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Cindy Sherman

 

Cindy Sherman is renowned not for her equipment, but for how she uses it to create deeply conceptual, transformative self-portraits. That said, over the decades, her camera gear has evolved with technology and her artistic needs.

Here’s what’s known about Cindy Sherman’s gear:

Early Career (1970s-80s)

  • 35mm film cameras, such as the Nikon FM/FE series and similar SLRs.

Nikon FM

  • Lenses: Standard prime lenses (50mm) and sometimes wider lenses depending on the series.

Later Career (1990s-2000s)

  • Medium format cameras, including Mamiya RZ67 for large prints and higher image quality.

Mamiya RZ67

  • Occasionally large-format cameras for very high-resolution work.

Digital Era (2000s–present)

  • Sherman transitioned to digital photography in the early 2000s.

  • She has been known to use Canon digital SLRs (e.g. Canon EOS 5D series).

Canon Eos 5D

  • In some interviews and exhibition notes, she mentions the flexibility digital photography gives her for post-production.

Other tools she regularly uses

  • Extensive studio lighting, often continuous lights or strobes, depending on the setup.

  • Tripod for self-portraits (almost always used).

  • Remote triggers for self-portrait shooting.

  • Post-processing software: Adobe Photoshop plays a huge role in her recent work, as she manipulates and composites images.

Key point: Sherman is far more focused on concept, makeup, costuming, and staging than on using exotic or expensive camera gear. The camera is simply a tool for her larger vision of character construction and identity exploration.

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