"For all my subjects - interiors, people, still life/ food - I prefer to use natural light and try to communicate the brief moment of pause - before words are spoken, spaces are entered, still life is changed,” explained McIntyre. “Ideally I am striving to capture a subtle emotion, something that appears in the in between moments which can be awkward and beautiful.”
Originally from Toronto, Canada, Emma McIntyre began her career as a professional photographer over a decade and a half ago, however she discovered her love for the art form much earlier. “We always had cameras lying around the house because my dad was a hobbyist photographer, as was his father. I inherited a Pentax Spotmatic when I was 16 and fell in love with the whole process,” recalled McIntyre.
Today photos by Emma McIntyre can be found in a long list of publications like Rolling Stone, Nylon, The New York Times, Spin, Billboard, SELF China, Elle Malaysia, Elle Canada and many more.
Through her work with Toronto-based video magazine The Seventh Art, McIntyre has had the opportunity to shoot an incredible list of celebrity portraits with film icons like Whit Stillman, Peter Bogdanovich, Andrew Bujalski, Christopher Doyle, Xavier Dolan and Paul Schrader.
“I was especially excited to photograph Peter Bogdanovich as I was a huge Sopranos fan and I think he has such an iconic look,” explained McIntyre. “I had about two seconds to capture a portrait of him between takes and he just stared deep into the barrel of the lens and gave me an image that I just love.”
In addition to photographing international celebrities, McIntyre is also known for her work as a unit stills photographer where she uses her skills to capture images for the publicity of films, television shows and documentaries.
“I’ve worked on a number of television shows including Curious and Unusual Deaths, Inventions That Shook The World, Rescue Mediums, Totally Amp’d and Million Dollar Critic as well as films such as Everyday is Like Sunday and Diamond Tongues (currently in post-production),” said McIntyre.
The images captured by Emma McIntyre and other unit stills photographers in the industry are a vital factor in the success of a film or television project as their shots are often the first ones potential viewers encounter. While this area of work undoubtedly requires a skilled photographer with immense creativity, the additional demands that accompany working on set causes many photographers to either shy away or be incapable of handling the role. In spite of their pursuit of the perfect shot, unit stills photographers must work around several different departments in order to ensure they aren’t interfering with the production, a feat McIntyre continually accomplishes with ease and grace.
“It can be a fun collaboration with the producers/ directors when conceptualizing what will work for publicity images,” explained McIntyre. “I like the TV and film world because it always takes you to places you wouldn’t expect and especially in the more documentary type of television you have an opportunity to encounter interesting experts and perspectives.”