Useful Photography 14 by Erik Kessels

‘Useful Photography’ features overlooked and underwhelming images taken for practical purposes. This issue presents the meticulous work of the “script continuity supervisor” on a film set, where details about every shot have to be recorded: camera angles, dialogue, sound, lighting, weather, gestures, and makeup and wardrobe. A battle scene, for instance, may take days to shoot, so the costumes of the actors and extras and their wounds are photographed to ensure they can be accurately recreated the following day. Hence the pictures featured here, allowing a bloody glimpse into this less glamorous side of a Hollywood production, without good lighting or flattering post-production.