The media frenzy surrounding Brooklyn Beckham has prompted a slew of articles and social media feedback selecting aside the Beckhams’ firstborn and his varied profession paths. But what? I’ve all the time thought it was an amazing disgrace that Brooklyn didn’t sustain together with his pictures. Then, once more, perhaps he has privately, and if that’s the case, all the ability to him!
If you may forged your thoughts again to the very completely different world that was 2017, Penguin Books launched Brooklyn’s picture e book debut: What I see, alongside accompanying exhibitions in London and Los Angeles. But what ought to have been a then-career-highlight evoked the ire of many a social-media loudmouth and critic.
And whereas I can at the very least perceive the nepotism angle, I hated the very private ridicule of Brooklyn’s pictures. After all, the world was lambasting the work of a young person. For starters, I do know what my pictures regarded like at 16, and it was utter s***. When I look via the pages of What I See, I’m not anticipating it to be Genesis, however it’s the formative work of a really younger and enthusiastic photographer.
Let’s face it. Very few folks take pictures critically these days, as a result of everybody’s received a camera phone that’ll do the business with little to no effort. Of course, the layperson ridiculed the now infamous elephant photo, which Brooklyn dubbed “so hard to photograph”, because a smartphone’s computational photography makes shooting backlit subjects a cinch. If you’re a photographer using a manual camera, you’ll know that – in actual fact – photographing an elephant backlit against Kenya’s harsh midday sun really would be a bit of a challenge.
A lot of Brooklyn’s photos were shot on film, too. So, to all the digital-only photographers who have forgotten what it’s like to shoot on film (or perhaps never shot film), it’s a different ballgame. Perfectly focused and exposed images are much harder to come by, especially if you’re not a seasoned analog enthusiast or pro.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that the images in What I see are all incredible works of art. But I deny anyone who doesn’t see some potential. A small passage from the Daily Mail caught my consideration: “Brooklyn told the Daily Telegraph magazine that he struggled to get the collection of photographs past his parents. ‘It was hard to get them approved,’ he said.”
It could be a disgrace if Brooklyn misplaced a few of his inventive autonomy when compiling photographs for his e book. After all, what a topic deems appropriate for publication and what a photographer deems appropriate are sometimes two very various things. Many topics would approve a picture primarily based on their perceived look and never the standard of the general {photograph}. How may they not? And whereas I’m loath to level the finger at anybody particularly, it’s price noting that Brooklyn’s well-known household isn’t any stranger to the celeb/trend aspect of pictures. Still, it seems that Brooklyn’s pursuits err on the aspect of documentary pictures – two very completely different worlds.
Part of being a very good, assured photographer is usually about capturing the photographs that convey what you’re attempting to precise, not capturing the photographs that you simply suppose your topic(s) need to see. But this comes with expertise. In that very same article, Brooklyn revealed: “If my mom sees me taking a picture, she kind of poses and stuff, and I don’t really like that.” Now, {photograph} nearly anyone on this planet, they usually’ll pose in the event that they see your digital camera, however the truth that Brooklyn, a young person, may determine the benefit of a candid {photograph} definitely reveals good instincts.
I additionally suppose that in 2026 What I See appears much more related than it did in 2017. There’s even an argument that Brooklyn’s picture compilation was a bit forward of its time, given the lo-fi pictures increase in recent times, with a renewed curiosity in movie and the rise and rise of Fujifilm’s retro cameras and Film Simulations. Indeed, if it were released tomorrow, I think the reception would be a little kinder.
But there’s a more sinister element to What I See that likely wouldn’t escape critique in 2026: the subject of nepotism. There’s little doubt that the family name aided the book’s release, specifically under the banner of Penguin Books and the aforementioned exhibitions in London and LA. And it’s here where I question the rationale of placing so much pressure on the shoulders of such a young and inexperienced photographer. Instead of being allowed to refine his photography skills in relative quiet, Brooklyn found himself stretching his photography wings in front of the entire world. That’s a huge amount of pressure.
What I See wasn’t the first time that Brooklyn’s photography was placed under the limelight. The year prior, he was invited to capture a Burberry fashion shoot, which caused arguably even more of an uproar and is admittedly difficult to defend. But again, Brooklyn was only 17; how could he be expected to foresee the backlash?
Let me put this into footballing terms. You don’t shove your 16-year-old wonderkid onto a pitch against Real Madrid, in a Champions League qualifier, when you’re down to ten men. You loan them out to a lower-league team to gain vital first-team experience in a more favorable environment so you don’t crush their confidence.
Ultimately, the one person who I don’t think was responsible for What I See’s reception was Brooklyn. And if you ask me, I think it’s a shame the industry lost a celebrity who could have really championed photography and directed more youngsters towards this great hobby, industry, and profession. Then again, if you’ve picked up a camera – even once – with the intention of creating art, you can always consider yourself a photographer in my book. I hope we see more of Brooklyn’s photos in the future.
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I always hated the backlash to Brooklyn Beckham’s photography book anyway, but if you’re looking for more photography books, check out this Vivian Maier: Street Photographer review and this Joel Meyerowitz: How I Make Photographs review.