Slipknot percussionist Shawn Crahan (a.k.a. Clown) isn’t just good at hitting things, he’s also got the mind of an artist and a keen eye for detail. In addition to expressing himself through videos, Crahan has taken thousands of creative photos over the years, and we’re proud that he’s chosen HeadbangersBlog.com as a platform to exhibit some of the shots in a weekly guest blog filled with candid commentary. Click “more” to see week four of “The Eye of a Clown.”
After all my years dedicated to Polaroid work, I finally got enough money saved to buy the best digital camera I could. And then I went out and got a 1:1 zoom macro lens that you mainly shoot jewelry with. But here, I used it to shoot the Metal Militia jumping over [turntablist] Sid [Wilson's] RV on the Mayhem tour, and there's clouds in the sky and he's 15 feet in the air and the photo is taken right above the ramps, and it just doesn't look like he's gonna make it. The sky, the clouds, him, the bike, they're all things that don't belong together at this moment. I assure you, he may or may not have landed. But this is the beauty of what I'm doing. It's about searching for and finding the heart of the subject.
Here's this guy up there doing these incredible things that we don't see because they happen so fast, and when he lands we go, "Wow. Yay." But when you can stop it like this and contort it and see this difficult pose and the bike away and the clouds, it puts a knot in your stomach and you're like, "Oh, my God."
The trick is the demanufacturing of thinking and deprogramming. I'm using something you would use on bugs to shoot people that are 15 feet in the air. It's like being in the studio and having people tell you, "You can't use that mike on a snare. It's rated for a guitar." I just go, "Cool, put it on the snare. Let's see what that potential is." And in that one I feel llke I got it because you really feel the sense of danger.
Check out part one of our in-depth podcast interview with Crahan. And come back Friday for part two.
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