About Joseph Pobereskin . . .
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Anyone who has dealt with Joseph Pobereskin knows he minces few words. So, when he, like many photographers, tells you he hates being photographed, you can expect more explanation than the usual shy smile and raised shoulders.
"Perhaps it is because I understand
all too well how difficult it is to make a person look good, if that's
the objective . . . ," says Pobereskin
But it is more than that.
"It's because I understand that the relationship between the photographer
and the subject, in order to achieve a desired effect or tell a particular
story, involves a manipulation. And, though it is often said that 'the
camera never lies,' I know the camera never tells the truth."
Born in New York City, Pobereskin's interest in photography started at age 12. He later graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology (New York) and served several apprenticeships before striking out on his own as a location and environmental portrait shooter.
After 35 years of camera work, he counts among his clients such names as AT&T, Aetna US Healthcare, American Airlines, Motorola, Cessna, Columbia Pictures/Sony and United Parcel Service. He also has been published by editorial outlets including Forbes, Better Homes and Gardens, American Heritage, The New York Times and many others.
Active in both the New York and national photography communities, Pobereskin was a founder of StockArtistsAlliance, and is a director of the New Jersey Chapter of the American Society of Media Photographers.
Now based in Maplewood, NJ, Pobereskin licenses stock photography through the Mira photographers' cooperative, Getty Images and AGE fotostock.
As for his aversion to being photographed, he does not apologize.
"It is a matter of knowing that I, as a photographer, may have a markedly different agenda than my subject." he says.
"That said, I am forced to contemplate the morality of my photography. Yet I am not the least bit hesitant to do my work. Knowing this truth and knowing the value of 'image' necessarily makes me uncomfortable in front of the camera. I prefer to be behind it, stealing souls."
