Clay Enos interview

Wow, this blog has practically turned into a Watchmen fanboy site. Not that that’s a bad thing. Here’s something to chew on.

This past Tuesday, I had the great pleasure of interviewing Clay Enos, the photographer of Watchmen. He did all the still photographs of the production, so if you see something Watchmen, chances are it’s his stuff. Enos is also the man behind the new book Watchmen Portraits, a beautiful black and white “coffee table” book of, well, Watchmen portraits. Not only are the actors featured in character, but many of the extras are featured with equal poise on the page.

Clay Enos has known the Snyders for quite some time, so one would think it wouldn’t be too difficult for him to be selected as photographer for Watchmen. Well, that’s a leg up, but it wasn’t that easy. They had to fight for him which was “pretty cool” that they would do such a thing for a photographer, according to Enos. The production set him up with a studio space that came to be known as the “Clay Cube.” Makes me think of the Borg Cube from Star Trek. Surely the two aren’t comparable…or are they?

Anyway, the Clay Cube eventually became too cumbersome to work with, so he switched to a simple, more portable studio using natural light when available and a device to simulate natural light when it wasn’t available. “All the actors, everybody was willing and enthusiastic about helping with the photographs” said Clay. The photographs became a “casual, routine” and even “spontaneous” activity for those involved. The makeshift studio was on the side of the set and people just walked by and got their picture taken. “People” being the actors.

Watchmen Portraits is an excellent movie book, but has the potential to be an art book also, floating somewhere in that happy middle. Watchmen is a very atmosphere driven work and the unique thing about Portraits is its ability to capture that atmosphere without the background of the production. “Since the characters are pulled out of context, the atmosphere is in the faces” is how Enos describes the magic of his photos. The portraits are still able to capture the atmosphere, but they become something else as well. Each photo enables the viewer to look deeper into the character, especially with the extras and minor characters. They say the eyes are the windows to the soul, something Clay Enos has mastered in his photography.

Flat out, Clay Enos is a great guy with unbelievable skill and talent. Plus he’s a Star Trek nerd. It was truly awesome to have the opportunity to speak with someone I consider on the “god” level. If I haven't said it before, Clay Enos’ photography is magnificent. Check it out at clayenos.com. And check out his Nite Owl Coffee at http://www.organiccoffee.com/Nite-Owl-Dark-Roast/M/B001O2KSZA.htm. It’s a great movie tie-in after the fire rescue scene at the apartment building. A portion of the profit goes to charity and THEY'RE ONLY AVAILABLE FOR A LIMITED TIME. Only 10,000 cans were made. So buy some coffee because everyone knows college students need to drink more coffee.