Irving Penn - Cigarettes

Irving Penn is an American photographer who expertise in a variety of different genres within photographer such as Fashion Photography and Portrait Photography which were often in black and white. During his career Penn experimented with different techniques when printing, such as printing on aluminium sheets which were coated with a platinum emulsion. One of his most notable works is his cigarette photographers which will be analysed within this post, which was printed on aluminium sheets which were coated with a platinum emulsion. 

The cigarettes have been captured in black and white, however the photograph has hints of sepia within the photograph. This may be due to the aluminium sheets when printing the photographs and coating them with the platinum emulsion. The cigarettes captured within this photograph show their current condition, it appears as if the cigarettes have been left outside, allowing them to change their current appearance making them appear older. This is suggested due to the second one having changed significantly in texture, showing a harsh texture. The photograph has a clear and sharp appearance which highlights different parts of the cigarettes, mainly the creases. Therefore this further enhances the photograph, making it clearer for the audience to see. The creases also highlight the texture within the cigarettes which appears to be harsh and sharp due to the rigid edges of the cigarettes. The colour palette works well for this photograph as this restricts the distraction and focuses on the attention of the cigarettes. This also portrays the effect that cigarettes have on a person due to the texture shown which reflects the damage it can do to a person. 

This is a black and white representational photograph of cigarettes captured by Irving Penn. The photographer mainly focuses on capturing the detail which can be seen within the cigarettes, such as the creases and the worn out appearance. The appearance of these  is probably due to the cigarettes being left outside overtime, allowing the weather conditions to impact the cigarettes. The different tones used also impact the overall photograph as this highlights the different areas of the cigarettes, especially the corners. The photograph has considered the composition of the photograph by placing two cigarettes one way round and the last cigarette the opposite way round. As well as this the cigarettes appear to vary in size thus using a symmetrical balance. 

This is also another photograph from Penn's series of cigarettes, which again, focusses on capturing the condition of the cigarettes. The cigarettes use a similar appearance to the first photograph analysed as this appears to have a sepia hint across the photograph. The photograph also contain texture due to the cigarette being smoked or light, showing a crumbly texture. However this time the photographer seems to focus on capturing the name of the cigarettes, as this is the main focal point and instantly draws your eye to the writing compared to the other two photographs which focus on capturing the state of the photographs. The writing however isn't completely visible due to the cigarettes not fully exposing the writing due to being hidden on the angle in which the cigarettes have been placed. This may be due to the cigarettes being popular, therefore theres no need to display the full name of the cigarettes.