The photographs that came out of Hollywood in the 1930’s, from the likes of the great George Hurrell, are never to be forgotten.Photos of all the greats… Cooper, Harlow, Cagney… the actors who filled the screen in the 1930’s. But the painstaking technique that went into such shots doesn’t seem to be seen much in this digital era.
From the Hollywood of the 30’s, Dallas Photographer Mark Oristano has created “Hollywood/1935″.”
“I always loved Hurrell’s work,” says portrait photographer Oristano, “and a couple of years back I studied with Michael Grecco, the great portrait photographer from L.A.We learned all about constant style lighting with things like Mole-Richardsons.I found some of the old Mole’s on ebay and began to work with them.”
But to get the true effect, Oristano decided to step back from digital and return to the film camera. But not just any film camera.
“I have an Army Signal Corps 4×5 Speed Graphic from World War II. It’s the same model camera that Joe Rosenthal used to take the famous Iwo Jima photo. It’s sixty-plus years old and it still takes great shots.A 4×5 negative gives a detail and a softness you don’t get digitally.”
The old-time look has begun to catch on in Dallas, where former sportscaster Oristano has been shooting engagement shots, senior portraits and more in the Hollywood/1935 style.
“Probably the most fun is the look on people’s faces when they see the final result.when they see their 17×22 fine art print they usually just gasp.”
The shoots take about twice as long as an average portrait session given the delicacy of the lighting. The techniques, while fairly simple to figure out from the old Hollywood photos, are often difficult to replicate.But with a little bit of work, you can find out how to create this 1930’s magic.