Celebrities you may not know are obsessed with photography

Everyone is a photographer, including celebrities. However, some celebrities take photo shoots seriously.

Here is a list of celebrities who take their photography more seriously than most and invest a lot of both time and money into developing their craft.

#1. Andy Serkis

Andy Serkis, filmmaker and actor, best known for his role as Gollum in the movies Lord of the Ring trilogy, I am also a hobbyist photographer.

In 2019, Serkis held an exhibition of some of his photographs at the Leica Gallery in Mayfair, London. The exhibit, titled “Because It's There,” featured photographs taken by Serkis during his trek to Everest Base Camp. The exhibition included portraits of Sherpas he met while climbing, as well as photographs celebrating the “courage, tenacity and humor” of those who risk their lives to climb mountains.

#2. Ben Affleck

Although Ben Affleck is generally best known as an actor, he has been an avid photographer since high school. Affleck has always taken photos, and he has said that he is so fascinated by cameras and lenses that he has become a “very serious addiction.”

Affleck regularly[s] Teased for being a big camera geek, wife Jennifer Lopez jokingly mentioned her husband's photography obsession in a new documentary.

Affleck reportedly has an “incredible” Canon K35 set that he keeps in his home, some old ARRI/FUJINON Alura zooms, and “a crazy 1950s camera” that he bought on eBay among his collection. He reportedly has amassed a large personal collection of vintage camera lenses, including “Russian-made lenses.”

#3. From Jason Lee my name is earl

Actor Jason Lee, known for his role on the NBC hit comedy my name is earlHe recently opened a photo shop and camera store in Los Angeles with fellow photographer Raymond Molinar.

An avid photographer, Lee began taking pictures regularly in the early 2000s and has published several photo books, including; The scenery as it is He dove headfirst into the world of photography in 2002, purchasing a Leica M6 and a Mamiya RZ67 medium format camera.

Lee has long been obsessed with film photography, and analog equipment is the main focus of his new LA-based store.

#4. Frank Ocean

Grammy Award-winning singer Frank Ocean is also a film photography enthusiast.Ocean's passion for analog photography led to trend I was asked to shoot behind-the-scenes images for the 2019 Met Gala in a Contax T3.

There are also photos taken of the ocean with a variety of film cameras, including a Leica M6 and a Fujifilm GA645Zi.

Last year, Ocean published a 48-page photo book. mutation Between October 19 and December 22, 2022, it featured a retrospective of portraits and images taken primarily by the singer herself.

#5. Mark Ruffalo

Actor Mark Ruffalo – starred in hit movies poor thing Earlier this year, I also worked as a street photographer for the past 10 years.

“I've been doing street photography off and on for about 10 years. I love how it captures people naturally. People change their demeanor quickly when they know the camera is aimed at them. “Ruffalo said. new york times.

For several years, Ruffalo regularly shared some of the street photos he took on subways and train stations to his 20 million followers on Instagram.

#6. Jessica Lange

Before becoming a two-time Academy Award-winning actress, Jessica Lange won a scholarship to study art and studied photography at the University of Minnesota.

Lange took up photography again in the 1990s when her partner, the late playwright and actor Sam Shepard, gifted her a Leica camera. Since then, she has worked as a photographer and has published the following photo books. highway 61.

highway 61 It was a photographic homage to a storied route that Lange had traveled many times throughout his childhood in northern Minnesota.

“It's the opposite of filmmaking, because filmmaking is a private and solitary experience,” Lange says of photography.

“It's like writing or painting; it's something you can do on your own.

“Acting is a codependent art form, it's not something an actor can control. And filmmaking definitely influences the decision to photograph something. I am attracted to situations that have a dramatic atmosphere, such as the presence of people and the way they stand.

#7.Brendan Fraser

Academy Award winner Brendan Fraser also has a passion for film photography and has held an exhibition of images taken while on location for movies. mummy.

according to tech radarFraser is set to appear on the set of a TV show scrub He is a big fan of lo-fi photography and carries around a Polaroid, a folding pack camera, and a Holga camera.Fraser gives a dedication in the book Instant camera collector's guide.

#8. Gary Oldman

Actor Gary Oldman – known for his work in batman, Leonand the Harry potter Film — I'm also a passionate photographer. Oldman primarily shoots black and white images behind the scenes in movies. But he also loves wet plate photography.

Oldman has had several photography exhibitions, including in Berlin, Germany in 2012 and at Flowers Gallery in East London in 2016. For the exhibition at Flowers Gallery, Oldman shot all portraits of artist George Blacklock using wide lux swing lenses. F6B.

#9. Cole Sprouse

riverdale Actor Cole Sprouse has an avid interest in photography. Sprouse took classes in this technique at New York University (NYU) and launched his own photography website in 2011.

Since then, he has shot for publications such as Vogue, W Magazine Primark and Rabane's fashion campaigns are no different.

“If I wasn't acting, I would be working full time,” Sprouse says of photography.

“The way we digest information today, a photo is a great way to get the audience to understand themselves in a little bit more depth than a 10-minute interview about the show they're on or something like that. I think it made sense to me.”

#Ten.julian lennon

Julian Lennon, the son of John Lennon and his first wife Cynthia, is a philanthropist, musician, and photographer. In fact, he considers photography to be his biggest passion in life.

“Photography is what makes me happiest, there's no doubt about it,” Lennon said. guardian In 2013.

Lennon has loved taking photos since he was a child, and says his father John bought him a Polaroid SX-70 when he was 10 years old. But Lennon says he started taking photography seriously after photographing his half-brother Sean Lennon on tour in 2007.

Since then, Lennon has held several exhibitions of his photographs. His first exhibition, Timeless, in 2010 included portraits of Bono and U2 in a recording studio, and of Princess Charlene of Monaco shortly before her coronation as Crown Princess.

#11. Aaron Eckhart

Aaron Eckhart is the actor who played Harvey Dent/Two-Face in the movie. dark Knight He is also a self-confessed “photo geek''.

“I'm obsessed with it, that's all I do. That's really all I think about,” Eckhart reportedly said. people About his love of photography.

“I'm really just a photography geek. I just love taking pictures.”

Eckhart became interested in photography when he shot a campaign for a jewelry line produced by his best friend, model Molly Sims. However, the actor prefers to shoot outdoors.

“Straight fashion photography in a studio. That's not necessarily what I want,” Eckhart says.

“I like filming on location outside and creating stories.”

#12. Lucy Liu

charlie's angels Star Lucy Liu is an actress as well as a photographer and visual artist.

She started making collages mixed media at the age of 16 and became a photographer and painter. Liew has held her gallery show almost every year since the early 1990s, and in 2019 she held her exhibition at the National Museum of Singapore.

In 2006, her exhibition “Antenna'' at Canada's Emotion Picture Gallery incorporated paint and drawing into photography.

#13. Nikki Sixx

Musician Nikki Sixx, best known as the co-founder of Mötley Crüe, is also a successful photographer.

Six is ​​a recovering addict and calls the camera his “new drug” of choice. He now carries his camera everywhere.

“My girlfriend sometimes tells me to put down the camera when she's in bed,” Sixx said. rolling stone In 2011.

“I have a guitar next to me and a camera next to me. I love it.”

Sixx's work focuses on his life on tour, homelessness, and drug addiction.she published a photo book This Is Gonna Hurt: Music, Photography, and Life Through the Distorted Lens of Nikki Sixx.

Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.