14 Nov How to photograph like Steve McCurry

Although the title to this post is how to photograph like Steve McCurry, it could easily be subtitled “How to make an image in the Steve McCurry style”.  When it comes to colour travel photojournalism, there is one photographer who stands head and shoulders above all others. Steve McCurry stands head and shoulders above many. Here is a look at what makes his images so special and edit one of our own photos, in his iconic look.

Who is Steve McCurry?

If you don’t know his name, you can be sure to know at least one image by him. The National Geographic cover ‘Afghan girl’ is one of the most iconic magazine covers ever printed. Beyond that single image, McCurry has hundreds, if not thousands of portrait images that are just as hauntingly beautiful.

So what is it about his images that is so engaging?

Analysing Steve McCurry’s work

• Unwavering Eye Contact: His subjects look directly into his lens with quiet self-assurance. No matter how worn the clothes they wear are, McCurry’s images allows their inner strength, uniqueness and most profoundly, their dignity to shine through.
• Minimal Distractions: Every element in the background intentionally supports the story or mood of the image he wants to convey. 
• Vibrant Yet Natural Colours: His tones tend to be rich and saturated, while skin tones remain subtle and natural.
• Deep Shadows:  Dark, dramatic shadows eliminate background noise and pull all focus to the subject. 

 

Why Emulate Another Photographer’s Style?

It’s a valid question – after all, the last thing you want is for people to say your work looks like a carbon copy of …… insert famous photographer name here …

However, emulating the masters is one of the fastest ways to learn. By spending time analysing their work you beging to understand their vision, composition and editing processes.

BUT… Don’t stop at one photographer. Study many, then mix, match and adapt their techniques with your own spin, to create something that is uniquely yours.

Have a look at our ‘How to photograph like‘ series to see other great photographers like Edward Weston, Michael Kenna, Ansel Adams and Arnold Newman.

Step-by-Step Edit: Applying the Technique

The Image Choice

I am using a photograph Ally made of a flower seller in the centre of Cape Town, South Africa. In McCurry’s work the subjects are usually looking directly into the lens, with a serious expression. Like Steve, Ally has an amazing gift of making her subjects feel comfortable in front of the lens which resulted in strong, direct eye contact, making this image an obvious choice as a candidate for a McCurry-fy edit!

 

 

Cropping in RAW

Action: Crop down to a tight headshot.

Why: Whilst McCurry occasionally uses landscape (environmental) framing, the majority of his famous portraits are tight headshots. I left just enough of the flowers in the frame to help tell the subject’s story.

“What matters most is that each picture stands on its own, with its own place and feeling”
Steve McCurry

Adjusting Contrast & Colour (RAW Edit)

As you can see the original image directly from the camera was quite flat. To fix this I …: 

• Added Contrast, Clarity and Vibrancy to the whole image.
• Used the adjustment brush to selectively Dodge and Burn (lighten and darken specific areas). 
• Boosted Vibrancy slightly to bring out the rich colours of her clothing whilst keeping skin tones natural.

Once happy with the Raw edit I opened the file into Photoshop*.

McCurry’s work rarely features distracting background elements. While he would typically shift his physical position in the field to clean up a frame, we can use Photoshop when working with existing shots.

• Action: Removed distracting bamboo sticks using Content-Aware Fill (Edit > Content-Aware Fill).

• Tip: If you’re already an experienced Photoshop user, you can use the dedicated Content-Aware Fill option directly from the Edit menu. This allows you to manually select sampling areas and can output the clean result directly onto a new layer.

 

Adding Catchlights to the Eyes

Lastly, I noticed that almost all of Steve McCurry portraits have one thing in common which are bright, distinct reflections (catchlights) in the eyes. Usually, I would use a large white reflector to bounce soft light into the face and it would also create beautiful reflections in the eyes. We couldn’t do that in Cape Town as we only had a few minutes and as the area was deserted our friend and guide was getting worried about us having expensive equipment out, so Ally had to work very fast.

Action: I created a new layer in Photoshop and used a small paintbrush with white paint to manually add in subtle catchlights then reduced the layer’s opacity slightly to give a more natural look.

 

Final Thoughts

Emulation is a teaching tool, not a destination. Steve McCurry is the master of his style and copying him exactly, will only ever yield a second best version of his work. Use these steps to understand his process, combine his techniques with insights from other masters, and build a style that belongs entirely to you. There can never be anyone better at your own style than you.

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