Image by Reid Hannaford. Used with permission.
Photographer Reid Hannaford is working on a 365 project where he got the idea to create the image above. Reid tells us that he always tries to tell stories through his images; and for this shot he was trying to establish a sort of ethereal portrayal of someone who has been hanged and is no longer tethered to the earth. “The sheet around the face was to create a sense of anonymity and facelessness. I wanted to evoke a sense of distress in the viewer — as they wonder what is happening to the man in the image.” says Reid.
He inspiration came from René Magritte and his surrealist images. Lots of his images show off sheets over a model’s head. But Reid also says that he gets inspiration from lots of sources like paintings, films, music, poetry and experimental theatre.
As far as how this was shot, Reid uses a Canon 550D and a 50mm f1.8 with a tripod, remote trigger and a 580 EX II flash. “As of right now I’m 117 days in, taking a photo every day for a year. It’s been a transformative experience thus far, as taking images every day really pushes you to be imaginative with new concepts and work in sometimes less than ideal conditions.” says Reid. “Naturally not every shot of my year so far has been amazing, but I’m certainly growing as a photographer and artist and I encourage anyone interested in photography to try a project of their own. This image, “The Hanged Have Fallen”, is from day 105/365, and I definitely plan to do more surrealist work later in the year.”
