"As a photographer, sometimes you just need to be a fly on the wall."
Steve Schapiro. Excerpt from the book 'The Godfather Family Album'
Page [1] [2] [3]
By that time, those special rays of light had passed us by. I had a strobe lamp coming from the side to illuminate Al himself, but the only way to light the window and the floor the way we had planned was to make a four-second timed exposure with the camera. Al Pacino is not exactly the sort of person who likes to sit still in a chair for very long. I would click open the camera shutter, the strobe light would go off—and so would Al. Before we could say anything, he was standing up, in a completely different position. He was double-exposed on the entire first roll of film I took.
With some actors, I've had to jump up and down or even make bird sounds to get the appropriate look
Finally, I explained in greater detail what we were up against.We cut back to a three-second exposure, Al sat still, and the photo came out as the poster image we had dreamed of, with hardly any retouching at all. The Godfather trilogy is a story about love, honor, revenge, violence, family, and the handing down from one generation to the next. It strikes chords in all of us. It was a coming together of script, direction, actors, lighting, costume, and scenic design. I was very fortunate to see all this happen firsthand, along with the behindthe- scenes moments that made it an even more poignant event. I hope this book conveys at least a little bit of what I saw of The Godfather.
—Steve Schapiro, Chicago, 2008
Page [1] [2] [3]
Page [1] [2] [3]
By that time, those special rays of light had passed us by. I had a strobe lamp coming from the side to illuminate Al himself, but the only way to light the window and the floor the way we had planned was to make a four-second timed exposure with the camera. Al Pacino is not exactly the sort of person who likes to sit still in a chair for very long. I would click open the camera shutter, the strobe light would go off—and so would Al. Before we could say anything, he was standing up, in a completely different position. He was double-exposed on the entire first roll of film I took.
With some actors, I've had to jump up and down or even make bird sounds to get the appropriate look
Finally, I explained in greater detail what we were up against.We cut back to a three-second exposure, Al sat still, and the photo came out as the poster image we had dreamed of, with hardly any retouching at all. The Godfather trilogy is a story about love, honor, revenge, violence, family, and the handing down from one generation to the next. It strikes chords in all of us. It was a coming together of script, direction, actors, lighting, costume, and scenic design. I was very fortunate to see all this happen firsthand, along with the behindthe- scenes moments that made it an even more poignant event. I hope this book conveys at least a little bit of what I saw of The Godfather.
—Steve Schapiro, Chicago, 2008
Page [1] [2] [3]
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The Godfather Family Album
Hardcover + Box, 29 x 44 cm (11.4 x 17.3 in.), 444 pages
$ 1800.00
$ 1800.00
Selections from Steve Schapiro's photographs provide an insider's view of the making of the legendary trilogy. This edition is limited to 1,000 copies, numbered and signed by Steve Schapiro.
Marlon Brando and Francis Ford Coppola choreograph the scene.
Photograph courtesy Steve Schapiro, and copyright (c) 2008 Paramount Pictures Corporation. The Godfather is a registered trademark of the Paramount Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved.