One Face, Three Stories
In this series of three portraits of Paul, very little changes. The lighting remains predominantly from behind and there is no elaborate setting to influence what we see. Yet each photograph leaves a slightly different impression.
Light reveals. Shadow conceals. Expression tells the rest.
How much does it take to change the way we see someone?
Light, shadow, and character
When I photographed Paul, I didn't want to light his face in the conventional way. Instead, I chose to light him predominally from behind, allowing the light to catch the edges of his face, hair, and clothing while leaving much of his face in shadow.
For me, it is as much about the absence of lightvas the light itself. The shadows don't hide Paul's character; they help reveal it. The lines and texture of his face become part of the portrait, picked out by small areas of light rather than being evenlyilluminated. I deliberately didn't want to soften those details. They are part of him, and part of what makes his face interesting to photograph
What struck me most was how Paul's character came through despite so much of his face remaining in shadow. The lighting doesn't tell us who he is; it simply gives us enough to want to look a little longer. For me, that's where the portrait begins to work.
Facing the camera
There is something very direct about this first portrait. Paul looks straight towards me, and immediately I find myself drawn to his eyes. Much of his face remains in shadow, yet I don't feel anything is missing. If anything, the darkness makes me look more closely.
It is a simple portrait, but Paul's expression gives it its strength.
A subtle change
It only took a small turn of Paul's head to change the balance of the portrait. With his face no longer square to the camera, the light begins to describe his features differently.
The backlighting catches the contours of his forehead, cheek and jaw, while his hair is strongly separated from the black background. Much of his face still remains in shadow, but those small areas of illumination are enough to give it shape and depth.
I deliberately didn't ask Paul for an expression. There is no smile to manufacture warmth and no exaggerated pose to create drama. I wanted his natural expression to remain part of the photograph.
What lies beyond?
Paul's gaze takes us outside the photograph. We don't know what he is looking at, and I think that uncertainty is part of what gives this portrait its strength.
The photograph shows us Paul's face, but it doesn't tell us what he is thinking. That part of the story is left to us.
A Different Perspective
For the final portrait, I changed my position rather than asking Paul to change very much at all. By photographing him from a lower viewpoint, his face takes on a different presence within the frame.
The backlight again catches his hair and traces the edge of his face, separating him from the darkness. Yet much of his expression remains in shadow. For me, that balance is important. I don't need every detail to be illuminated; sometimes what the light leaves unseen is just as important as what it reveals.
Paul's upward gaze changes the photograph again. There is only a subtle shift in expression, but it invites interpretation. Is he thoughtful, reflective, hopeful, or simply looking at something outside the frame? I don't want to answer that for the viewer.
That is what I enjoy about portraiture. A change of viewpoint, a small movement and a different relationship between light and shadow can make us see the same person differently.
Beyond the frame
There is something about this final portrait that leaves more unanswered. Paul’s attention has moved beyond the camera, and the empty space around him becomes part of the photograph.
I like that we don't know what has caught his attention. There is no obvious smile, sadness or exaggerated expression to tell us what to think. Instead, his face gives us just enough to begin forming our own interpretation.
Perhaps that is what I find most interesting about portraiture. We can photograph someone's appearance, but we can never completely photograph what is going on behind it.
Sometimes, leaving something unanswered is what makes us look for longer.
One Face, Three Stories.
Three photographs. One person. The same lighting approach. Yet none of them feels quite the same.
Paul brought the character; my job was not to disguise it, but to use the light, and sometimes the lack of it, to reveal it.
Which of the three tells you a story, and what do you see?
Robbie Clymo
31st August 2026