WEEKLY DISCUSSION #32: A Hard Day’s Night by photographer Astrid Kirchherr.

<p>WEEKLY DISCUSSION #32: A Hard Day’s Night by photographer Astrid Kirchherr.<br /> I would like to thank Fred G. for asking and giving me the honor of starting this week’s Weekly Discussion of a well=known photograph.</p>

<p>I hope you enjoy my pick for this week; A Hard Day’s Night by photographer Astrid Kirchherr.</p>

<p><a href="http://d817ypd61vbww.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/styles/tile_6_column/public/sticky/711_image_04v3_0.jpg?itok=UT8ia_oC">LINK TO PHOTO</a></p>

<p>Astrid Kirchherr was best known for her photos of the early 1960’s Beatles. She had published several books with photos of the early Beatles.</p>

<p>Kirchherr is a German born photographer who was influenced by the existentialist philosophy of the early 1960’s. She became associated with the Beatles while they were playing a night club in Hamburg, Germany called the Kaiserkeller. This new music caught Kirchherr’s interest along with the band. She approached the Beatles about photographing them and these would be the first professional photos of the Beatles, all others till then were from friends. Her shots helped influence the early image of the Beatles in Hamburg. In my opinion they may have influenced the work of rock photographers to come.</p>

<p>Here is a wiki link about Astrid Kirchherr. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrid_Kirchherr">LINK</a></p>

<p>And another link about Kirchnerr's photography of the Beatles in Hamburg, <a href="http://www.beatlesbible.com/people/astrid-kirchherr/">LINK</a></p>

<p>She first photographed the Beatles using a Rolleicord camera according to Wiki. <a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/22/Rolleicord_1955.jpg/200px-Rolleicord_1955.jpg">LINK</a></p>

<p>Her photos have been shown in galleries, magazines and books around the world and chronicled the early Beatles, giving us a window into the early 60’s music scene in Hamburg, Germany.</p>

<p>I submit this photo for this weeks discussion, A Hard Day’s Night for this week’s WEEKLY DISCUSSION of a well-known photo in the Casual Conversations forum.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Another great picture with a fascinating backstory - I was aware of Kirchherr's activities in Hamburg but thought her association with the Beatles ceased with the death of Stuart Sutcliffe (and of course the controversy as to whether he sustained his fatal brain injury in a fight with Lennon). I did not know that Kirchherr did stills on the movie "A Hard Day's Night" on assignment from Stern magazine. The picture is well timed, with a good expression on the faces of all 4 Beatles, but basically I find it impossible to judge this image - the nostalgic associations are just too strong!</p>

<p>Thanks for the link. I've been a Beatles fan since I was about 7. I still have my vinyl soundtrack to A Hard Day's Night. It has lots of B/W photos on the cover. </p>

Show me this photo with Paul on the left cropped out and I would have no idea of who the other three people in the photo are. Is that Ringo with the camera around his neck? Who is the third person from the right? Had they changed that much since I first saw them coming to America and the Ed Sullivan show?

 

It is a great photo with lots of decisive moments captured in one photo. Can there be more than one decisive moment? The individual placements of the feet, turning of the bodies, facial expressions, etc. all add up to individual decisive moments creating one large decisive moment photo.

 

I like the over all feel of the photo. The cold, hard starkness of brick, cement and blown out sky offset by the happy, fun loving and well exposed individuals. It is a photo that makes me feel good just to look at if even if I didn't know who the people in it were.

<p>The image of the free thinking and musically talented Beatles is well captured in this photo by Ms. Kirchherr. According to one of the links provided by Mark, she was instrumental in the early Beatles adopting their moptop hairstyle that became part of their trademark and what is seen in this photo.</p>

<p>Although a trained photographer, she admits she wasn't a good businesswoman as she didn't archive her negatives and consequently received little later on for her photographs of the Beatles of that period. </p>

<p>Rather than the conversation being centered on our collective memories of the Beatles, which may be a very normal reaction to this week's photo, I wonder whether some information can be provided here by someone on the continuing career of Kircherr, and how her B&W approach evolved over time and with what results? Her fascination with the group may have inspired the work of this first serious photographer of the Beatles, but what the photographer did in her continuing career may also arose our curiosity, as it did for Karsh and Marville, to name only two recent posts. <br>

</p>

<p>As good a photo as it is, and the description given by James strikes a chord, it also feels like a sort of cultural family snapshot of a personal kind, that family being my generation. It is a memento from having grown up with the Beatles and in the 60s. It is a keepsake in the most palpable and significant way that a photo can be such a thing. It is joy, it is fun, it is each individual and it is the group, which was so much more than their sum, totally in sync in this moment as they so often were . . . and then weren't!</p>

<p>This photo is alive, as any vivid memory is alive, both altered and unaltered by time.</p>

<p>Also for me then in elementary school, it was an introduction to photography beyond family photos, National Geographic, Look, and Life magazines.</p>

<p>I don't like the bokeh or the IQ on this one. She should of used one of the camera's that the pro's use so she would have a wider apature.</p>

<p>Okay, that's out of my system. I honestly believe that if a master retoucher put new heads on the Fave Rave Combo From Britain, I would still love this shot. There is so much exuberance and spontaneity (even were this take twenty) that it stands on its photographic merits alone. It 'gets' its own <em>zeitgeist</em> perfectly, like the famous<a href="http://www.moma.org/collection_images/resized/367/w500h420/CRI_188367.jpg"> Helen Levitt image</a> of the kids dancing in the empty lot. It is also, of course, a wonderful memoir of the Beatles, and the breath they breathed into the human spirit.</p>

<p>A wonderful photo which brings back memories of teenage years and not least music. One hears their music, the sounds of each of them and the sound of their tunes, which we danced to and listened to from 45 rpm portable record players. <br /></p>

<p>Les, it was all done with Photshop. See the footwork on the right? Can't possibly be legit.</p>

<p>Guys, this was fifty years ago. Two of them are gone. I guess that means that we are officially old.</p>

<p>"Some are dead and some are living. In my life, I've loved them all."</p>

<p>--Lannie</p>

<p>The photo also mirrors the exuberance of the Beatles in their films and life (Paul MacCartney gave a concert here a few years ago and melted naturally into the local culture and his curiosity for the place that was strange to him).</p>

<p>I have never stopped to consider myself really old, but the Beatles are of my youth as well, and their liberating effect on many of us was amazing, particularly for a very provincial Canadian as myself. The British music scene of the time was also unconventional, and a buddy of mine (a former Liverpool roommate of John Lennon) and I took in a number of music concerts while living in London then, including Herman and the Hermits and another group that regularly smashed its guitars on scene (probably lads from wealthy upper crust London families...). A time of freedom and exploration, before the responsibilities of age and career would take over.</p>

<p>What is interesting in Astrid's images, and it is worthwhile seeing the others too, is her complicity and intimacy with the Beatles and a former Beatle, a closeness that no doubt enabled some quite natural photos. She still maintains contact with the two surviving members. Too bad that as a woman in Europe at that time her career as a journalist - photographer was curtailed by her sex.</p>

<p><em>Old</em> might be an exaggeration, but not young anymore is probably right. Is Paul McCartney old ? He is only 72.</p>

<p>And on the IMDb website Astrid is given credit for still photographs in the movie.<br>

Speaking of Ringo and his camera, if you freeze and zoom you can tell its a Pentax.</p>

On top of all of the Beatles' brilliance as musicians and songwriters, they were some of the most visually interesting entertainers in

history. The haircuts and suits, the album covers, the movies, the iconic photos and illustrations (Yellow Submarine) all added up to a

delightfully enjoyable public image. The Beatles were the first multi media sensation. This photo contributes significantly to that legacy.

<p>I'm glad there were photographers such as Astrid producing images of these groups back in the day and not just images but GOOD images. I continue to enjoy looking back through them in several books (I was a bit young at the time) and lament that such access no longer exists. Nowadays it's all about control. Linda McCartney produced images of many of the 60's musicians as did Annie Liebovitz back when she was doing such work (her best IMO). We'll never see any of it again at least not while Sony et al. still do business.</p>

<p>Rick H.</p>

<p>The image doesn't contain a yellow submarine, a walrus, or Father McKenzie. However, it captures the energy and spirit that the lads from Liverpool had early on, and which carried them until the tragedy of their breakup. To me, their entire journey is summed up in three words - "Magical Mystery Tour." Thanks, Mark, for reminding me about my love affair with the Beatles.</p>

I am surprised that there has been so little discussion on this photo. Certainly it is a well executed shot. I don't think it was one of the first shots taken of the group in Hamburg, Germany as the drummer with the group at that time was Pete Best not Ringo Starr. I also have my doubts that it had been taken with a Rolleicord. I have the impression that several shots would have been taken as the group ran toward the camera. That would not have been an easy thing to do with a Rollei. If it was, then Ms Kirchherr did a magnificent job of snapping the shutter at the decisive moment. No matter what, it is an excellent photo.

<p><em>I don't think it was one of the first shots taken of the group in Hamburg</em><br>

As mentioned in my and other posts, this pic is a still from the movie "A Hard Day's Night" shot by Kirchherr on assignment from Stern magazine. No doubt the camera of choice for this would have been a motor-driven Nikon or similar.</p>

<p>It turns out the choice of this pic was particularly apposite - AHDN is being re-issued on DVD in a digitally remastered form, the Kirchherr pic was included in the press pack. It appeared in today's London <em>Observer</em> in a colorized version and without a credit to Kirchherr!</p>

<p>We all the love the Beetles...</p>

<p>But what is special about these photos? Anyone with a camera could have taken them, and they might have got them in focus. </p>

<p>Celebrity photos little else to offer.</p>

<p> <em>Anyone with a camera could have taken them ...</em><br>

... who had the professional standing to be given the assignment to photograph the leading entertainment stars of the day AND had the people and photographic skills to work on a movie set and get the shots she needed without getting in the way of the cinematographer, being yelled at and thrown off the set AND had sharp enough reflexes to get this action shot which may have been repeated a number of times for the cinematographer but would very likely not be repeated for her benefit alone ...<br>

Allen, I find your comment just a tad ungracious!</p>

<blockquote>

<p>"I also have my doubts that it had been taken with a Rolleicord. I have the impression that several shots would have been taken as the group ran toward the camera. That would not have been an easy thing to do with a Rollei. If it was, then Ms Kirchherr did a magnificent job of snapping the shutter at the decisive moment. No matter what, it is an excellent photo."</p>

</blockquote>

<p>I was curious and Googled around. There are several slightly different photos from this session, and variations of this particular photo. Some are sharper, like <a href="http://d817ypd61vbww.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/styles/media_responsive_widest/public/tile/image/F_AHDN-229-9-016.jpg?itok=nh_BXG7h">this version</a>, but not necessarily better. The <a href="http://blog.postcardgallery.net/i/pics/beatles-hard-days-night.jpg">various horizontally oriented crops</a> indicate it may have been cropped from a larger square.</p>

<p>These could have been done with a Rollei. Pre-focusing, stopping down and using the non-optical peep-through "sports" finder would have done the trick. She probably asked the fellows to run toward the camera several times, snapping one shot every run through, not knowing for certain which would come out sharpest or appeal to an editor.</p>

<p>Helluva photo by any standard. It can still be done, but only with local bands or young bands early in their rise before the micro-managers take over. And nowadays you'd need to nudge contemporary pop musicians out of their faux-indifference or we're-so-deep mope-pose cliches.</p>

<p>"Allen, I find your comment just a tad ungracious!"</p>

<p>Nope, you find my comments very ungracious; you are just being polite.</p>

<p>In these posts I look at the photograph first, and then a cursory glance at the portfolie. My initial opinion is then made without any reference to others posts to avoid being tainted. Then I read other posts to see what others are seeing. I then look at the full portfolie.</p>

<p>Twice, my eyes have been opened....but then that is what these posts are all about.</p>

<p>I think Allen does have a point. It is impossible to look at many of these news or documentary shots divorced from what or who they represent, so in a way it is perhaps inappropriate to consider these from a strictly artistic point of view. Our nostalgia for Beatlemania colors these shots so much that it is difficult to imagine them if they depicted unknowns. Without the fame of those in the picture, we would regard these shots with much less enthusiasm. I think the shot is nice, but it was taken while shooting a movie where the shot was set up by the director and cinematographer (I remember the scene from the film), so Kirchherr did indeed only have to be there and make sure the shot was in focus etc. - she did do a great job of that. Perhaps we musn't forget the location scout/manager who found a suitable street for them to run and jump down. We are always going to find these shots a different experience from looking at a Mapplethorpe or an Adams. So, for me, this is a great shot of the early Beatles, but presumably would otherwise be forgotten in the mists of time if it was a photo of a different set of blokes.</p>

<p>I think it may be reasonable to question who gets credit for what. The photo is still the photo, no matter how it was created and who's responsible.</p>

<p>The fact that The Beatles are such an important factor in my experience of the photo doesn't lessen it for me. It just is what it is. And neither does the fact that the photographer worked with a cinematographer and director and famous subjects diminish the photo either.</p>

<p>Photos are often the result of some sort of collaboration. Most photos I can think of are a sort of collaboration where something or someone deserves credit or notice in addition to the photographer. I'd be missing something if I thought all my photos are only about what I've done in order for them to become photos. My portraits owe much to, and I give a good deal of credit to, the subjects who are there for me to photograph. Some of my subjects are so photogenic that I barely like to take any credit at all. They don't have to be famous for that to be the case. Buildings in our shots were created by architects. Store windows were often designed by window dressers. Clothing that may make a photo special was designed. It's kind of hard to remove, and I wouldn't want to, any photo from its content, whether it's the Beatles or Bresson's guy riding a bicycle on an evocative cobblestone street alongside a well-designed, old spiral staircase, none of which the photographer was responsible for making although he was responsible for noticing it all, being there, and composing it. Adams actually owes an awful lot to the beauty and grandeur of Yosemite, and I think he was very keen on giving it its due.</p>

<p>Photos are all some combination of content—which will have its own impression on us often aside from but also in addition to and because of the qualities of the photo—and artistic or photographic considerations. And many photos result from collaborations among lighting people, staging people, labs, printers, and other assorted talents. It's important to separate authorship concerns from aesthetic concerns.</p>

<p>It's also important to recognize that even though someone thinks they could have done this, and I'm not denying they might have been able to, they didn't actually do it. Sometimes, doing it is more important than all the potential and ability in the world.</p>