Over the years Swannell has taken portraits of many of the world’s
celebrities, actors, various heads of state and other luminaries but regrets
missing out on the Dalai Lama and Nelson Mandela. Inspired by Henry Moore
and Rodin he just loves photographing women- both fashion and nudes. He
admits: 'I love women and the female body. There is nothing more beautiful.'
Much of his work is in monochrome. 'I’ve always loved black and white,' he
says. 'I used to develop my pictures in my parents’ bathroom and I still
remember the sheer joy of watching those images come to life.'
When it comes to lighting he prefers to keep it pretty simple. 'Avedon was a
genius but he tended to use just one light on a boom with a grey
background.'
These days Swannell shoots digitally with a Canon 5D. But Leica has been
courting him with their new 37.5 MP S2 DSLR camera (£16,000 for the body
only). 'If they come up with a decent proposition I will switch to Leica
because this is a superb piece of kit,' he says.
He adds: 'My assistant Robert makes sure I stay in touch with all the
latest equipment. He’s always browsing in a Calumet store or on their
website hunting down the next ‘vital’ piece of equipment we need.'
After decades at the top, his business acumen has never waned.
He recalls. 'Years ago I bought an old leather bag for £7 from an Oxfam
shop. It had loads of pockets in it and was perfect for my kit. But Helmut
Newton became obsessed with it and offered to buy it for $100. I refused. He
increased his offer to $500. I still said no. Then he said he thought there
must be something of his that he could swap. I told him he could give me a
signed print of the wonderful cover image on his book, White Women. In the
end he agreed. I sold that image 20 years later for £23,000.'
Financial risk is often part of the territory for a photographer like John
Swannell. 'I spend a fortune on some of my own personal shoots' he points
out. Studio hire is about £1,000 a day, then there’s model fees, make-up,
retouching. By the time I get the picture right I’ve spent thousands – and
that’s all speculative. I do it in the hope that someone will one day want
to buy a print from me.'
But he’s generous too. Lady Bamford (part of the JCB dynasty) recently asked
him to take her passport photograph. 'She turned up in a chauffeurdriven
Rolls Royce,' he laughs. 'And she made the point that if the picture was to
be on her passport for 10 years it ought to at least be a good one. I just
couldn’t bring myself to charge her for that!'
Now, after six successful books, various exhibitions and a glorious 40
years, he has started a new personal project that includes portraits of
women with snakes…' but not in the way you think'.
'I’m shooting more landscapes too but I do still love the fashion and
portrait work. I am enjoying myself just as much now as when I first started
out. I love the romance of it all. The wonderful thing about being a
photographer is that you can become a star. I really don’t put myself in the
same league as Bailey or Newton but I have had a great time.'
And retirement? 'I have no plans at all to retire. As long as I still love
what I am doing I will carry on. Work has always been more important than
the money. I haven’t made a fortune but I’m comfortable.'
www.johnswannell.comAdd
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