Portrait of a politician – 1

There’s a certain pleasure in photographing with the Leica M9—a camera that rewards precision and patience rather than machine-gun bursts. This portrait was made in a crowded hall, the politician seated among an audience whose attention was turned toward the stage. The light was far from forgiving, a mix of weak ambient and uneven spot sources, but the M9’s sensor responded with a tonal richness that digital cameras often lose in harsh conditions.

I chose to work wide open, which gave me the shallow depth of field needed to isolate his face from the visual chaos around him. The crowd dissolves into a swirl of shapes and tonal smudges, leaving the viewer’s attention on his gaze. The bokeh has a certain nervousness, characteristic of the lens, but it serves to heighten the sense of immediacy.

Technically, the exposure pushes the limits—shadows fall deep, and the highlights on the forehead and cheek verge on blowing out. But I resisted over-correcting in post; this is how the moment looked and felt. The slight grain from the higher ISO lends it a texture that softens the formality of the suit and tie, making the image feel more human, less staged.

Compositionally, the subject is pushed slightly off-centre, his eyes leading into the unsharp crowd. This framing isn’t about flattery—it’s about context. He’s not on a podium; he’s one of many in a shared space, yet the camera singles him out. It’s that balance between the individual and the collective that I wanted to hold onto.

The Leica M9 may lack the forgiving flexibility of modern sensors, but here, its quirks play in my favour. The colour rendering—converted to monochrome—retains a density and subtlety that complements the quiet intensity in his expression. It’s a portrait born of technical limitation and deliberate choice, and for me, that makes it more than just a likeness.