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Per Schorn Captures What People Look Like When They Fall
All images by Per Schorn. Used with permission.
“I noticed that there are certain situations that just don’t get caught by a human eye”, says Per Schorn from Frankfurt. During one of his overseas shoots, what started as an idea turned into a project that has received multiple awards internationally.
Want to be featured? Send us your project.
Schorn’s execution of this project reinforces my belief that personal projects boost the confidence of professional photographers. For over 11 years, I was a part-time photographer shooting commercially on the weekends, balancing this with my day job. I used to, and still, jot down photo project ideas in a notebook. Being able to conceptualize, plan, and execute these ideas helped me become more confident. Each new project I completed made me more self-assured of my skills. Despite it taking over three years from concept to execution, Schorn’s efforts paid off: Stumble is one of the most vivid and eye-catching sections of his portfolio.
The Phoblographer: Was this a commissioned series or something you did as a passion project?
Per Schorn: The series started as an idea about 6 years ago when I was working in Los Angeles on another series. I noticed that there are certain situations that just don’t get caught by a human eye including for example falling. That was how the idea started. I took some time in Los Angeles and started with the first tests right away.
The Phoblographer: If commissioned, what was the brief behind it and what was the client intending to portray with the series?
Per Schorn: It was a free project, but once it was finished I was asked by an agency if they could present it to a client. They did but the client didn’t like the idea so it remained a free series to show clients what kind of photography I am doing.
The Phoblographer: You’ve studied and were also a lecturer in Communications Design. Talk to us about how you got into photography.
Per Schorn: I first got into photography in 9th grade in school, when I took a photography class and learned how to take photos and develop films etc. I had so much fun in this class that I used my second Name to join the class again in 10th grade. After 10th grade, I knew I would become a photographer and first did an apprenticeship before studying. While studying I was working as a freelance assistant to put my theoretical knowledge into practice.
The Phoblographer: I’m curious to know how these images were executed. Were they all shot on location completely or were the models and props shot in studio first?
Per Schorn: It was the other way round. Like I said I had the idea in Los Angeles and started searching for locations there. I wanted to do this series completely in the streets, but for some reason I couldn’t find a talent who was interested in the idea, so I photographed the backplates in Los Angeles and the talents once I got back home to Frankfurt.
The Phoblographer: This looks like it was a really fun series to have been a part of. On average, how many retakes were required to get the perfect stumble shot?
Per Schorn: The photos were really fun, once we had the first few images photographed we knew which body part of the model was looking like he or she is actually falling and which didn’t. So after every falling we analyzed the photos and the talents implemented my ideas for the next round. It was amazing to see how perfectly they worked on every new fall. Also we let them have the items in their hand they were pretending to let fall. So the oranges, papers, coffee and balloons were falling along with the talents. They were each falling for 50 to 70 times, depending on when I knew we had the perfect image.
The Phoblographer: What influenced the thought process behind choosing the various models, outfits, and props for each shot?
Per Schorn: I chose talents I already knew from other jobs I did before and I knew that they would perform the way I wanted them to. The only talent I worked with for the first time was Julianna ...
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By The PhoblographerAll images by Per Schorn. Used with permission.
“I noticed that there are certain situations that just don’t get caught by a human eye”, says Per Schorn from Frankfurt. During one of his overseas shoots, what started as an idea turned into a project that has received multiple awards internationally.
Want to be featured? Send us your project.
Schorn’s execution of this project reinforces my belief that personal projects boost the confidence of professional photographers. For over 11 years, I was a part-time photographer shooting commercially on the weekends, balancing this with my day job. I used to, and still, jot down photo project ideas in a notebook. Being able to conceptualize, plan, and execute these ideas helped me become more confident. Each new project I completed made me more self-assured of my skills. Despite it taking over three years from concept to execution, Schorn’s efforts paid off: Stumble is one of the most vivid and eye-catching sections of his portfolio.
The Phoblographer: Was this a commissioned series or something you did as a passion project?
Per Schorn: The series started as an idea about 6 years ago when I was working in Los Angeles on another series. I noticed that there are certain situations that just don’t get caught by a human eye including for example falling. That was how the idea started. I took some time in Los Angeles and started with the first tests right away.
The Phoblographer: If commissioned, what was the brief behind it and what was the client intending to portray with the series?
Per Schorn: It was a free project, but once it was finished I was asked by an agency if they could present it to a client. They did but the client didn’t like the idea so it remained a free series to show clients what kind of photography I am doing.
The Phoblographer: You’ve studied and were also a lecturer in Communications Design. Talk to us about how you got into photography.
Per Schorn: I first got into photography in 9th grade in school, when I took a photography class and learned how to take photos and develop films etc. I had so much fun in this class that I used my second Name to join the class again in 10th grade. After 10th grade, I knew I would become a photographer and first did an apprenticeship before studying. While studying I was working as a freelance assistant to put my theoretical knowledge into practice.
The Phoblographer: I’m curious to know how these images were executed. Were they all shot on location completely or were the models and props shot in studio first?
Per Schorn: It was the other way round. Like I said I had the idea in Los Angeles and started searching for locations there. I wanted to do this series completely in the streets, but for some reason I couldn’t find a talent who was interested in the idea, so I photographed the backplates in Los Angeles and the talents once I got back home to Frankfurt.
The Phoblographer: This looks like it was a really fun series to have been a part of. On average, how many retakes were required to get the perfect stumble shot?
Per Schorn: The photos were really fun, once we had the first few images photographed we knew which body part of the model was looking like he or she is actually falling and which didn’t. So after every falling we analyzed the photos and the talents implemented my ideas for the next round. It was amazing to see how perfectly they worked on every new fall. Also we let them have the items in their hand they were pretending to let fall. So the oranges, papers, coffee and balloons were falling along with the talents. They were each falling for 50 to 70 times, depending on when I knew we had the perfect image.
The Phoblographer: What influenced the thought process behind choosing the various models, outfits, and props for each shot?
Per Schorn: I chose talents I already knew from other jobs I did before and I knew that they would perform the way I wanted them to. The only talent I worked with for the first time was Julianna ...