September 2017 - The Image Journey

Published September 18, 2017 by avardw

8 Questions for photographer Victoria Campa

Photographer Victoria Campa loves to photograph people, especially the people she is closest to. She says, “My primary concern, even beyond just photography, is people and their stories. There is nothing more valuable than human connection, and I am fascinated by what occurs when someone is in front of my camera.” Her portraits are youthful and vibrant. Be sure to check out her work on her website and Instagram.

I asked her eight questions about her work and her current projects. Our online conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from, and where do you live now?

I was born in New York but my family moved to Spain when I turned 4, so I spent most of my life in Madrid. When I turned 18, I moved back to New York City for university, and I just graduated in May 2017. Right now, I am traveling throughout India and southeast Asia, so I am living in between hostels and trains.

What projects are you working on these days?

I collaborate very often with my brother and sister, and we made many photos together this summer that I am still putting together. Another project that is very important to me is a collaboration with photographer and my dear friend Victoria Zavala Carvajal where we create double exposures by combining our two perspectives in one frame. It is called Layers of Synergy. And now that I am traveling for a while, I am photographing a lot, so we will see what shall come of that.

You shoot mostly in black and white. What attracts you to monochrome?

The truth is that it goes by phases, and this summer I made a lot of color photographs as well as in black and white. I am attracted to monochrome because sometimes I think that color distracts from a photograph and what it is trying to say. By adding a whole other dimension, it complicates the image in a way that makes a viewer dismiss it more quickly. To me, black and white feels more intimate and more revealing, especially since I mainly photograph people.

You do lots of interesting and lively portraits—young people in their environments. Is portraiture something you specialize in?

Yes. My primary concern, even beyond just photography, is people and their stories. There is nothing more valuable than human connection, and I am fascinated by what occurs when someone is in front of my camera. My favorite thing to do is photograph those closest to me, as if by making something beautiful with and of them I can properly communicate what they mean to me.

You graduated from Barnard College, in New York City, earlier this year. Has your approach changed now that you are out of school?

My photography has changed significantly from the beginning of my studies (four years ago) to now. Probably simply from spending many hours with my camera, I think I have found the subjects I am interested and I have begun to develop a voice of my own. I am sure my work will continue to grow and change over time.

What’s your state of mind when you’re taking good photos? Do you think there’s any connection between your mood or mindset and the results you get?

I definitely think there is a connection, and I think the connection is even deeper when it also involves the subject of my photos. It is important to feel comfortable and for there to be total trust between me and my subject. At the same time, my mindset varies. Sometimes I know exactly what I want before looking through the viewfinder, and other times I am surprised by the resulting frame. At this point, my “camera mind” is always on, and I don’t think I will be able to turn it off anytime soon. I see photos all around me all the time.

Who or what inspires you?

In my experience, inspiration can come from anywhere. Whether it’s from the way the light falls on a rock on an afternoon walk, or a conversation with a friend, or even a specific feeling or memory stored deep inside of you that you can’t even recall. I am constantly looking at the work of others, both photographers and other visual artists. I also like to read a lot, and I am very influenced by film. However, I am most inspired by real people and the real happenings that surround me.

One final question: Can you tell me briefly about a couple of photographers I may not be familiar with yet but you would recommend checking out?

Some of the photographers I look to often for inspiration are Quentin de Briey and Hollie Fernando. Lately I have been very into street photography in New York and have fallen in love with the work of Andre Wagner.

Many thanks to Victoria for doing this interview. I’m so appreciative of her thoughtful answers that provide insight into her work. Be sure to check out her work on her website and Instagram.

Interview Photography

8 questions interview Madrid New York photographer Victoria Campa

Published September 11, 2017 by avardw

8 Questions for photographer Nick Prideaux

Nick Prideaux shoots beautiful photos, on film, that form a visual diary of his life. His photography is about subtraction, which he approaches with a simple and minimalistic process – focusing on the smaller details, the beauty in the little things. Be sure to check out more of his work on his website and Instagram.

I asked him eight questions about his work and current projects. Our online conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from, and where do you live now?

My name is Nick Prideaux and I am originally from Byron Bay, Australia, a small coastal town on the east coast. I studied film production in Melbourne, spent some time in China, then moved to Japan, where I lived for 5 years as a freelance photographer and teacher. Currently, I am based in Bangkok, Thailand, where I’ve lived for the past year and a half.

What projects are you working on these days?

I wrapped up my first major solo exhibition in May this year, so since then I’ve spent the last few months putting together my next body of work. I’m always shooting so it’s never quite clear instantly what the project will be, but somewhere along the line, I find the thread that ties it all together. I’m also putting together a group project with some friends in December, and a new solo show in February in Malaysia.

You seem to prefer film over digital. Can you tell us why?

I spent my time in high school shooting film on and off but switched to digital for its convenience and ease of use. I soon found though I could never find my ‘style’ with it as the images I produced were kind of flat and uninteresting; I was never really happy with them. I switched back to film about four years ago and never really looked back. I love film for a variety of reasons but I love its color, its feeling, and the romance attached to it. I like the timely process too; waiting to see the images later is another huge reason why I love it – I don’t like to have that instant gratification that digital offers. I try to practice mindfulness as much as I can, and shooting with film offers that.

The approach you take is simple and minimalistic – “focusing on the smaller details, the beauty in the little things.” How did you arrive at this way of seeing?

I think it’s just a process of subtraction rather than addition. I try to love my life as simply as I can so I think my photography is, of course, just an extension of the way I see my life and see the world. I generally approach most things with a ‘less is more’ way of thinking. Even the cameras I use function in this way, as I shoot on mostly simple point and shoots.

You shoot stories from your life that form a visual diary. Is time and memory important to you?

Definitely. I think it’s an age thing, along with living abroad for so long – you start to forget things more and more when you aren’t documenting them in some way. The camera for me acts as a kind of conduit for memory.

Do you use a flash for most of your photos? What do you like about it?

I use the flash quite often, although try my best not to over use it. I guess my style has a particular color palette to it, and the flash can often help those results ‘sing’ a little more than without. I’m drawn to particular colors and subjects; often the flash can help heighten a particular mood or feeling to it.

What’s your state of mind when you’re taking good photos? Do you think there’s any connection between your mood or mindset and the results you get?

I think there is a type of flow that comes with taking good photos, something akin to a zone, or the runner’s high – it just comes in a beautiful free flowing continuous moment. It’s rare though, and it’s always fleeting. Most of the time though I think it’s best you just have to find that feeling in the process. There is definitely a connection between your mood and mindset and the end results. I look back at my photos even a year or so ago and they have a different feeling to them. I’m in a really good place now emotionally now, better than I was a year or so ago, so I think my work is reflecting that.

One final question: Can you tell me briefly about a couple of photographers I may not be familiar with yet but you would recommend checking out?

There are so many! But first and foremost is a friend of mine who goes by Yatender – she’s an incredible photographer and I admire her work greatly. Also, Rosie Matheson is a wonderful portrait photographer from the U.K who I love. Daniel Arnold is documenting life in the U.S now with his street photography; I think he is an absolute master. Lina Scheynius‘ work breaks my heart in the most beautiful way.

Many thanks to Nick for doing this interview. I’m so appreciative of his thoughtful answers that provide insight into his work. Be sure to check out more of his work on his website, and Instagram.

Film Photography Interview Photography

8 questions Australia interview Nick Prideaux photographer

Published September 4, 2017 by avardw

8 Questions for Paris photographer Eric Frot

Eric Frot is a photographer and graphic designer who has been taking photos in the Paris area for over 30 years. Though he is known for his black and white work, his colour photos are vibrant and thought provoking. He doesn’t differentiate between shooting on the street and shooting in the forest; it’s all about expressing his ideas. In his words, “I do not want to show the reality. I want to show the reality that inspires to me. There is no truth in my photos, only my falsehood.” His photos are now on display at Médiathèque Jacques Duhamel in Le Plessis-Trévise, France. For a more in-depth view of his work, check out his website, Flickr, and Instagram.

I asked him eight questions about his work and current projects. Our online conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from, and where do you live now?

I’m almost 53 years old. I love music. I love light. I love darkness. I love shadows and silence. I love wind and thunder. I love my independence and do what is needed to be to live as free as possible, what doesn’t mean anything, but it motivated almost all the choices I made in my life. I was born in a small town, 100 kilometres from Paris, France. I moved to Paris when I was 20 to study photography and lived in the city for 30 years. At the end of 2014, I moved back to the countryside to a very small village between woods and fields where I live among horses, rabbits, and roe deer.

You’ve said you tend to shoot mostly in black and white but are also drawn to colour photography. (You have a fantastic sense for colour!) Has your feeling about those two ways of shooting changed in recent years?

Thanks for these kind words. That’s an interesting question. A few years ago someone told me I was a black and white photographer. This statement surprised me, as I have used colour as much as black and white since the early ’90s. But maybe my black and white work has more impact on viewers.

In the ’80s, I used to shoot a lot in black and white for all my personal work because it was cheaper, and black and white was very common in the newspapers and magazines. But I’ve never asked myself if I preferred black and white, or colour. It depends on my mood, on what I want to express. Some photos need color, other need black and white, so I always carry two cameras.

You do a lot of street photography and you live in Paris, which has such an incredibly rich tradition of that. Do you find there are resources there—I’m thinking of galleries, exhibitions, colleagues—that inspire you? (And, if so, do you have any advice for those of us who don’t have such access?)

I haven’t done much photography in Paris since I left. But it’s an incredible city for photography, culture, and inspiration. I have a pass for the Maison Européenne de la Photographie where I love to go a lot. I saw a great exhibition there about Japanese photography recently. The Ed Van Der Elsken exhibition in the Musée du Jeu de Paume in Paris was really awesome. I also like the Polka Galerie which is much smaller but where the works exhibited are always inspiring.

Painters are a great inspiration to me. I really admire the great painters’ work. Brueghel (both the Elder and the Younger) would have been great street photographers if they had had a camera, as would other famous painters such as Le Tintoret. I love abstraction and I tend to experiment with some form of it in my flash photography.

The internet is also a fantastic tool to discover and learn. There are a lot of websites (museums, galleries, press agencies or newspapers, Tumblr, Facebook, Flickr, Instagram, etc.). But it’s very time consuming and I prefer to look at books at home or in libraries and bookstores.

I usually prefer shooting on my own but sometimes I go with friends whose work I love. Isa Gelb, for example, who is the curator and designer of Underdogs, a stunning magazine in which she gives us the opportunity to discover the work of photographers she enjoys, and Laurent Bichaud, with whom I studied photography at school. He is an awesome photographer. I invite you to check his work about the Velvet Revolution in Prague in 1989, or his series about Paris 911, among many others.

Can you describe any interesting experiences you’ve had in doing street photography?

I never thought of me being a street photographer. I think I shot in the street because it was my immediate surroundings. I don’t differentiate between shooting in the streets or shooting trees in the woods. My state of mind is the same shooting candid or staged photographs. First you need an idea, second you have to make the photo– framing, and exposing correctly to get the result you want with your idea. I do not want to show the reality. I want to show the reality that inspires me. There is no truth in my photos, only my falsehood.

How do creativity and self-expression in your photography relate to creativity in your graphic design projects? Are those processes quite similar for you, or pretty different?

Well, photography, painting, or graphic design is all about making a picture. Different tools, different techniques but same skills. I guess graphic design helped me to develop my sense of colour.

When I work, or when I shoot, I try to empty my mind; this is not so difficult because it’s not really full in general. But it seems to me it’s the best way to allow ideas to come to life. If I think too much or I’m worried about something I can’t get out of my mind, I won’t be able to work efficiently.

Are you exploring any particular themes in your photos this summer?

Summer is ending and I finally didn’t shoot a lot. Summer is the time of the year I do work a lot. I still have an ongoing series about my dreams and my nightmares, but it hasn’t progressed very quickly. I used this summer to put some distance from photography, and clear my mind. I admit that I had an overdose of images, between my job and the internet.

Is there a certain time of day/week/year you find you’re most likely to get photos you’re happy with?

I don’t think so. Light is one of the points in the result in a photograph, but it’s up to the photographer to deal with it. Creativity is needed, specially when the conditions are not favourable. And I love to fire a flash in the dark night.

One final question: Can you tell me briefly about a couple of photographers I may not be familiar with yet but you would recommend checking out?

I previously talked about Isa Gelb and Laurent Bichaud. [Editor’s note: Isa Gelb has been profiled on the site this summer; be sure to check out her interview.] I really love the delicacy of Sylvain Biard’s photos. His series D’ailleurs demain, Badlands, and Shima are awesome; also, the beautiful series Leaving Scars by Patrick Sagnes. I very recently discovered the work of Andrea Buzzichelli. His work Inhabitants is really worth checking out. These are a few among many awesome photographers who deserve attention.

Many thanks to Eric for doing this interview. I’m so appreciative of his thoughtful answers that provide insight into his work. Be sure to check out more of his work on his website, Flickr, and Instagram.

Interview Photography

8 questions Eric Frot interview Paris photographer