Yousuf Karsh Analysis

Even with a great deal of violence, the arts will still shine through. This was the case for Yousuf Karsh, a photographer. When World War II was taking place, Karsh was becoming a well known photographer. Compared to the photographs of others taken in the time period, Yousuf Karsh’s photographs are much simpler than them. Most other photos are showing images from the war or other violence related topics, while Karsh focused on people. Karsh’s main focus was portraits. Almost all of Karsh’s photographs uses dramatic lighting to show different and unique shadows on his subjects. Yousuf has taken some of the most well known photographs. Yousuf Karsh was born on December 23, 1908. He was raised in Mardin, part of the Ottoman Empire, which is now
He was taught the science and art of photography. After two years, he was an apprentice under John Garo, a Boston photographer and painter. Garo taught Karsh three main ideas: shadow, form, and artificial lighting which led to his use of dramatic lighting in portraits. “Character, like a photograph, develops in the darkness” -Yousuf Karsh, this quote ties into how he started off, not knowing anything about photography and coming to a new country, which is like being in the dark. From there he grew as a photographer, developing his character further. In 1931, Karsh opened his own studio. He started taking photos for Ottawa Little Theatre. Here he met his wife. They were married in 1936. One of the biggest moments for Karsh was his first showing of his works. It took place in the Drawing Room of the Chateau Laurier hotel. Karsh then moved his studio to the hotel. Another important moment of 1936, was when he was able to photograph Mackenzie King, former Prime Minister of Canada, meeting Franklin D. Roosevelt. This caught the attention of other
The photos of Winston Churchill at the Canadian House of Commons, more well known as “The Grumpy Churchill”. Right before the session started, Churchill was already in a bad mood, as he was not informed he would be photographed. He was smoking a cigar and Karsh asked his to remove it. Churchill refused, so Karsh walked up to him and pulled the cigar out of his mouth and walked back to his camera, snapping a photo on him walk back. After the photograph was taken, Churchill’s attitude flipped completely around. “There is a brief moment when all there is in a man’s mind and soul and spirit is reflected through his eyes, his hands, his attitude. This is the moment to record.” -Yousuf Karsh This quote especially makes you think of the Winston Churchill photograph, how he took the photo the moment he turned around after taking the cigar from churchill.
He was put on the 2000 International Who’s Who list. Out of the 100 people, he photographed 51 of them. Karsh also has had 15 books published with his photos and descriptions on his process while taking them. It says how he would talk to his clients to get them to relax. Some of Karsh’s clients were Winston Churchill, Pablo Picasso, Albert Einstein, and Fidel Castro. “Look and think before opening the shutter. The heart and mind are the true lens of the camera.” -Yousuf