Behind the Photo: Tony Nyberg’s portrait of Parris Goebel
Tony Nyberg is an Auckland-based photographer with 25 years’ experience in photography working with a wide range of subjects from people and architecture to food and lifestyle. Over the years he has worked for some of New Zealand’s most iconic magazines and news outlets. He’s also a keen cyclist and music lover.
Parris Goebel is a New Zealand dancer and choreographer who founded the Royal Family Dance Crew, which has won the World Hip Hop Dance Championship three times in a row. Parris shot to fame when she choregraphed Justin Bieber’s 2015 music video Sorry, which now has more than three billion views on YouTube.
Tony Nyberg remembers taking Parris’ portrait in Auckland’s Manukau for the New Zealand Listener, published just after the international star released her autobiography, Young Queen: The Story of a Girl Who Conquered the World.
Where was this picture shot?
It was an office in a unit in the industrial area of Manukau, Auckland. When I walked in, it looked like a 60s brown office room and that “New York” wall was behind me. I thought “we have to use that wall”; it’s got the cool international thing associated with it, and Parris has that international fame.
With Parris, I knew I had to take a contemporary image of someone who obviously wouldn’t suffer fools. So, [when I saw that background] I thought, “there it is”.
We also tried roller doors outside trying to get something happening, but we knew that was the one. Everything was just there; but it wasn’t just good luck as you still have to make something of it.
The thing with my job is you never really know what you’re going to turn up to. It’s amazing how often you walk into a room and quickly have to scan it and find somewhere to shoot.
Did she have ideas on how to set up the shot?
With her all-female dance crews and dance style that she calls Polyswagg, it’s all about empowering Polynesian women. We wanted that kind of strength, attitude and determination come through in the shot.