Biography

Barry Lategan was born in 1935 into a modest background in South Africa. His interest in photography began in childhood when, during a school science project, Lategan's geography tutor gave the class a task to experience the rotation of planet earth - they had to place a camera (a box brownie) on a starry night, facing the sky. The instruction was to press the release button and lock the shutter into the open position until before daybreak, when the shutter was released to close the lens.

The film turned out to be blank except for one frame with regular semi-circular white lines originating from different starting points on a black background – the camera had recorded the earth rotating against the light of the stars. For Lategan this was a pivotal moment, when he experienced the magic of seeing the film’s developed results from the local chemist.

In 1955, Lategan came to England to study at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School but soon after was called away to National Service in West Germany. Working within the Royal Air force air traffic control in Cologne, he discovered a local club for camera hobbyists. This is when his interest in photography began to emerge as he experimented with a Leica and Rolleicord and he began to learn about the 'miracle' of processing film himself.

On his return to South Africa after the war, his mother introduced him to Ginger Odes, a local Cape Town based advertising and fashion photographer. It was at this point that he began to realize the dream of making his hobby his work, and thus began to develop his skills in a professional setting.

Having previously drawn inspiration from photography legends like Cartier-Bresson, Capa, Eugene Smith and other Magnum photographers who were often associated with war reportage, he discovered the consummate stylists of fashion photography such as Norman Parkinson and Irving Penn. Fashion photographers who worked meticulously on an image, rather than making throwaway or more casual shots, and this painstaking attention to detail later informed his own approach to constructing composition in his work.

In 1961 Lategan returned to London and was hired for £8 per week with Carlton Artists Ltd, a creative agency in London, where he furthered his knowledge of the photography world, working for clothing and product catalogues and various publications. A few years later he started his first photo studio in Chelsea - Rossetti Studios, and it was here that held Twiggy's first ever photo sessions, playing a key role in her breakthrough as the 'Face of 66'. Lategan had his own darkroom at the studio, printing images himself and shot on multiple formats and cameras, including a large format ‘Deardorff’ plate camera. He practiced the traditional skills of photography in a way which captured not just instant, but images which deserve contemplation for a longer period of time. The natural light entering the space from the studio’s broad skylights inspired a contemplative and playful period of artistic development, heavily influencing his approach as a thoughtful observer, and a lifelong romance with light and shadow blossomed.

His now iconic early studio tests were quickly noticed and it was while working with the iconic model-turned-stylist Grace Coddington that he achieved his breakthrough moment, a British Vogue cover of a fur-clad Leslie Jones in 1968. During this time he became a close associate of the stellar group of photographers who were working in London at that time – including David Bailey, Terence Donavan, and Brian Duffy. He had a reputation for his quiet and considered manner of working with models and he was an expert in taking a painstaking approach to lighting and composition in order to reveal the intrinsic beauty of his subjects. He was known to take countless Polaroids to test his images on his shoots in order to finally achieve his own standard of perfection and was especially noted for the mastery and poise of his close-up portraits.

Lategan worked closely with the legendary makeup artist Barbara Daly during the 1970's – they built up a strong working rapport which is evident from the photographs which attest to their successful and sympathetic creative dynamic.

He became a prolific fashion and beauty photographer over the next two decades working for various publications, achieving 36 Italian Vogue covers during 1969 - 1980, and 39 British Vogue covers during 1968 - 1981.

In the mid 1970’s Lategan moved to New York City, eventually setting up a studio in Manhattan. Here he began an incredibly productive period of commercial and advertising work and began directing television commercials, many of which were critically acclaimed. During this period he also became interested in projects outside of those of which he had been previously known, such as nude studies, trees and candid street photography. Having a keen eye for the everyday detail of his surroundings, he was always taking pictures. Being interested in everything he saw, Lategan was always seen with his camera as he immersed and captured himself in his new, grande and visceral environment.

Lategan eventually returned to live in London in 1989 and joined the Director's Studio agency where he continued to work on personal projects and high-end advertising campaigns. He received the Halina Award for his 1988 Pirelli calendar and a Clio Award for a Giorgio Armani television commercial amongst numerous D&AD awards. In 2007 he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship by The Royal Photographic Society.

Over the course of his career Lategan has become established as one of the most renowned and influential photographers of his time. In addition to his fashion photography and the early ground-breaking portraits of Twiggy, Lategan photographed a diverse range of celebrities and notable figures, including Paul and Linda McCartney, Calvin Klein, HRH Princess Anne, Margaret Thatcher, Salman Rushdie, Mick Jagger and many of his compatriot photographers. 

In addition to his lesser known nudes, candid street and documentary photography there is so much more being discovered about the breadth and quality of work produced by a photographer who was witness to such changing and vibrant eras.

Later life

In 2006 Lategan suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) to his frontal lobe after falling down a flight of concrete stairs. In 2016 he was diagnosed with Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD) while receiving specialist care in a secure hospital following his sectioning by the Mental Health Act.

To read more about Lategan’s experience of FTD read here.

On Sunday the 11th August 2024 Barry Lategan passed away and is survived by his son Dylan.