Before watching the documentary on Annie Leibovitz, I had very little sense of the photographer, knowing her only through a few of her earlier photographs and some of her work in Vanity Fair. Watching the full documentary enabled me to have a greater appreciation and understanding of her work as now I saw it as an evolution through her whole life. I found it interesting how Leibovitz had transitioned from shooting simple portraits with relatively little staging like her work in Rolling Stone, to her highly stylized, dramatic, and fanciful covers for Vanity Fair. Personally, I prefer her earlier work to her more recent photographs. While all of her work is beautiful, I feel that the simpler portraits have a more intimate feel and provide more of a slice of truth of their subject. For instance, the portrait of John Lennon, naked and clutching Yoko Ono. I had never really considered this photograph before the documentary, I was familiar with it but found that it made me uncomfortable, I did not like how weak and desperate Lennon appeared while Ono looked just relaxed and reserved. Hearing Yoko Ono talk about this portrait I was able to see it in a new light, I could now see the beauty and strength in Lennon for being able to show the world his vulnerability and his love.
It is clear that Leibovitz has is a master of portrait photography.
