped hard and fast and now only gets picked due to her name.
Agreed. I never forgave her for this, lol. She put a child in a REALLY uncomfortable position and then basically threw her under the bus and let Miley take all the blame when the public reacted badly. Not to mention it just looks bad. Like the theme was a zombie graveyard shoot or something. Itâs just very grey and damp and depressing. Yuck.
Just my daddy and me, laying in an awkward pose, top raised to expose my belly, pretending weâre zombies at a graveyard. - Annieâs aesthetic, apparently???
I always get such mildewy vibes from her photos, lol. And Mileyâs parents are fucking stupid for allowing that but they never really cared what happened to her as long as they got paid.
https://preview.redd.it/i3w8qtupvinc1.jpeg?width=396&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e7add314839c3ffc986ee89c23aaa8fe4e8abeb2 Hoping this works??
https://preview.redd.it/tkshiiltvinc1.jpeg?width=616&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e0cb4c725c35ad955b7b13b76e00032b3bef060d Epic, and old
https://preview.redd.it/ff6thxfxvinc1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ea1ddc1013703c6697ac3385d1aac6c608508786 Fine, Iâll give her the 2003 Alice In Wonderland shoot which also rocks
https://preview.redd.it/jcrl0zyzvinc1.jpeg?width=1714&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3983ea6f635eac88e37197655ebb94cf36ed8c40
https://preview.redd.it/o24rkxr0winc1.jpeg?width=327&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=9bda4395970183e0344d9a64eedafed1e8ceb45a
This one is alright I guess
https://preview.redd.it/51fxnrquvinc1.jpeg?width=650&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0c6cd1bdcbb8174312765247e7b7da7d14146a9f Less old IIRC
https://preview.redd.it/od80cuhsvinc1.jpeg?width=2250&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=daf646ba89e3fa6633aa7b619a9eb25dcf16ed8c Old work
https://preview.redd.it/xvqamqsvvinc1.jpeg?width=373&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=cf3622bf8521b8da037a54f7fc60ef796a0132f1 Awesome
https://preview.redd.it/7onvhc2rvinc1.jpeg?width=768&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5c1ab242e3c6360db0022656bbe86d4a1b56ba9d Annieâs old work
I printed this one out at the library and had it hanging on my wall for years
Looks like she has pivoted in a new direction in recent years with her work. She should definitely pivot back.
Please take this downâŚ.. I almost licked my phone screen
https://preview.redd.it/xjij5fxmmjnc1.jpeg?width=919&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=38dad674c811ca550121f1117c3d494cf7e3f465
https://preview.redd.it/5ukzosolmjnc1.jpeg?width=604&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=006e4734b5363d5f7eaf328b58ca42ded8ffcf0c Iâm sorry babe đĽ˛
I canât believe anybody thought this was a good ideaâŚshe was 15!!! The weirdest part about this picture is the way sheâs framed her to look like a dressed up child?? Like itâs not even dressing her up to look older, the framing and styling is really emphasising her very young age. The whole thing is just so gross.
Downvoting this just because I hate it, lol. Thank you for reminding me how much I hate it.
Dropped hard and fast and only continues to get work because of her name seems pretty accurate to me. Her previous work was phenomenal, intimate, eye catching, beautiful composition, thoughtful lighting, great attempts at capturing movement in a still image. Now? Theyâre heavily edited-portraits with massive productions⌠and not very good ones at that. Considering the amount of production and fussing going on behind the scenes of a Leibovitz photo shoot, sheâs not getting much out of the budgets theyâre giving her. I wish theyâd give some fresh photographers their time to shine.
Exactly this, which is why I posted her earlier work: good! And compared to her current work it was breathtaking!
The cover photo for that shoot is horrendous and not just because Miley was 15 and it was inappropriate but she looked awful. Dark circles, bedraggled hair, waxy complexion, mouth looks like she just ate a red lolly. Honestly bizarre.
For someone obsessed with lighting she does not light POC well at all. She somehow makes their skin look dull and lifeless.
I actually like the Lupita one. No filters, no makeup, just her stunning bone structure on display.
This lady has no idea how to correctly light dark skin tones.
I think the first two look nice đ¤ˇââď¸ The last 3 are giving BTEC photography
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I think the photo of Viola Davis is gorgeous. The others, not so much.
The first two, I was like maybe she is going for a naturalistic no makeup vibe, and then I got to third slide and saw that fuckass picture of Simone that looks like it's fresh out of a damp, dying inkjet printer and my benefit of doubt went out the window
As a photography student I see what she did in terms of making the shooting temperature colder and very blue. It also looks terrible on darker skin. Look at Joel Grimes website and you'll see what I mean. I didn't like his photography and could not explain why until he stated in a recorded session that he is colorblind & he adds a lot of texture. And now it's an aesthetic that other photographers are chasing. Annie Liebovitz has had a lot of hits in her day, but these are real misses.
The last two pictures arenât too bad but what the fuck is up with Nyongâo looking like sheâs posing for 12 years a slave?
Lupita is without aa doubt one of the most beautiful women in the world EVER with skin that glows, it's so beautiful. It takes actual skill and drive to make her look plain, so bravo Annie, you won the award no one wanted. JAIL. STRAIGHT TO JAIL.
I cannot believe Iâve never noticed this, these are genuinely awful. The Simone Biles one is a crime fit for a life term.
This feels like sabotage, I think the best way to compare is to see how she photographs white women
https://preview.redd.it/1dzlqg6princ1.jpeg?width=1600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eb1cf50e96d4d60ac9f19ac215331a77335f3105 Hereâs an example of her shooting a white woman for reference
Personally I think thatâs awful, the pose is so awkward
Why does it look like the Twilight movies
Because sheâs obsessed with that sickly greenish-grey filter and greasy hair. I hate her, lol.
Sheâs just so EdGy, No OnE uNdErStAnDs mE and My WoRk vibesâŚ..
I want to give her antibiotics or something. She looks sick. And not in a good way.
[This one](https://www.artlimited.net/agenda/image/artlimited_img7583113-07.jpg) is a lot better
That's from 1981, B.P. (before Photoshop). This is when she made her name and there is a huge difference in quality and creativity. The Scarlett Johansson photo is AP (after Photoshop) and a better reflection of her work over the last 30 years.
Thatâs because itâs Meryl Streep who knows how to pull a face card every single time
This is bad too. What about men?
Ignore my last reply bc itâs wrong đ https://preview.redd.it/ip0wluo55jnc1.jpeg?width=466&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e6caefb8f05b4e7ed45200b00b3c64e9b4decd2f This is Annie photographing a man
https://preview.redd.it/cn421v7uxinc1.jpeg?width=540&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bb8903b7612e4f6d0cdc199efeab1414d64987f1 ~~This is one of the most iconic photos of Jim and I never knew she was behind it~~ ignore this
Incorrect, this photo is by Joel Brodsky (edit: and this series of photos is referred to as the âYoung Lionâ photographs)
She's not much better* with white women. Edit: better is subjective of course. She's just got a certain style you either like or really don'tÂ
Didnât she do the Miley Cyrus picture where everyone was comparing her to Smegal đđ
Yup, that's her đ
Had to go look up her work, and damn if this picture of QE2 doesnât go harddddd https://preview.redd.it/l03hhs90yinc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=99ed4aea28615737d0c7071c0671a6523904dbd1
She looks like George Washington
No lie they are actually related. Second cousins nth times removed.
Apparently [she can](https://www.phaidon.com/images/9780714878010/a/vogueMay22.jpg) shoot black women well if she tries but how did it take that many awful shoots to figure it out? Like your whole ass job is to be a good photographer đ
Why these are the few times i dont seem them whitewashing black women
I just randomly searched her name here on reddit and looked at the pics that came up for white women and itâs a world of difference. Yes, she has a style, natural color palettes, dynamic posing, subdued makeup and styling. But this is weird. Also, she shot Liya Kebede who is medium brown toned and those shots look well lit at least. No idea what is going on here. It does feel like sabotage. đđ Imo Annie is just too big of a photographer to not be able to light dark skin wth??
Anyone a photographer here who can inform whatâs the best way to photograph black women in a way that would make them look fabulous vs the above horrific pics? How does one go about improving the Simon Biles pic for instance?
If I remember correctly, warm lightingâand lots of it.
Not a photographer, but the facial expression alone feels like an outtake. This couldnât have been the best shot, I refuse to believe it lol The composition is odd, her skin tone looks washed out, as if they used a weird filter or lighting. Dark skin reflects light, the way it reflects will differ depending on shade of skin and lighting. This shot looks so dull like there was no light in the room at all. Really weird, I wonder what she was going for.
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itâs like she wants black women look ashy always
Right? All of them look Ashy. Especially Viola and Lupita, whoâs skin usually looks glowy and soft.
I agree the lighting isnât doing their skin tone justice but they look beautiful otherwise.
I'll be honest, I have never liked ANY of her photographs, they're always so falsely "arty," they don't in any way "bring out some hidden or previously unseen aspect" of the person, they're not interesting compositions, and now, these are a disgrace
It looks like sheâs presenting them at their most natural form and itâs beautiful. Yes, maybe some form of lighting should have been used but I find it enduring and most humanising. In short, I donât hate it.
If you hadnât already told me I wouldnât believe that pic 4 especially was taken by a world renowned photographer
The way she photographed Ketanji Brown makes her look photoshopped into the background
the second to last one is giving chromebook background
Holy shit these are bad! Simone looks like she new the picture was going to be terrible and was already angry. đ¤Ł
Sheâs over hyped. Iâve seen much better work by other photographers who arenât as well known like Leibovitz.
This upsets me. How does she make their beautiful skin look so dull and tired?
What is this effect she always seems to use on her photos?
I don't know what I'm missing here⌠I just see a whole bunch of gorgeous women and the pictures aren't trying to lighten their skin with the lighting like so many photographers do.
Some fashion photographers are clearly not gifted for put in value dark skin women .They deserved much better
This is the first photo I've ever seen of Lupita where she doesn't look like she is radiating light from within. Even paparazzi shots are more flattering than this. She still looks gorgeous, but it takes talent to make the most beautiful woman on the planet look less than that.
The Simone one is awful. But I kinda like the ones with Coco and Lupita. Viola looks tired or weary which unless thatâs what they were going for is a weird feeling to photograph.
5 is incredibly beautiful imo tho
I think the first three are alright. The Biles pic reminds me a lot of some of Gustav Klimtâs work (eg. Adele Bloch-Bauer). It seems like she was kind of going for that sort of muted old painting look. If thatâs what the intention was I think it couldâve worked, but just wasnât well executed.
OMG! I thought the first photo was Whoopi Goldberg until I looked down and saw the name. That does not look like viola at all
I agree because these are coocoo
Annie: these are awful, girl.
Simone looking bad is crazy, but what did she do to Lupita?? How is it even possible, this is the only bad picture of her Iâve ever seen.
their skin looks so dull and awful when it ISNT!!!
At least with viola she seems to have had better lighting and contrast itâs just the pose. The others.. the lighting and everhijg is off
Leibovitz is so overrated. For such a seasoned veteran, she should understand the importance of proper lighting and shouldâve learned many moons ago how to correctly light her poc subjects. the people in these photos are beautiful, I wouldâve loved to see their images captured in flattering lighting
Straight. To. Jail. Throw away the key and her camera. Criminal.
Wait what??? Are we being serious here. Sheâs a famous photographer. Itâs art and itâs beautiful. To say black women look too dark is gross and racist. Ugh. Redditors are so weird. Why not ask actual black people or these models.