Posting pictures of King Charles coronation: meet the photographer

London The official photos were taken of Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla Monday’s ceremony was released by Britain’s royal family. The first photos, posted to the royal family’s official Twitter page, show the monarch, who was officially crowned on Saturday, seated in ceremonial robes with his monarch’s scepter in one and his orb in the other.

As the official photographer for the coronation, Hugo Bernand was commissioned to take portraits of the royal couple that will forever mark the beginning of Charles’ reign. But Bernand told CBS News the weight of that responsibility would be the last thing on his mind as he looked through his camera to weigh in on the royals.

In an interview ahead of Saturday’s coronation ceremony at London’s Old Westminster Abbey, Hugo told CBS News that one secret behind undertaking such a monumental task is the good old-fashioned personal relationships — such as his relationship with the king and queen.

Deep down, it’s about emotions and Gets The right emotion, I have to Owns “The right emotion,” Bernand told CBS News. “If you think too much, your mind gets distracted, and you can’t connect with the person.”

He stressed that simply focusing on the enormity of the task at hand “won’t work for me”.

“I remain true to myself and my relationship with him through the camera and I trust that has worked historically,” he said.

Bernand spent years photographing the elite of British high society, plying his craft at events and parties for Tatler magazine. His frequent rubbing of shoulders with his upper layers eventually led him to portray Camilla Parker Bowles – when her only headline was “Miss.”

His reputation as a royal photographer was cemented when he was asked to photograph the wedding of then-Prince Charles and Camilla in 2005. It was a career-defining job that he almost turned down, as he was in South America at the time with his family and all their passports stolen.

Bernand described bringing his mother, who is also a photographer, as the “first assistant” on the royal couple’s big day. He said that the circumstances surrounding the wedding session proved necessary to consolidate his relationship with the royal family.

“From that moment on, we have a relationship that is more than just a photographer,” he said.

So, when you asked me, “What is it like to look through a lens and see King Charles III?” “Obviously I notice what I look at,” Burnand said. “We’ve been together on this rather sweet relationship for so long that I see someone I know really well.”

Building trust with the royal family also afforded him the opportunity to photograph the wedding of Prince William and Kate, now Prince and Princess of Wales, in 2011. One of the photos he’s most proud of is of the newlyweds surrounded by their bridesmaids in playful and relaxed poses during a very formal event.

“The true personalities of everyone passed through at that moment,” Bernand said proudly. What you see in that picture is real life.

But as important as his personal relationship with his subjects was, another secret to his success as a royal photographer was Bernand’s careful planning.

Keen to never keep his A-list clients waiting, he practices every step of the photo shoot by having dress rehearsals on a stopwatch, going so far as to have the staff step in and play each of the royals. He said the goal is to prepare for all eventualities and keep the process running as smoothly as possible. He even brought spare parts for every piece of equipment that could fail.

“We even trained to put in the spare parts [light] He said, “Just to see how I would respond and how that would affect the timing of everything.”

Bernard said knowing when to take the photos he really wants is something he has to feel. He said he found that he snapped his fingers naturally when he felt he had obtained what he was looking for – and that was the moment when he looked forward to the day of the coronation.