Smile please, Your Majesty
Amateur Photographer|December 20, 2022
Steve Fairclough discovers the stories of how top photographers photographed HM The Queen over the decades
Steve Fairclough
Smile please, Your Majesty

For over seven decades Her Majesty The Queen was probably the most photographed woman in the world. From her first official portrait sitting as monarch, on 26 February 1952, with Dorothy Wilding, to the final photograph shot by Jane Barlow at Balmoral Castle on Tuesday 6 September 2022, Queen Elizabeth II was photographed millions of times during her 70-year-plus reign.

To get a sense of what it was like to meet and photograph the Queen, we spoke to and researched interviews with a number of photographers who photographed the late, legendary monarch from the 1950s onwards. Some were commissioned to shoot a portrait, while others encountered the Queen at an event or were sent to capture her in more informal settings. Each story is unique.

Terry O'Neill CBE

Terry O'Neill CBE (1938-2019) was a British portrait photographer of politicians, musicians, film stars, royalty and sportspeople. He photographed the Queen in 1992, and told this story about her before his death in 2019.

'Three months before the actual appointment, you receive a letter from the Palace inviting you to take portraits of the Queen. It came as a surprise. I never thought of myself in that league... that was [Cecil] Beaton and [Norman] Parkinson. I was told I'd have about 30 minutes with her. When she walked into the room, she was larger than life. She's small in stature, but her presence is giant. That's what I remember the most. I really wanted to make her smile. I had studied portraits of her and wanted to make my photo different. I knew it was going to be seen by millions, would be a part of history, hung in museums... that added a bit of pressure. I knew she liked horses, that's well documented, so I told her a horse-racing joke and she laughed. That's how I got the moment... the moment the Queen smiled at me.' www.iconicimages.net

Norman Parkinson CBE

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 20, 2022 من Amateur Photographer.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 20, 2022 من Amateur Photographer.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER مشاهدة الكل
APOY Inspiration
Amateur Photographer

APOY Inspiration

If youre planning to enter our Urban Life round, take note of these tips from three of last year’s top ten photographers

time-read
3 mins  |
May 21, 2024
Specs versus design
Amateur Photographer

Specs versus design

It’s a common ailment for a particular type of photographer to be obsessed by specifications.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 21, 2024
Urban light
Amateur Photographer

Urban light

Rod Lawton demonstrates two editing techniques to intensify and dramatise the light in your urban life photography for striking scenes

time-read
2 mins  |
May 21, 2024
New Fujifilm GFX100S II - affordable medium format
Amateur Photographer

New Fujifilm GFX100S II - affordable medium format

Fujifilm has unveiled a new, relatively affordable medium-format camera, the Fujifilm GFX100S II.

time-read
1 min  |
May 21, 2024
Northern souls
Amateur Photographer

Northern souls

Two years after a major retrospective that was intended to be his swansong, Ian Beesley is back with a new exhibition for the fans who still want more.

time-read
6 mins  |
May 21, 2024
Xiaomi 14 Ultra
Amateur Photographer

Xiaomi 14 Ultra

With a large sensor, four lenses and Leica backing, is this the best smartphone for photographers?

time-read
8 mins  |
May 21, 2024
Fight club
Amateur Photographer

Fight club

How to capture the key moments when garden birds take to the air and go to war. Andrew Fusek Peters shares his set-up and techniques which are crucial to capture both flight and fight action

time-read
5 mins  |
May 21, 2024
Canon finally opens up RF mount
Amateur Photographer

Canon finally opens up RF mount

SIGMA is releasing six APS-C lenses for Canon EOS RF mount, thus widening the choice of glass for Canon’s previously ‘closed’ RF system.

time-read
1 min  |
April 30, 2024
Tony Kemplen on the.Leidolf Lordomat
Amateur Photographer

Tony Kemplen on the.Leidolf Lordomat

A camera made in Germany in the early 1950s and discovered at a charity shop

time-read
2 mins  |
April 30, 2024
Stories from the heart
Amateur Photographer

Stories from the heart

Kenyan fine art photographer Thandiwe Muriu has a gift that she was encouraged by her parents to explore from a young age.

time-read
6 mins  |
April 30, 2024