Portrait | Michael Beaumont Jr

The portrait I will be taking a look at is “Young Berber Shepherdess” by Irving Penn. This portrait was taken during Penn’s travels to Morocco. I chose to analyze this portrait over all of his others because my eye was drawn to the triangle composition used in this photo. Penn utilizes high contrast shadows to sculpt out the forms of the figure, allowing the subject to “pop.” By creating a vignette in the corners of the neutral gray wall, Penn draws the viewer’s eyes to the subject of the portrait. There is a dynamic range of tones used in this photograph; this can be seen in the deep black cast shadows created underneath of the lamb and the bright whites found in the subject’s eyes. Textures are used to generate visual interest throughout the entire photo. Fluffy textures can be seen on the lamb’s fur, striped textures can be seen on the subject’s cloak, and fabric texture can be seen on the subject’s pants. The stern expression on the subject’s face really sells this portrait for me. If we also examine the figure’s hands, we can see that they are worn and dirty. Through these strategic photographic techniques, a narrative is created through this seemingly simple portrait photograph.