DAY 245

PORTRAITS

Architectural

JOSEPH VOLPE, METROPOLITAN OPERA DIRECTOR

I received a magazine commission to make a portrait of the long-time director of the New York Metropolitan Opera, Joseph Volpe, and was kindly allowed to use any part of the building as a backdrop. After walking around a day before the shoot, I settled on shooting upward through the lower staircase opening, looking up to the recently gold-leafed ceiling of the front of house. The beautiful curvature of the stairs combined with the famous chandeliers and gold ceiling pull the viewer’s eye into the center of the image where Joseph stands looking over.

This commissioned shot needed to have a recognizable Metropolitan Opera house architectural detail, so it truly became driven by the architecture of the space. No one had photographed Joseph this way before and by balancing the ambient light on the ceiling and lighting him as well as the staircase, you get to see him and all the details quite clearly. —SA