I've had the opportunity to film or photograph many well known personalities and performers over the years. Names such as Ray Charles, Bruce Springstein, Stachy Keach, Allen Ginsberg, Bill Charlap, Walter Cronkite, Yoko Ono, Billy Joel, Isaac Hayes, Bono, Gabriel Byrne and even the great Mickey Mantle are just a few of the personalities that I've been lucky enough to see through my own camera's viewfinder.
Some of them were fun or interesting to work with, while others were a bit more challenging and on occasion, the talent's assistant or agent was more difficult than the talent.
"You have two minutes" one assistant barked, once while I was photographing Fred Wilpon, a part owner of the New York Mets baseball team. I was all set up and ready to shoot when Fred started asking me questions about photography. This led to a discussion on how he came to own the Mets and a half hour later we wrapped.
Admittedly, other sessions were not as relaxed. While being interviewed for Amnesty International, Yoko Ono was fairly strict in regards to the type of lighting to be used (she specifically requested three Chimera soft boxes) while Billy Joel just scowled at the camera the entire shoot.
Whether it's a rock star or the CEO of a pharmaceutical firm, the last thing we want to have happen is an unnecessary delay while the talent is already on set. Nothing looks (or feels) more unprofessional than searching through your bags for an accessory or standing there fiddling with your camera's menu while your subject is growing even more anxious in their chair.
Sarah and I often rehearse our set up before a gig by discussing what gear we will be using and in which equipment case it will be located. With five bags and twenty-two pockets, it's easy to play "Where's the lens cleaning cloth" or "Did you bring that adaptor?"
Because we do both video and photography, some gear, such as light stands, super clamps, extension cords, gel filters and the like get moved around into different bags and it is important to run through a check list making sure everything is where it should be. Forgetting a simple item like a tripod plate or the tiny screw that holds it in place, can lead to a disastrous shoot or at the least, suffering the embarrassment of having to use gaffers tape to hold you camera in place.
"Wouldn't this shot look great hand-held?"
Another consideration that we prepare for is whether the talent will be able to speak off the cuff, or will they need cue cards or even a tele-prompter. If it's an interview, the talent is usually responding to questions being posed by Sarah or someone else, but in the case of someone making and announcement or addressing their employees, it is good to know if they are comfortable in front of the camera. This is something that we always try to discuss in advance with our clients. Even a simple paragraph can be a mountain of anxiety for someone not use to speaking without a script.
To our delight, John Varvatos was a gracious host. Although we had brought along a full lighting kit, John's office was bathed in beautiful natural light and with his rock memorabilia as a background, it was beautiful thing. We set up all our gear outside his office and when given the "go", we moved everything into place, tested the audio and rolled tape. John was very relaxed in front of the camera and after two brief takes, the message was complete.
As we were packing, John came by and thanked us for making it easy for him.
In truth, it was the other way around.
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