Henri Prestes: Perfect Darkness

Henri Prestes: Perfect Darkness by Aline SmithsonDecember 24, 2018

©Henri Prestes, from Perfect Darkness

As the holiday season in Los Angeles is more about palm trees and sunshine rather than snow and sleigh bells, I yearn to be transported to places of weather, filled with mood and mystery and a chill in the air. And at the end of a year filled with tragedy and sorrow in the world, today and tomorrow I am featuring photographs are steeped in beauty and a tonic to the soul. The work today is by Henri Prestes and it is the perfect antidote or companion for holiday melancholy depending on your mood. The photographs come from two series, Perfect Darkness and Landscapes, each with a sublime capture of night and fog and landscape that reflect the cinematic and pictorial.

Henri is a Portuguese cinematographer and photographer based in Southern Europe.

©Henri Prestes, from Perfect Darkness

My photography work is mostly about exploring the cinematic and narrative possibilities of a single still frame, while also using weather conditions as a way to affect the emotional state of a photograph.

This series was shot around secluded forests and isolated villages in Portugal, but I don’t want it to represent any specific time or place, like it could happen anywhere in the world, hopefully adding to the eeriness of each moment depicted in the photos, trying to explore moments of melancholy in these desolate environments. – Henri Prestes