Watch this early cut of a potential series about Jimmy Nelson now. Getting past the overly-dramatic-action-movie intro, this is a show you will want to watch. "Before They Pass Away" follows Nelson around the world on his journeys to photograph indigenous tribes before they go extinct. In the first episode, Nelson and his team travel to the Vanuatu Islands where they photograph five different tribes that live on the 83-island chain.
The portraits (taken with a 4x5) are nothing short of stunning. Many of them can be seen here. The book Before They Pass Away will undoubtedly end up in my collection. Don't miss out on it being in yours.
These just don't seem to have the soul that Joey L's has. Many people shoot this very same stuff but it seems like they are only there for themselves and not for the culture of the people.
Something is a tad lacking from these but I don't think it's effort.
I think it's Joey's vision that made his better, plus he did bring a small studio with him when he traveled lol
For sure. Couldn't agree more.
Does Joey ever shoot film? I dig that this guy was shooting with different formats. But… he does seem like a total butt. I have spent time in some really special/interesting places but have always felt it difficult to "prepare" photos. I think it takes a certain skill OR personality type and maybe i just don't have it… even when i do set up lights etc. it seems to be rather spur of the moment and organic.
I thought that intro was a joke. It's not. And it continues. How utterly awful. What an embarrassing display of bad taste; self-agrandising; objectifying; dramatising; BS. Disgraceful. "Getting the people to 'be exactly what he wanted them to be' took hours" -and this is intended to show cultures before they are eroded. I still can't believe this is real.
that's exactly what I thought after watching the intro.. I subsequently stopped so I wouldn't waste any more time.
Allright, I agree with the fact that the dude is a Douche, and one drunk on his douchiness at that. But be that as it may, as unoriginal of an idea it is, he executed some breathtaking imagery. And at the end of the day, this is what matters. Maybe it has been done before, maybe he even visited the same spots, but he created some MIGHTY AWESOME pictures, and for that at least he deserves credit. And You, gentlemen, just sound a little jealous. I'm not trying to be rude or mean here, but this is how it looks...
I never commented on the idea, execution, or imagery produced... I was just merely stating that the intro was horrendous and put me off from watching the video.
I did look at the images and quite enjoyed them, but I couldn't bring myself to watch the video after that intro.
Of course, and I meant You absolutely no disrespect.
Great fucking photos. The video ruined it a bit. Getting them to work as models, and all the "I'm so awesome" talk next to the dramatic music etc.
I'm sorry but this dude is a fucking tool, and really needs to get over himself. Yeah, his photos are good, but not original.
HOLY CRAP! These portraits are AMAZING! Dude is a boss fer shur!
The photographs are great, and there's enough documentary work of this kind so there's nothing wrong with a slightly different approach and posing the people - it is, after all, about glamourising their lifestyles. However, the video is painful to watch with the music and narration, which is a shame. It also implies that this is a first of its kind, which it clearly isn't - the photographer himself even mentions seeing one of these pure, pristine, untouched landscapes on the internet as inspiration for one of his ideas.
Another thing I noticed was that nearly every photograph seemed to have a fire being stoked for it. I'm sure a lot of tribal rituals do involve fire but I wasn't sure if this was another bit of slight manipulation.
I'd be keen to see the photographs somewhere without having to watch any more of the video. Scratch that, the website is nearly as bad. "Jimmy Nelson - Gatherer of Photographs. Collector of Truth" ... Collector of Truth?
Very nice..cheesy intro and all.
this is disgusting, this guy is completely unaware of the ethical implications of him coming with a film crew and 5 cameras to photograph tribes. I wouldnt be suprised if he actually payed them to be part of his project.
really i just feel shame for him, it almost feels as if hes making monkeys dance for the camera...
Its so clear from the style of his video that hes doing this for himself, not for any greater good or for the people or their cultures
Work like this deserves so much more credit
the only reason i continued to watch after that intro is to see the pics, and they are nice however, it's too commercialized , and tbh you made 2 mistakes , hiring the intro editor, and posting it here :) ( with that intro ) and i think it's the cause of all this hate.
This guy is about as fake as could be. Case-In-Point: Mitchell Kanashkevich work was done years before Jimmy Nelson did his of the Vanuatu tribe. Nelson didn't say it in so many words but he basically went on the Internet found photos that people had done, then copied them for his portfolio.
I'm not saying Mitchell Kanashkevich owns those people or anything but his work was original, whereas Nelson is hyping himself up as being authentic and original but honestly he's just stealing others idea, calling them his own and using Hollywood theatrics to sell people on it. His work is good just that his tactics are poor on how he did it... a lot to be said about that.
Great work, guys a huge tool though.
haha this intro is like he would be a superhero! lmfao
Edward Curtis is rolling in his grave...........
I adore the photos but I completely agree that he doesn't go about it in the right way.
Im sorry... did I read $9000 for his book? Amazing work, guy needs a kick in the ego nuts but great work.
Approximately the GDP of some of the countries he was photographing people in.
I can't believe that intro is serious. It's like a spoof of something like this. Great images sabotaged by the presentation...
His imagery is amazing but his narcissism kills the idea for me. I want to like this because I've always wanted to do what he does (travel the world taking photographs presenting different cultures to the world) but he has this arrogance about him that I'm turned off by.
This book is part of the problem that tribal peoples face, it certainly isn't part of any solution.
To learn more about why Jimmy Nelson's project is dangerous and not true, see the review in Truthout by Stephen Corry, director of Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples' rights.
http://www.truth-out.org/opinion/item/23986-turning-a-blind-eye-to-pure-...