Event photography, once limited to a who’s who of famous people at posh places in glossy magazine spreads, has now become the great equalizer. Everyone gets their frame of fame.
From Kaohsiung’s Danny Chu (朱健榮) and Taichung’s Kyle Merriman to Steven Vigar and Garret Clarke from Up Against the Wall in Taipei, there are a slew of photographers capturing the antics of people at Brickyard (Kaohsiung), The Refuge (Greater Taichung) and Revolver (Taipei).
By the time partygoers get back from brunch the next morning, images from the night before are already receiving comments on Facebook.
Photo Courtesy of Johan Vosloo
Since April last year, Taichung-based photographer Johan Vosloo has taken it even further, with a series of parties called Tequila Face that present photography as the main event instead of an added bonus.
The sixth edition will be held tonight at Revolver, with live music from ska dance band Skaraoke followed by rockabilly DJ Longyan (龍岩).
The premise is simple, and the appeal easy to grasp: Patrons are snapped before, during, and after taking a shot of tequila.
Photo Courtesy of Johan Vosloo
Images of pretty party girls with immaculate make-up and glossy smiles morph into scrunched up faces and wincing eyes. Tough guys try not to flinch. “I really like it when guys try to be cool by not showing any reaction but you get that flaring of the nostrils and you just can’t hide it: Everyone has a tequila face,” Vosloo told the Taipei Times.
Originally from South Africa, Vosloo has lived in Taiwan for seven years. He studied graphic design in Johannesburg but is a self-taught photographer who learned by taking tens of thousands of photos and downloading “thousands” of online tutorials about composition and lighting.
“I like to shoot anything I can to see what it is,” he said. “You learn by doing anything: product, party, fashion, travel … but party photography is easy because it’s going on all the time and people see it.”
Though some of his strongest images come from his travels — a portrait of a longboat driver in Thailand on his Web site (www.johanvosloo.com) is particularly striking — the appeal of the before-and-after shots of tequila drinkers is hard to resist.
For Tequila Face, he originally built a lightbox with parts from a hardware store to create a continuous source of light. (His flash can’t go off as fast as his camera shoots in motor mode, which is six frames per second.)
Vosloo takes 40 to 60 images of each person drinking and then selects the best ones. Recently he has upgraded his equipment to make it more easy to transport, though he is still experimenting with the lighting effects needed to capture the moment.
Vosloo said the constant clicking of the camera, the bright lights, and the loud music of the club create a feeling of being on stage for participants.
“People really like it, I didn’t think it would get this response,” he said. “But when everyone is watching and cheering you on while you shoot tequila something happens … you get the rush of it going through your body and I’ve had guys licking shots off each other, kissing each other, big manly kissing, and girls kissing girls, sometime I worry people won’t remember what they were doing in front of the camera, but then they line up to do it again!”
Warning: Excessive consumption of alcohol can damage your health
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