Landon Nordeman takes iPhone Portraits at the James Beard Awards

Landon Nordeman takes iPhone Portraits at the James Beard Awards

The film industry has the Oscars. The music industry has the Grammys. Broadway has the Tony Awards. The annual awards that celebrate the best and brightest of the culinary world are the James Beard Foundation Awards. NYC based photographer Landon Nordeman set up backstage at the 2013 awards with just an iPhone for a camera. The results are a captivating black and white series of shots that each capture the range of emotions of the night.

The full series can be seen in this Saveur article, but with Landon's permission, I am bringing you 10 of my favorites from the series. Overall, I love how the series is black and white and shot with just a cell phone camera. This simple approach lets the personality and the emotion of the night shine. There are all sorts of people backstage at an awards show. In the series, Landon captured first time winners, life time achievement recipients, members of the media, and staff of the awards show venue. Here is a look behind the scenes of the culinary world's biggest night.

 

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Via Saveur

 

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15 Comments

Always refeshing to see people doing fun behind the scenes shots with just their iPhone. It may just be me but I see it just as powerful a tool as my DSLR, maybe even greater.

Also, having Muhammad Ali for security at the event seems legit.

THE GREAT ZEEE avatar

and psy doing bottle style. Any lebovits was there to. Wait i think i see robert de niro, was he the bus boy?

Nic Cage's Hair avatar

I'm sorry, but these are hands down horrible photos. All of them. They look like they were taken on a camera phone. And not a particularly good camera phone. *ahem* (Yes, i know they were as described in the header)

I appreciate great iphonography and have seen amazing photos taken by the iPhone. Even beyond amazing. These above photos... are not. (Even close)

Just being honest.

Chris avatar

Crap, this niche really isn't 'edgy' anymore, it just looks plain bad.

Kenny Paul avatar

Maybe the Culinary World can repay the favor and use their talents to make the McDonald's burgers for the some photo awards.

Dan Zahra avatar

Love that Kenny! That is a great line.

Dan Zahra avatar

I think it's a missed opportunity Secondly I for one, am getting tired of people giving the iPhone far more credit than it's due. It's a Phone not a camera! The portraits look like they were taking by any Joe with a iPhone.

Some of them are really good!
The more important is the relation you made in few seconds between you and the model.

Heather avatar

All I can see is how grainy they are. Yuck.

Alex Leon avatar

Haters in 3, 2, 1...

Shariq Siddiqui avatar

Computer says no.

iPhone has its place, but not in pro shoots. i feel like they can be great last minute tools, but its not the tool of choice. yes you CAN do it, but should you?

Abel Sanchez avatar

One question Would these exact images be an better if shot with a DSLR? I feel it is the photographer and his execution that makes great images not the camera. Maybe the concept and technique is the difference in these photos. The trendy use of an iphone did not make these images compelling. I have seen many compelling images created with an iphone. Those images were compelling because of the person behind the iphone not the iphone.

tomwilson avatar

yeah these pictures suck. get rid of the hipster stuff. The composition isn't good, the grainy effect is annoying. These sucks. Having such a great opportunity and blow it by using an iphone just to prove a point is dumb. That's like going to see the Popewearing short just because you think you can prove some dumb point.