Ballet photography as an independent genre. Mark Olic - ballet photographer Alena, tell us how your project was born
"Ballet is the world in which I live, which is why I can show this world the way the dancers themselves see it," Darian Volkova writes on her website, and her pictures really touch the souls of the audience, because each photo is incredibly beautiful , graceful and fraught with a story that you want to hear to the end.
"I can feel, see and photograph the dance, as only a dancer can do," the ballerina says about herself. And this is really an incredible miracle and an amazing honor for the viewer to have the opportunity to look into the backstage life of the ballet. At performances, the viewer follows the plot, the plasticity and beauty of the movement of the dancers performing their roles. In the pictures of Darian you can see much more - this is the magic of the very atmosphere of the ballet, and the exhausting hard preparations for performances, and the incredible grace and beauty of everyone who takes part in the production of the show.
Darian is engaged classical ballet almost her entire life - she was only seven years old when she started attending dance classes. As for photography, the 25-year-old girl discovered this talent in herself relatively recently, when her boyfriend gave her a Canon camera. It was a film camera, and therefore Darian quickly realized the value of each frame. Even now, when a girl shoots with a digital camera, this feeling of harmony of everything present in the frame is still present - as if Darian had only one opportunity to take a picture, and she would try to do it perfectly the first time.
L "Opera Garnier Paris. Photo: Darian Volkova.
It's amazing how Darian manages to keep up with everything: like any ballet dancer, she has to constantly train, from time to time travel with performances to different countries, and besides this, the girl manages to maintain her blog with photos Soul In Feet, as well as Instagram (which today has more than 128 thousand subscribers), in which new pictures appear almost daily. In addition, Darian studies the history of ballet photography and conducts master classes in ballet photography.
Ballet is a momentary art. This is what makes it great. This is also his weakness. Each ballerina, even standing "by the water" in the back rows of the corps de ballet, can suddenly give out something absolutely incredible. Every prima, even the most talented, may not be in the mood. There are no identical “Swan Lakes”. Each ballet performance is completely unique.
But there are people thanks to whom the immediacy of this art is imprinted in eternity, no matter how pompous it may sound.
A ballet photographer is an absolutely “piece” creature, as unique as what he shoots. The names of ballet photographers are always well known, especially among connoisseurs: Mark Olic, Irina Lepneva, Ekaterina Vladimirova, Mark Hageman, Gene Schiavone. But today, under the heading "", I want to bring to your attention, perhaps not so famous, but no less talented young Odessa photographer Kirill Stoyanov. By and large, he has not been doing exactly that for a long time. ballet photography, but personally it seems to me that in all his photos there is something that catches the eye, makes you think, peer ...
Kirill answered all my questions in a very inspirational and thoughtful way, so I decided to take a chance and post his interview almost without abbreviations. I hope you find it as interesting as it is for me!
Kirill was born and raised in Odessa. He had a hand in art early childhood: from the age of 3.5 I went to the "Center aesthetic education"(now "Children's Theater School”) to the theater and art department, where there were acting, dance, and drawing. " There I got acquainted with art and was convinced that only with art I want to connect my life.…»
At the same time, he studied at music school on the violin class, and then on your favorite instrument - the guitar. After the 9th grade, he studied in the theater class at the 37th school, then entered the Odessa National University named after I.I. Mechnikov at the Faculty of Cultural Studies and today is a graduate student at Ushinsky.
“Fine art was very interested in me, and from childhood it seemed to me that drawing is to enjoy the embodiment of the images that consciousness draws for me. I liked graphics and tattoos, I spent quite a lot of time drawing, and drawing on anything: in notebooks, on any pieces of paper. When the computer appeared, I was interested in drawing on it, I tried to learn it on my own Adobe Photoshop and finish my drawings, which I scanned from paper. I started experimenting with Photoshop in 2006, and a year later I got a camera and with growing interest I began to devote more and more time to photography. In the beginning, most of all I liked photographing the sea, nature, animals. And so, in my free time, I paid more and more attention to photography, visited photo exhibitions, talked with photographers, and looked for books on photography. By the third year of university, I could no longer imagine myself without photography. Enhanced my knowledge practical experience work on a TV channel as a live videographer. There I honed my knowledge of composition, the ability to work in a team and much more, which helped me a lot in the future.”
And then the muse intervened. “My desire to photograph a ballerina led me to the path I am on now. So it turns out that my creative environment created the atmosphere in which my hobby began to develop very rapidly. After I managed to get acquainted with the ballerina, who was still a student at the choreographic school, I had a desire to connect my life with her. So for me the art of ballet, photography and love has become something whole and inalienable. Before meeting my muse, I knew very little about ballet.”
The first acquaintance with the theater took place very early - at two and a half years: “Before taking me to the theater, my mother explained to me well how to behave, what would happen. We sat in the stalls, almost on the most last places: apparently so that if I behave badly and cannot watch the performance to the end, do not interfere with other spectators and leave without disturbing anyone. But I remember that I watched the performance and even made a remark to two women who were talking among themselves. I clearly remember how I turned to them and said, as my mother taught: “You can’t talk during the performance.” I don't remember what happened on the stage, but I remember that I really liked it. As for the first ballet, which I already saw from the point of view of photography, this is “ Swan Lake", I went to him in 2009.
I also vaguely remember how I carried flowers to the stage opera house also about 3-4 years old, and also made a strong impression on me. I was backstage and literally felt the shock of what was happening. Then the artists seemed to me unearthly creatures Their costumes were very beautiful. All this had such an effect on me that I did not reach the forefront from fright and gave the flowers to someone who was standing on the edge and ran away. Then everything that was behind the scenes seemed to me 3 times larger than it actually was: huge stairs, unthinkably large backstage and stage.
Who would have thought that after a while this little frightened boy would begin to cooperate with the Odessa Theater.
“Cooperation began with an acquaintance with Yuri Vasyuchenko. By the time I was filled with the desire to photograph ballet in the theater, there were changes in the composition: the Honored Artist of Russia became the choreographer, former soloist Bolshoi Theater Yuri Valentinovich Vasyuchenko. I turned to him with a request to allow me to photograph the ballet, he immediately approved my desire, and moreover, he advised me from what points it is best to do it and which moments should be photographed and which should not. I still use this knowledge now, and we have excellent relations with Yuri Valentinovich, and if necessary, I provide him with a photo.
The theater administration learned about me already from Vasyuchenko and, if necessary, invites me to performances that they need to record. Also, on his advice, my photographs are now used in booklets for the ballets Giselle, Nureyev Forever, The Sleeping Beauty and many others. In addition to our theater, I also collaborated with guest performers - most often from Mariinsky Theater, who also contacted me and asked to shoot performances. Not every photographer can provide high-quality ballet photos. Ballet must be photographed».
Uliana Lopatkina
Kirill is a frequent guest of the ballet backstage. What is really going on there?
“During the performance, something similar to a homely, family atmosphere happens behind the scenes. Everyone is busy. In our theatre, I don't know that "bad theatre" that is commonly referred to as a creepy tense place full of gossip where everyone is ready to trip and do harm in order to succeed. The friendly atmosphere behind the scenes unites artists, stage fitters, and teachers. Of course, I do not presume to say that this is exactly so, yet I am not part of the troupe, but I see what I see: a kind team, friendly and sincere. They have a tradition of celebrating premieres with the whole team: the one who danced the premiere invites the entire ballet troupe to a small buffet.
Funny cases are often unexpected, and you can talk about them in context, because they happen almost every performance - and all this is thanks to the sense of humor of the artists!
From the last cases, I remember how soloist Koya Okawa went on stage to dance a variation of Basil from the ballet Don Quixote, and the orchestra began to play the music of an inserted female variation, but he didn’t even show it, but simply danced as if nothing had happened. Only artists and people who are familiar with ballet understood and appreciated this, otherwise, I'm sure everyone thought that everything went well.
Usually, the funniest thing happens at the so-called green spots - at the last performances of the year or at the last performance on a tour. Alas, I was not a witness to this, but I saw a photo of how our troupe on tour had fun at the play “Giselle”: all the girls who danced the jeeps painted their faces with white paint, and in the first act, the actress in the role of a courtier made a pregnant belly. The boy dressed in a dress and went out as a lady, and the girl as a gentleman. The photos and videos were very funny.
And sad cases I want to forget and not remember. Once, when I was filming a ballet from behind the scenes, right next to me on the stage, a girl jumped unsuccessfully and fell, getting injured. Luckily I had mobile phone, I immediately called an ambulance, because artists usually don’t take phones with them to the stage. ”
Of course, once in the world "on the other side of the ramp", the perception of oneself ballet world changes a lot. “For starters, I realized that artists are the same people. Previously, for me, ballet dancers were unearthly creatures, I could not imagine how much work and diligence were hidden behind their air movements. I learned more about what is hidden to the average viewer, but from this I only began to pay more attention to what is important for the artists themselves. It can be said that I understood what should be paid attention to, what is good and what is bad in ballet. It also surprises me how different the atmosphere of the stage and auditorium what magic happens during intermissions when the scenery is rearranged. It is very beautiful when the lighting director checks the direction of the lighting fixtures and changes the lighting from bright and warm yellow to blue-green: then in a few minutes the stage changes its appearance along with the artists, who at that moment rehearse their roles and repeat combinations. In this tense magical state, trembling in anticipation of the continuation of the performance, I myself feel a strange euphoria. For me it a short time before the show the most favorite.
Ballet art has become closer to me. Already after a year of my acquaintance with the life of the theater, I began to feel part of this organism. When I photograph ballet performances backstage, I sometimes go into a kind of trance. I already remember quite well the order of the performances and I know where it would be more interesting for me to be at one time or another in order to shoot this or that scene from an interesting angle. So I'm busy with my work along with the artists on the same stage. A truly pleasant feeling."
Cyril's beloved girl, his beautiful muse is. How does it feel to be around an up-and-coming artist whose life mostly consists of classes and rehearsals?
"I am often asked this question. As for personal life, we ourselves believe that our secret is that we are both interested in development. We have quite a lot in common, but the most important thing is the “desire to achieve something more”, and also the “goal” towards which each of us is moving. Two moving people, especially in a creative direction ... - this is what is the unifying factor.
Being close to an artist whose life consists of many rehearsals and classes is what encourages me to not sit still and develop. You need to understand that ballet is hard work. I appreciate the work of my beloved, I try to support her, to be there as often as possible. I accompany her to the theater and meet her after rehearsals, I try not to miss performances.
Cyril and Elina
Photographing a ballerina in a studio is quite simple, you don’t need to be a “ballet photographer” for this. Filming a live performance is a much more difficult task, and not only from a technical point of view. What does it take to get the perfect “ballet photo”?
“This is a topic that you can talk about for a long time and not fully reveal all sides. I've been photographing ballet not too long ago. It turns out that for the fourth year, with the regularity available to me, I attend ballets and take pictures both backstage and from the audience. Of course, ballet for shooting is a topic that is impossible to approach without knowing many points. You need to know the libretto, the music in order to understand which steps will be performed now (because the musical movements are arranged in such a way that strong parts of the music fall on the points of the movements), the order of the dance, and of course, the movements that look favorably from a certain point of view and only in certain moment, not earlier and not later. Such knowledge can be useful when shooting from different angles, both from the audience and from behind the scenes.
I try to choose such a point for shooting in order to achieve the desired effect, relying on the knowledge of the libretto, I try to change the shooting points so as not to be late for the moment I need in the performance. Of course, one should not exclude technical side. Filming in the theater requires good equipment, because often dark, half-tone scenes are difficult to photograph. Combining the possession of technology and knowledge of order, you can make the perfect photo. It is important to remember that each performance is truly unique and there will never be another like it.. You need to be in an extremely collected state, not be distracted, think about photography, how to set up the camera, and at the same time carefully monitor everything that happens. Only then can one find the same photograph, one in 100.
When I started photographing ballet, I was in a kind of euphoria, I tried to photograph everything that was happening. Of course, over time, many things seem less interesting, so it is extremely important for me to notice something new every time, not to treat anything that happens on stage as “ordinary and passed”, try to look at what is happening from different angles , literally and figuratively.
It is not enough to change perspectives, it is important to change the view of what is happening. I try to photograph exactly what I like about ballet, I try to look for live moments that inspire me. It is on this principle that I now photograph the ballet - carefully, with love and with feelings open to the perception of new things.».
Kirill, as you can see, has an amazing series of photos from behind the scenes. How do you capture such moments?
“Again, you need to understand “why” and “what” you are photographing: only then there is a chance to find the right moment. Ballerinas are embarrassed, but only if they are intrusive. Despite the fact that I am familiar with all the artists, despite the fact that we all communicate quite well, I try never to climb into them with a camera and not distract them from work. One photographer said in relation to reportage shooting (which, in fact, is photographing backstage during a performance) that need to be able to dissolve in space. He compares himself to a ninja, who is everywhere and nowhere, who is there, but he is not visible. This is a very correct approach, it is correct both ethically and psychologically. After all, when a person knows that he is being watched, he cannot relax and be himself..
It happens that I see a good shot, but in order to make it you need to get very close. I wait for the opportunity to appear so as not to distract or draw attention to myself. The reward for patience and attention is that I can stand very close, take a few pictures I need, and go unnoticed.
And, if anyone is interested, some technical information: Kirill takes pictures with a cameraNikonD800 is the latest model related to professional cameras.Nikon.
“I find it very good for shooting in difficult theater lighting conditions and for me it is perfect. For filming in the theater, you need a professional camera to high values ISO photos were still pleasing to the eye and did not lose information. I have 4 lenses, but I mainly use nikkor 50mm 1.8f, nikkor 28-300mm. This middle class lenses, but plans to update the optics. The ideal optics for this kind of shooting are fast lenses. But I would add 28mm f/2.8 Nikkor, 35mm f/2D AF Nikkor to my kit.”
Very soon, within II International Festival Arts at the Odessa Opera, in honor of the 90th anniversary of the Odessa ballet troupe, Kirill Stoyanov's exhibition "A Unique Moment" will take place. “In the last 6 months, from the end of 2012 to the beginning of 2013, I have been preparing the exhibition. I reviewed many of my photographs, of which I identified several topics that are most interesting to me. The exhibition will be dedicated to the artists and the feature that makes ballet so interesting to watch - the art of living on stage».
P.S. The opening of the exhibition will take place on June 3 at 16:00 at the address: Sabaneev Most, 4, in the building of the "House of Scientists". Most likely, I will be there too, so I will be glad to see my Odessa readers!
Energy, strength, beauty, emotion - a dance frozen in the frame always arouses admiration. That is why so many modern photographers work with dancers, and every year more and more interesting photo projects appear.
Photographers and dance
However, if you like classic and contemporary ballet, then you will also be interested in other photographers working with dance. Someone professes the same principle as the Ballerina Project and puts the dancers in urban environment, someone does art shooting in studio conditions, focusing on the beauty of movement and ideal lines of the body.
Among the top photographers whose exhibitions are held in the largest galleries of the world, there is also Moscow photographer Alexander Yakovlev. Alexander works with the troupe Bolshoi Theater, and if you like the beauty of classical Russian ballet, then you should subscribe to it instagram(which has a lot of amazing work).
7 of the World's Best Photographers Capturing the Endless Beauty of Dance
Vadim Stein
Ken Browar (NY City Ballet)
Omar Robles
Alexander Yakovlev
Lois Greenfield
Lisa Tomasetti
Dane Shitagi ( Ballerina Project
A great idea for a photo shoot with children can be ballet. Probably there is no such girl who did not imagine herself fairy tale heroine, and did not dream to try on ballet tutu and pointe shoes. But, as you know, in order for Cinderella to get to the ball, the intervention of a sorceress is necessary. The role of the fairy was taken over by the photographer Alena Krisman. Once in the ProBalet project, every girl can feel like a ballerina.
Alena, tell us how your project was born?
By chance. A friend of mine runs a small ballet school and had the idea to do photo shoots for girls ballerinas because none of them had quality portfolio photos. And when we discussed shooting options, we suddenly realized that ballet is a great idea for a photo project in which not only ballerinas, but everyone can take part.
What is the essence of the project?
We combined an educational and interactive lesson dedicated to ballet and photography. As a result, musical and ballet photo tales are born.
How does it work in practice?
The ProBalet project started in November 2017. We immediately planned four seasons and decided that each season would be dedicated to different famous ballets. Musical and ballet photo tales are held in groups that we form by age: 4-6, 7-8, 10-12 years old, so that children would be interested together. The winter season was opened with the Nutcracker ballet. The photo tale consisted of two parts: first, a ballet photo session took place - the girls got acquainted with the plot of the ballet, put on ballerina costumes and got into ballet class, and in the second part for each participant we created a fabulous image of Marie, main character ballet.
That is, your occupation is not just costume photography, but a real immersion in the world of ballet?
Yes exactly. When the project was just starting, parents sometimes asked - why should we participate in a ballet fairy tale if we can just watch ballet in the theater? The thing is, it's a completely different format. In the theater you look at what is happening from the audience, but here you become a participant in the action, these are completely different sensations. We invite professional ballerina-teachers who first tell the children the libretto of the ballet, and then conduct a choreography lesson - they show the movements, the main ballet positions. Each lesson is under live music. On the set of The Nutcracker, we were accompanied by a harpist from the Svetlanov Orchestra. The harp is a magical, fabulous instrument, the children were simply delighted with the opportunity to touch the harp, touch the strings.
Do you take photos during the entire class?
Yes, that's why we get both reportage and staged shots, a live story about a musical and ballet photo fairy tale. A team of professionals is working on the project: decorators and stylists, musicians and ballerinas. For the filming of The Nutcracker, we selected bright, spacious photo studios in the center of Moscow. I shot with natural light from a window, and we also brought garlands and candles to create beautiful lights in the background. Costumes were sewn specifically for this project, for each girl two images were created - a little ballerina and a heroine of a fairy tale. Moreover, if desired, mothers could also take part in the shooting - we prepared ballet skirts and pointe shoes for adults. Sometimes teenage girls come to shoot, for them we conduct a purely ballet photo session with the participation of professional ballerinas. If children come and do ballet, we make technically more complex shots.
Why did you choose the ballet "Petrushka" by Igor Stravinsky for the second season of the project?
We wanted this shooting to be more active, with bright spring sun, colorful costumes. We chose a contrasting photo studio with a dark room and large bright windows. The task was to get as many different photos as possible, so as not to repeat ourselves and implement something new every time. It was possible to work with sunlight from the window, with backlighting, resulting in photographs that are very different from winter fairy tales.
We organized a photo zone with theatrical scenery, in which ballerinas showed puppet show based on the libretto of the ballet "Petrushka", there was also a photo session in the entourage of the Easter Fair. Children were photographed with live rabbits and chickens, this caused a sea of emotions in the kids. Then the girls changed into pink ballet skirts, and the photo session continued at the ballet barre. By tradition, we invited a musician, this time the lesson was accompanied by a violin.
Do boys and dads come to you?
Of course, mothers with daughters come more often. Once a boy came with his little sister, he led her by the hand into the hall in a very adult way. True, he was more interested in ballet lesson, and the harp, he did not leave the musical instrument for almost the entire lesson.
