“Step into my office”

Platon is one of the most important photographers of this generation.

Even if you are unfamiliar with his name, it’s more than likely that you’re familiar with his work. He’s famous for getting close-ups of his subjects, so close that you can see their pores.

Platon has to work around these world leaders schedules, leaving very little time with them. Sometimes, he has to meet in less than ideal places, like backstage or in a tucked away room.

So, how does he get big personalities to open up, to show another side of themselves?

First, Platon invites people into his “office,” a white sheet set up and an old white crate for people to sit on. The way he explains it, everyone sits on the crate. Sometimes at the dismay of security guards, everyone eventually sits.

Platon doesn’t have something you don’t. He carries a white sheet, a white crate and a camera. The magic is his story:

That crate has had more world leaders sit on it than any other seat in the world.

That’s a story. Maybe even a right of passage.

We focus so much on the tools and tactics, we forget to craft a better story. “Step into my office” is supposed to relax people, to displace them. Of course, it’s ridiculous to ask the President of the United States to sit on an old white crate, but that’s what you do when you work with Platon.

There may be others out there who can take better portrait shots but none of them crafted a story like Platon. Craft and prefect your story and you will never run out of work.