From bodybuilders to Obama: How Martin Schoeller takes an ‘honest’ photograph

Editor’s Note: This video is a segment from the CNN Style show.

Martin Schoeller is one of the world’s most celebrated portrait photographers. He’s taken pictures of everyone from President Obama and Lady Gaga, to female bodybuilders and the homeless of Los Angeles.

But what truly distinguishes the German-born New Yorker’s practice is his his consistent style.

“It’s been 20 years that I’ve been taking these close-up portraits and everybody (has) the same lighting, the same setting, the same angle, the same camera. Nobody is retouched – what you see is what you get,” Schoeller explained to CNN Style show presenter Derek Blasberg.

Barack Obama —

Celebrated portrait photographer Martin Schoeller has shot everyone from bodybuilders to politicians.

"I had seen (Obama's) speech at the Democratic convention shortly before, and (photographing him) was just what you would expect," Schoeller said of shooting Barack Obama in 2004. He would photograph him twice more.

Donald Trump —

"I want an off guarded moment. I try to make them forget that they're being photographed, at least for a split second, to find this kind of moment of vulnerability."

Hillary Clinton —

"Politicians are kind of posing, but they only have one pose. They don't spend quite as much time in front of the mirror contemplating their facial expressions."

LeBron James —

"The easiest are athletes. They just run or jump or score, or kick a ball or hit a ball, so they don't spend any time studying their facial expressions."

Brad Pitt —

"Actors in general are difficult to shoot because they are always acting."

Philip Seymour Hoffman —

"You feel like 'Oh, this was an honest, great portrait' while you're photographing them... and then (I'm) looking at the contact sheets and I feel like, 'Oh my god, they were playing the whole time and I didn't even notice it.'"

Britney Spears —

"For a while I thought I could do fashion, which was a big misconception because I really don't care about clothes and I think as a fashion photographer you have to really love (it)."

Katy Perry —

"I do think all photographs lie. I don't think there is one picture that is really honest. You can't describe a person in a split second, but maybe in the grand scheme of photography, I think there are some pictures that are more honest than others, you know? So I'm trying to steer to the little bit more honest side of the spectrum," he said.

Prince —

Who would Schoeller most like to photograph?

"I would love to photograph the Pope. I don't go to church, but he's a very intriguing figure in our lives today."

Bill Clinton —

Originally from Munich, Germany, Schoeller studied photography at Lette-Verein in Berlin.

Cate Blanchett —

Schoeller has shot for the likes of National Geographic Magazine, Time and GQ, and was a staff photographer at The New Yorker for 13 years.

Sting —

He developed his signature style while working as an assistant for Annie Leibovitz in the '90s.

Robert De Niro —

"When I was starting out, you were so limited at these press junkets. You only get 10 minutes with a person in a hotel room," he said.

Angela Merkel —

"People would wear something that I don't like, they would be in a setting I don't like. So reducing it just to the face, I could always walk away with something that was a good portrait in my mind -- no matter where, no matter when, no matter of whom."

Zach Galifianakis —

Over the years, Schoeller has worked with some of pop cultures biggest names.

Meryl Streep —

"I'm told I have an hour with Meryl Streep," Schoeller said. "So basically, she shows up, she's wearing her shirt, almost wears no makeup and she combs her hair, then it's done."

Lady Gaga —

"Lady Gaga, I had three hours with Lady Gaga, she took two hours and 45 minutes to get ready, so I was left with 15 with her after."

George Clooney —

"I love working with George," Schoeller said. "He's charismatic, a very intelligent man, and, you know, walks to the beat of his own drum."

Jeff Koons —

"I put a crown of flowers on (Jeff Koons') head, which is a picture I love... He's more controlled because images are part of his job and how he presents himself. He's very careful about his public image, so it took a lot of time to talk him into my ideas."

Micah —

For one of his most recent projects, Schoeller photographed homeless people for the Greater West Hollywood Food Coalition as part of a fundraising effort.

Monica —

He interviewed each subject on his phone, and shared the images on Instagram.

Lenda Murray —

Schoeller's 2008 monograph focused on female bodybuilders.

"I was intrigued by the way they looked and by the question of why anyone would want to do this. I ended up photographing 66 of them."

Fannie Barrios —

"It's been 20 years that I've been taking these close up portraits and everybody in the same lighting, the same setting, the same angle, the same camera."

Cureton Carmell —

"Nobody is retouched... What you see is what you get."

Martin Schoeller's celebrity portraits

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By treating each portrait in the same way, regardless of the subject, Schoeller attempts to find some truth in what he feels can be a very dishonest medium.

“I do think all photographs lie. I don’t think there is one picture that is really honest. You can’t describe a person in a split second, but maybe in the grand scheme of photography, I think there are some pictures that are more honest than others, you know? So I’m trying to steer to the little bit more honest side of the spectrum,” he said.

Out of the thousands of people he has photographed, who does Schoeller find the most challenging to photograph?

“Actors in general are difficult to shoot because they are always acting. You feel like ‘Oh, this was an honest, great portrait’ while you’re photographing them… and then (I’m) looking at the contact sheets and I feel like, ‘Oh my god, they were playing the whole time and I didn’t even notice it.’”

Watch the video above to find out more about Martin Schoeller’s photography.