Martin Schoeller at Xposure 2025: Capture for Yourself First, Then the Subject

Photo: Sharjah Government Media Bureau

The International Photography Festival, which is free to attend, is taking place at Aljada and has brought over 300 famous photojournalists from around the world to the UAE.

Martin Schoeller, a New York-based photographer, has been one of the leading figures in modern portrait photography for more than 30 years. He is well-known for his close-up style, which looks closely at people’s faces with almost a scientific focus. This unique approach captures both powerful and powerless individuals, showing their true selves with no filters. At the International Photography Festival (Xposure) 2025, Schoeller shared stories from his career, discussing his early challenges, his artistic approach, and the unpredictable nature of his photo shoots.

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Schoeller opened up about the tough times he faced early in his career. "I was broke. I had no money," he admitted. He shared a story about how he once convinced the Newark police department to let him take photos of their work. He wasn’t working for any magazine, but he told the press secretary that he was covering police work for a German magazine. The press secretary didn’t check his story and agreed to let him work with two detectives.

His big break came in 1998 when Time Out New York asked him to photograph actress Vanessa Redgrave. Over the years, Schoeller has taken around 3,000 close-up portraits, capturing a wide variety of subjects. He’s photographed everyone from celebrities and world leaders to athletes, homeless individuals, death row exonerees, and even Holocaust survivors. His work blends both creative ideas and his journalistic skills to push the boundaries of traditional portrait photography.

One of his most famous photos was taken in 2003 by filmmaker Quentin Tarantino during the popularity of his film Kill Bill. Another notable photo was of skateboarder Tony Hawk, who is shown jumping off his kitchen counter, with his wife and children also in the frame. “He wanted a picture at a skate park,” Schoeller said, “but I told his wife, ‘This will make a great Christmas card.’ So she made him do it,” Schoeller laughed.

Schoeller has also turned his camera towards the less famous, focusing on people who are often overlooked. One of his most personal projects involved photographing and talking to over 300 homeless people in Los Angeles. He set up his studio near a food truck run by a friend’s father. Because the people trusted the food truck owner, they also trusted Schoeller. A particularly touching story came when he photographed a young runaway named Frisk. After seeing the photo on Instagram, Frisk's mother reached out. With help from others in the homeless community, they found him and helped him return home. Schoeller said, “Out of 300 stories, that was the one happy ending.”

Schoeller has worked with organizations like Witness to Innocence, which supports people who have been wrongly convicted and later exonerated from death row. He spent years capturing the emotional experiences of these individuals. His work on this project became part of an exhibition, a National Geographic feature, and even a museum show. “At first, the editors thought my portraits looked like mugshots,” he explained, “and they didn’t want that. But I worked hard and gained their trust.”

Even with changes in the world of editorial photography, Schoeller sticks to his unique style. “Advertising jobs pay the bills,” he said with a grin, “but they also let me fund personal projects that may not make money.” He also admitted that coming up with new, original ideas is the hardest part of his job. “For every 10 ideas I have, only three or four end up happening,” he said.

At the end of his talk, Schoeller shared his thoughts on photography. “Sometimes you succeed, sometimes you don’t,” he said. “But if you’re taking pictures for yourself first, not just for the subject, you’re on the right track.”

Schoeller’s portraits are powerful because they strip away any fake or unnecessary details, leaving only the person and their story. For him, that’s what matters.

This talk was just one of many at Xposure this year, where visitors not only got to enjoy amazing photography but also had the chance to meet and learn from the brilliant photographers behind the photos.