Finis – Page 3

Natural Light Studio – Year 2

September 30, 2013 by 4dancers

by Christopher Duggan

My Natural Light Studio at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival is a personal project that I started last year. There is a deck right behind the Ted Shawn Theatre where dance photographer John Lindquist made many, many photos.

I set up a simple but effective natural light soft box and backdrop and started inviting artists to the studio throughout the summer of 2012. (See some of my favorite photos from 2012 here.)I can’t believe I waited six years as festival photographer before starting to do something like this. It’s so much fun. My Natural Light Studio is a space for creative exploration, and it’s as much about what the dancers bring to the photo session as it is about what I bring to it.

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I really don’t come with any specific vision ahead of time. Some dancers come in costume, other dancers come in pedestrian clothes, and we make a portrait. I love the simplicity of it.

Most of all, I love that through this studio photography I’ve captured another 60 or so artists who are part of the Pillow’s remarkable history. Jacob’s Pillow is dedicated to preserving the memory of the incredible artists, performances, talks, exhibits and classes it has hosted throughout its history, and I’m honored to be a part of documenting the life of the festival. Finding a creative way to capture these artists is a joy.

Contributor Christopher Duggan is a wedding and dance photographer in New York City, the Berkshires and beyond. Duggan has been the Festival Photographer for Jacob’s Pillow Dance since 2006. In this capacity, and as a respected New York-based dance photographer, he has worked with renowned choreographers and performers of international acclaim as well as upstarts in the city’s diverse performance scene.

Christopher Duggan, Photo by Julia Newman

He photographs dancers in the studio and in performance, for promotional materials, portraits and press, and he often collaborates with his wife, Nel Shelby, and her Manhattan-based dance film and video editing company Nel Shelby Productions (nelshelby.com). Together, they have documented dance at performances from New York City to Vail International Dance Festival.

Christopher Duggan Photography also covers the finest wedding venues in the Metropolitan and Tri-State areas, in Massachusetts and the Berkshires, and frequently travels to destination weddings.

His photographs appear in The New York Times, The Huffington Post, The Knot, Destination I Do, Photo District News, Boston Globe, Financial Times, Dance Magazine, and Munaluchi Bridal, among other esteemed publications and popular dance and wedding blogs. One of his images of Bruce Springsteen was added to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and his dance photography has been exhibited at The National Museum of Dance and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival.

His Natural Light Studio (http://www.christopherduggan.com/portfolio/natural-light-studio-jacobs-pillow-photography/) at Jacob’s Pillow is his most ambitious photography project to date – check out his blog to see more portraits of dance artists in his pop-up photo studio on the Pillow grounds.

Wendy Whelan – A National Treasure

September 3, 2013 by 4dancers

by Christopher Duggan

There’s just something about Wendy.

I never really had such all-access permission to follow such a star here on campus at Jacob’s Pillow. Wendy let me in her dressing room and while warming up in the Bakalar Studio, allowed me to photograph her performance from backstage…and always with a smile. She’s easy to work with and really trusted me. I was grateful for the whole experience.

Ella Baff introduced her before every performance as a National Treasure, and that’s the perfect description. There’s a reason she’s a superstar. She is just captivating.

My wife Nel was featured in a PillowTalk titled “The Art of Promotion,” focused on using film to promote dance. Wendy made a cameo appearance at the talk, and you can see the affinity they have for one another. They have tremendous respect for each other and it has been a wonderful collaboration.

20130816_PillowTalk-ArtOfPromotion-NelShelby-EllenBar-WendyWhelan_Christopher.Duggan_014

It was a fun week for me, and I wanted to make these images as a gift for Wendy – to commemorate such a momentous and important engagement for her.

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Contributor Christopher Duggan is the founder and principal photographer of Christopher Duggan Photography, a New York City-based wedding and dance photography studio. Duggan has been the Festival Photographer for Jacob’s Pillow Dance since 2006. In this capacity, and as a respected New York-based dance photographer, he has worked with renowned choreographers and performers of international acclaim as well as upstarts in the city’s diverse performance scene.

He has created studio shots of Gallim Dance, Skybetter + Associates and Zvidance, among others, and in 2011 alone, he has photographed WestFest at Cunningham Studios, Dance From the Heart for Dancers Responding to Aids, The Gotham Dance Festival at The Joyce Theater, and assisted Nel Shelby Productions in filming Vail International Dance Festival.

Duggan often teams up with his talented wife and Pillow videographer Nel Shelby (http://nelshelby.com). A New York City-based husband and wife dance documentation team, they are equipped to document performances, create and edit marketing videos and choreography reels, and much more.

Christopher Duggan Photography also covers Manhattan’s finest wedding venues, the Metropolitan and Tri-State areas, and frequently travels to destination weddings. The company’s mission is straightforward and heartfelt – create timeless, memorable images of brides, grooms, their families and friends, and capture special moments of shared love, laughter and joy.

His photographs appear in The New York Times, Destination I Do, Photo District News, Boston Globe, Financial Times, Dance Magazine, Munaluchi Bridal, and Bride & Bloom, among other esteemed publications and popular wedding blogs. One of his images of Bruce Springsteen was added to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s celebrated photography collection in 2010. His company has been selected for inclusion in “The Listings” in New York Weddings magazine.

Favorite Photos From Inside/Out At Jacob’s Pillow

July 31, 2013 by 4dancers

by Christopher Duggan

You all know by now that Inside/Out – the outdoor festival stage at Jacob’s Pillow – is my absolute favorite place to photograph dancers. The Pillow’s outdoor stage is magical. The trees, the mountains, the sky. Everything is perfect – as long as the weather cooperates!

20130627_IO_Peridance_Christopher.Duggan_050 — Peridance

The festival has already reached the halfway point, so I wanted to share some of my favorites from Inside/Out so far. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves…

20130703_IO_ArtOfMotion_Christopher.Duggan_019 — Art of Motion

20130703_IO_ArtOfMotion_Christopher.Duggan_001 — Art of Motion

20130628_IO_JeremyMcQueen_Christopher.Duggan_030 — Jeremy McQueen

Returning To Jacob’s Pillow

July 2, 2013 by 4dancers

20130619_IO_JamalJackson_Christopher.Duggan_043 — Jamal Jackson

by Christopher Duggan

I’ve been waiting 10 long months for this.

Every year, I am so excited to return to Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, to photograph amazing dancers and festival life and settle back in to our cozy cabin in the Berkshires. For the past two summers, I’ve been blogging about the week’s dance performances, students at The School and more.

But it’s always the performances on the outdoor Inside/Out stage that I look forward to most. Inside/Out is one of Jacob’s Pillow’s most celebrated series, offering free outdoor dance performances four nights a week during the festival season, with each show set in the lush scenery of the Berkshire hills. It’s a pleasure and an honor to make photographs that reflect the grandeur of the Inside/Out experience – watching dance atop a mountain, under the open sky. Especially since outdoor dance scenes have been iconic of Jacob’s Pillow since its founding. (You’ve seen John Lindquist’s photos of Ted Shawn & His Men Dancers, right?)

That’s why I chose to highlight Inside/Out during my photographic exhibition at the National Museum of Dance last year.

It’s great to be back! Especially since this season offers such a rich mix of companies – many I know and love and many I get to meet and photograph for the first time. This past week’s Inside/Out shows included dancer and choreographer Hari Krishnan. He was in From the Horse’s Mouth last year, and he’s become a friend of mine, so it was just neat to see him and photograph his company inDance.

20130626_IO_DancesforVariablePopulation_Christopher.Duggan_023 — Dances for Variable Population

We had fantastic weather for all the shows, too. See more of this year’s Pillow blog series here.

Finis: Capturing Wendy Whelan In “Restless Creature”

April 30, 2013 by 4dancers

by Christopher Duggan

My wife Nel Shelby, a dance videographer, and I have been coming into rehearsals with longtime New York City Ballet dancer and international ballet superstar Wendy Whelan as she creates work with choreographers Alejandro Cerrudo (Hubbard Street Dance Chicago), Joshua Beamish (MOVE: the company), Brian Brooks (Brian Brooks Moving Company) and Kyle Abraham (Abraham.In.Motion), and we’re over the moon about filming and photographing behind-the-scenes moments to preserve and promote these amazing collaborations.

After years of photographing and filming performances and rehearsals, Nel and I believe in the power of great dance documentation, but nothing compares to seeing Wendy Whelan perform live. She is captivating, enthralling, alluring – I just can’t describe how I feel when I watch her dance. It’s simply incredible.

When the artists showed what they’ve been working on to an audience at the Guggenheim’s Works & Process performance series this month, I was photographing and Nel was filming. When the show came to a close, I looked over at Nel and she was crying.

There’s just something about Wendy.

Restless Creature will have its world premiere at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival this August. Can’t wait!

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