Alessandro Galatoli shares the secrets of shooting Hollywood film stars on the red carpet

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If anyone reckons that photographing A-list film stars at Cannes is a glamorous gig, then think again.

That was the theme of a panel discussion hosted by Capture One in London last month, where events and documentary photographer Alessandro Galatoli took to the stage to discuss a new short film the brand has made about him.

Galatoli shoots fashion shows and film galas as a freelancer, and sells his work to many leading picture agencies in both fields.

Based in Florence, Italy, he is also a lecturer in photography at Florence University of the Arts, The American University of Florence.

Using flagship Nikon Z cameras and lenses, Galatoli spends 18 days straight working at the Cannes Film Festival [Festival de Cannes] – one of the most prestigious events of its kind in the world.

Red carpet photos give us a fascinating glimpse of stars out of character… the leading cast members attend evening gala screenings of their films at the Grand Théatre Lumière, ascending the famous red steps in tuxedos or ball gowns and pausing momentarily to pose for the cameras (with varying degrees of enthusiasm, it must be said).

But glamor doesn’t extend to the photographers documenting the glitz… in the Capture One film we discover that Galatoli rents a small apartment a two-mile walk away from the red carpet shooting ‘pen’, and despite often finishing late around 1am he has to be back at work at 6am to start photographing other assignments.

The allusion to cattle isn’t an accident; the pack of photographers is allocated set places within a confined space from where they have limited time to attract a star’s attention and fire off a burst of frames.

A-listers seen in the film of Galatoli working the red carpet include Emma Stone, Eva Longoria, Jesse Plemons, Eva Green, Cate Blanchett – and many more.

Made by production house Evoku, a collaboration between film-maker Tom Coe and Capture One ambassador Paul Reiffer, the film is part of a series in which Capture One users tell the stories of their working lives, and why the software is a perfect fit for them and their workflow.

So if you want to discover how Galatoli manages to get his shots under extremely challenging conditions, then watch the film – which runs for three and a half minutes and is followed by a recording of the panel discussion at the screening.

And as you will see in the discussion – a must-watch, we say – moderated by fashion and beauty photographer Tina Eisen, Galatoli also had some interesting things to say about how he works.

Researching who he is photographing is a key part of his modus operandi, but this is not surprising; Galatoli is a self-confessed cinephile and loves watching chat shows featuring the actors he goes on to photograph.

And his workflow is noteworthy, too. Shooting 3,000-4,000 photos a night, he has to use post-production tools that allow him to work super-fast and super-efficiently.

Picture agencies need to receive red carpet photos very quickly, which are then circulated to leading media outlets around the world.

Galatoli uses Capture One – widely regarded as one of the best photo editing software programs on the market – which he says is ideal for the way he works.

He trusts the advanced technology in his camera to do the heavy lifting on exposure and keeping his captures sharp, leaving him to concentrate on his compositions.

Post-production is kept to a few vital steps, including adjusting exposure, contrast, clarity, sharpness and saturation before converting the images to black and white.

A picture of a Hollywood star has to stand out from all the others taken at the same time in the same location, so Galatoli opts to send mono images to his agency customers.

Explaining this creative choice, he notes that the human brain can fill in color information using its imagination; a black and white image therefore allows the subject of the photograph to stand out, and there’s no ambiguity.

Of many excellent photography tips Galatoli shared during the panel discussion at the screening, one stood out: if you include something in the frame, you have to explain why it’s there… so make your photos more effective by leaving out extraneous items.

Make sure you give ‘Capture One presents Alessandro Galatoli and Paul Reiffer at Cannes’ and the panel discussion recording a watch – the film is a fascinating insight into photographing fast-paced events under pressure, and there are so many insights for photographers to glean from it, no matter which genres they like to shoot.