One of the most recognizable faces of the 20th century was of Albert Einstein.  In 1999, his portrait was on the cover of TIME Magazine as the “Person of the Century.”  The picture was taken in 1947 showing a mournful Einstein narrating his role in the US’s development of the atomic bomb.  The photographer was Philippe Halsmann, in 1958, Popular Photography ran a poll and he was names as one of the “World’s Ten Greatest Photographers.”

It would be hard to put his work in any modern context, except to say that he had a way with his photo subjects, making them feel at ease and natural.  He also made them jump.

He reasoned out that he didn’t want to take pictures where the subjects were edgy or uncomfortable or stiff.  He was a patient man and shot rolls and rolls of film, with hundreds of photos over several hours to get a good portrait.  Celebrities he took pictures of were mindful of being celebrities.  He found that one way to see the real person through the lens was to take lots of photographs.  Another was to ask the subject to do something unusual for them to let their guard down.  Asking a person to jump forces the person to think of the landing and lets go of his mask along the way.

It’s one technique which a lot of photographers have used to good effect.  Though there have been instances when photo shoots have depended too much on jumping and you end up with lots of ads with people jumping all over the place.

It’s a technique to think about when you have a stiff subject, edgy or uptight about something, or somebody who wants to maintain a persona for the camera.  Philippe Halsmann published a book of his photographs featuring personalities in mid-jump and different jumping poses.  It worked wonders for him.