Bare Truth

‘Bare Truth’ is a compelling collection of portraits of New Zealand men. The extraordinary photographs expose the men who are very humble, courageous and vulnerable. Their edgy portraits are presented in monochrome which emphasizes their shape and form. The simple background eliminates distractions so the viewer can focus on their bodies and facial expressions.

The combination of using a soft directional light while adapting a special post-processing technique, enables me to enhance their body features so the images are raw and crisp. It is important to me to capture a highlight in their eyes so they look directly at the camera – the eyes are the first thing we notice and must be sharp.

The idea of creating a series of photographs showing men who expose their bust evolved gradually. The biggest challenge was finding the first person to agree to pose. After a few rejections and setbacks, I created a portrait with a close friend and became really engaged with looking into his eyes.

At first I asked only close friends to participate. After gaining valuable experience and formalising a consistent look, I expanded the portfolio and became confident in approaching total strangers. Having a few examples helped me to overcome objections until the project gained a critical mass with dozens of portraits. I focus on capturing a variety of ethnic groups, poses, age groups and body sizes.

I gradually became more selective and started approaching people who looked more interesting to me – people whose face and body tell a story. I capture around 50 photos of each man and use a selection process in order to choose the image which best represents his personality. While some people are very comfortable posing without their top, others feel this is completely outside their comfort zone and a few view it as a therapeutic experience.

The project gained further momentum after winning prestigious awards and becoming a Finalist in the Portrait Classic category of the 2015 Iris Awards form the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography which then awarded me the title: ‘2015 Auckland Photographer of the Year’. The portfolio was first selected to be exhibited at Northart Gallery during Auckland Festival of Photography. It was later selected to show at the annual Head On Photo Festival in Sydney during May 2016.

Many thanks to Ron Brownson, Senior Curator of New Zealand and Pacific Art at Auckland Art Gallery, who critiqued my initial project during 2015 Auckland Festival of Photography and inspired me to continue and expand it.

Click here to order your Bare Truth coffee book today: 70 pages, 8×10 inch, soft cover, using beautiful luster paper.

William
Portrait Photographer North Shore

Gregory

Portrait Photographer North Shore

Andrew

Portrait Photographer North Shore

Ken

Studio Photography North Shore

Fraser

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Joseph

Auckland portrait photographer

Chris

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Alwyn

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Ross

Auckland Photographer

Yaman

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Nicky

Auckland studio portrait photographer

Grant

Auckland portrait photographer

Catalin

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Yusuke

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Tony

Auckland Portrait photography

Dave

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Vai

Auckland portrait photographer

Steven

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Bhima

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Toops

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Massimo

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Richard

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Hohepa

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Garth

Auckland Portrait Photography

Lance

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Lucio
Auckland Portrait photographer

Richard

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Alejandro

Auckland Portrait Photographer

John

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Tom

Auckland portrait photographer

Desmond

Portrait photographer Auckland

Glenn

Portrait Photographer - Auckland

Brian

Portrait Photographer Auckland #baretruth

Allan

Portrait Photographer Auckland #baretruth

Jared

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Kalev

Portrait photographer Auckland

Sean

Auckland portrait photographer

Tai

#baretruth Auckland portrait photographer

Alan

#baretruth portrait photographer Auckland

Travis

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Dean

Portrait photography studio Auckland

Adam

Portrait photographer Auckland

Sililu

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Neville

Auckland Portrait photography

Dave

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Martin

Professional Photography Auckland

Dion

Auckland Portrait photographer

Rodney

Portrait Photographer Auckland

Alen

Auckland Portrait photographer

John

Portrait photographer Auckland

Martin

Portrait Photographer Auckland

Alp

Portrait Photographer - Auckland Studio

Anil

Portrait photographer - Auckland

Matt

Auckland Portrait photography

Calin

Portrait photographer - Auckland

Terry

Auckland portrait photographer - North Shore City

Breen

Auckland portrait photographer - North Shore City

Jim

Auckland portrait photographer - North Shore City

Keith

Auckland portrait photographer - North Shore City

Ed

Auckland portrait photographer - North Shore City

Stephen

Portrait photographer Auckland

Gal

Portrait photography - North Shore City

Kahui

Auckland Portrait photographer

Jay

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Alan

Portrait Photographer Auckland

Toni

Studio Photography North Shore City

Tomer

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Stuart

Auckland Portrait Photographer

Perry

Portrait Photographer - Auckland

Glen

North Shore Studio Award Winning Photographer

Jeff

Auckland Portrait photographer

Sean

Portrait photographer North Shore Studio

David

IMG_7110-Edit

Omer

Auckland portrait photographer

Adam

Auckland Portrait photography

Jester

Studio photography - North Shore City

Larry

Auckland portrait photographer

Tony

North Shore Studio Award Winning Photographer

Steven

North Shore Studio Award Winning Photographer

Raanan

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Ofek

Auckland Portrait Photographer

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