I learned something new today about one of my favorite filmmakers, Stanley Kubrick.
Before he became a filmmaker, in the late 1940s he was a photographer for the now-defunct-but-then-popular Look magazine, and his photos are astounding. His gift for composition, and especially perspective, have the effect of capturing the essence of his often off-beat subjects in a raw, complete way that is almost startling, and in some cases uncomfortably voyeuristic.
Looking at his work, you can totally see the genius he would eventually bring to the big screen.
Flavorwire has a good sampling of Kubrick’s New York series, and there are more to see at VandM. I can’t recommend spending time with these images highly enough.
Here are some of my favorites:
uncomfortably voyeuristic is a good way to describe some of them…and possibly Kubrick himself.
I only had ever known Kubrick for his films, did not know he was a photographer. Definitely has the same “flavor” in his photography as in his movies.