Today’s interview is with Michelle Kawka. Michelle Kawka is a New York based professional photographer. Her personal work has been exhibited at the Queens Museum of Art, City Hall of the 9th Arrondissement Paris France, the Queens Hospital Center, among other places. This multifaceted artist’s short film “Animal Farm” was screened at Sunnyside Shorts Film festival. Her most recent work, portraits for “This is Our Queens” was just named the best project of 2009 by the American Society of Media Photographers.

You can see more of her work at her website – www.michellekawka.com.

On to the interview:

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into photography?

MK:I got into photography when I studied in Italy in college. I found myself constantly taking pictures. The idea of sitting behind a desk and being an office for 40 years of my working life was not appealing, so I figured I would try and turn this hobby that inherently clicked with me into a career !

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: What are your primary photography interests? And why do these topics interest you?

MK:I love shooting people and places. They interest me because I find it a challenge to draw authentic emotions out of people and capture it through the camera. I love shooting places because I believe travel expands your world view and makes you a more aware person in your own community and how you relate to the world.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Can you talk about your experience photographing the 200 portraits for the thisisourqueens.com website?

MK:ThisisOurQueens.com is a project that highlighted the diversity of New York City’s borough of Queens. Queens County, New York is a borough of over 2.2 million people.It is the most ethnically diverse county in the world. Forty-six percent of the population is foreign born and over 138 languages are spoken throughout the borough. The website is the brainchild of Dave Kerpen, who created it as part of his campaign for borough president. He hired me to create a series of 200 individual portraits of people who live, work or are from the borough to highlight the borough’s incredible diversity. The most memorable part of the project was exploring the borough’s different neighborhoods and meeting a wide range of people from all over the world. I photographed Sikhs at a temple in Richmond Hill, was blessed by an evangelical Christian woman on the street in Jamaica, found a surfer at Rockaway Beach from Kansas who works in Ozone Park and took a portrait of a professor from CUNY Queens College who’s work involves the study of climate change in Antarctica. At the project’s completion, over 25 countries and 6 continents were represented by the people of Queens County, New York. All 200 portraits may be seen at http:www.thisisourqueens.com.

ThisIsOurQueens.com was named one of the best projects of 2009 by the American Society of Media Photographers and one of the photos was displayed the ASMP booth at Photo Plus Expo in New York this past October. The full interview about the award can be read here: http://asmp.org/articles/best-2009-kawka.html.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: As a woman photographer, can you talk about experiences & unique challenges you face when you are outside shooting?

MK: Photography can be an extremely physically demanding profession, lugging around heavy equipment and being on your feet for hours at a time. One of the challenges is the perception that women are not physically capable of a photography career. However, I also think people are less threatened by a woman photographer and are more able to trust her, and when shooting people, trust is the most important element to get a good picture.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Do you have any suggestions, opinions and/or words of advice for other women in photography?

MK: Don’t let anyone tell you that it’s not a profession for women.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: What is your current project? Can you talk about it?

MK: My current project is getting an exhibition space of all 200 portraits from the ThisIsOurQueens.com project. I am contacting galleries and museums who would like to feature the work.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Any recommendations? (like Photographers, Photo techniques, Music, Books, quotes, food..anything?)

MK: The more photos you take, the better a photographer you will be. Practice really does make perfect in this profession.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Can you mention how people interested in your work can contact you?

MK: They can email me at michelle@michellekawka.com.

Photograph by Michelle Kawka, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

Thanks Michelle!

[poll id="23"]

This week’s interview is with Varina Patel. This interview is first, in what I hope, is a series of interviews with women photographers who are into landscape, nature, travel photography. Varina Patel, graciously agreed to be my first interviewee for this series.

Some of Varina’s photographs which I love are these gorgeous landscape photographs. You can check out her website photographybyvarina.com for more of her work. Varina and her husband Jay, whom I have interviewed previously work as a team and teach workshops. I had the pleasure of attending their IHDR seminar in the bay area earlier this year. Here is a link to their upcoming workshops. They are really good, patient teachers and I learnt a whole from them. Varina provides very interesting insight and explains the technical aspects of photography very clearly.

Oct 20th Update: Here is another interview of this amazing photographer: http://www.photobards.com/interview/varina-patel-11.html

Anyways, on to the interview:

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into photography?

VP: I am 33 years old, and Photography has been a part of my life since I was very young. I took my first photography class in 7th grade, and by the time I reached high school I was sure I wanted to become a professional photographer. I majored in art when I started college, but I changed my major after a short time – photography seemed an unrealistic and impractical career choice. In the end, I graduated with a degree in Information Technology… which has been extremely useful now that photography has gone digital. I use the knowledge I gained in all those college classes to build my websites and handle the technical side of the photographic business.

I went pro in 2005 – shooting stock images for several agencies, and taking occasional jobs shooting hotel interiors for Marriott. I still shoot for stock regularly, but my focus is now on wilderness and landscape photography. I process all my images with Photoshop, which I’ve been using since 1994.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: How did you get into landscape photography, your primary interest? What keeps you interested?

VP:During my first two years in college, I spent hundreds of hours in the darkroom trying different techniques – and inhaling noxious fumes. I started shooting landscapes with my black and white film camera in 1994, but it wasn’t until I met Jay in 2005 that I began to shoot landscapes primarily. I attended one of his early workshops in Death Valley that year, and I’ve been shooting in the wilderness ever since. Jay and I were married in 2007, and we now teach workshops and seminars across the U.S. together.

Maintaining an interest in landscape photography is easy. I am very lucky to be able to shoot with Jay, whose passion for wilderness photography matches mine. We travel together as often as possible – usually about once a month. Furthermore, because I work freelance, I am not bound by the rules of anyone else’s game. I am in this simply because I choose it – and that goes a long way towards keeping it fun.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: What do you look for and what are trying to convey when you make your lovely landscape photographs?

VP:More than anything else, I am in pursuit of perfect light. As I stand behind my camera, it is my goal to capture each location in a completely unique light or from a different angle. I want to present the location to the viewer in a way that makes them long to break away from the moment and stand where I stood. Some of the locations I photograph are visited by hundreds of photographers each day – so it’s a real challenge to present something new and different each time. I research each location extensively so that I know where the sun is going to rise and set, and what the weather will be like. I watch humidity levels and cloud cover, and I pay close attention to storm fronts as they move through. I try to be prepared so that I am in the right place at the right time… and once I’m there, I look for an interesting foreground object, and plan my composition.

Because I can’t stay in a location as long as I’d like, I try to know as much as possible before I get there. I check tide charts, fall foliage and spring bloom dates, and topographical maps before I travel. I don’t choose a location and go shoot – instead, I choose the best conditions and position myself so that I have the best chance of capturing that perfect shot.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: As one of the few women in landscape photography, can you talk about your experiences & unique challenges you face?

VP: My biggest challenge as a woman is balancing my responsibilities as a mother with the demands of my job – a challenge that millions of women deal with every day. I am extremely fortunate to be able to stay at home with my children most of the time. I can process and print my photographs from my home office, and my children know that they are always my first priority. I am out of town for a few days each month, and I enjoy my time away – but I always look forward to coming home to my kids. Jay and I have six children between us – four are mine, and two are his. We spend all our free time with them – swimming, fishing, sledding, riding bikes, playing soccer, camping, hiking, and traveling. We are a very active family, and although I am completely exhausted at the end of every day, I truly love spending time with the children.

Another challenge for female landscape photographer is the physical aspect of the job. I am much smaller than most men, but I have to hike just as far and carry just as much heavy gear. I train year-round so that I can handle any trip. Each week, I run about twelve miles for cardio training, and spend a few hours in the gym doing strengthening exercises. It’s hard to fit this kind of training into my already busy schedule, but it’s essential if I’m going to carry heavy camera gear fifteen miles into the desert, or hike a trail at ten-thousand feet.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Do you have any suggestions, opinions and/or words of advice for other women in landscape photography?

VP: Women around the world grow up believing that they aren’t strong enough or smart enough. I don’t believe that. If we can get beyond the stereotypes we’re raised with, we can do anything. When you are doing something you love, motivation comes easily… and hard work pays off a thousand times over.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Are you working on any project right now? Can you talk more about it?

VP: Jay and I are currently working on several new ventures. First, we’re preparing a series of webinars (online classes or seminars) for those who are interested in learning more about our techniques, but can’t join us for on-location seminars or workshops. We’ve had many inquiries about online courses, and we’re pleased to be able to offer classes that will meet the demand.

Additionally, we are in the process of building an entirely new website that will provide a wealth of information for photographers and fans. The site will offer articles, free wallpaper downloads, and information on upcoming seminars, workshops, and webinars… and we have a few surprises planned as well. We are very excited about this newest project, and we can’t wait to get it up and running.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Any recommendations? (like Photographers, Photo techniques, Music, Books, quotes, food..anything?)

VP: Although I’ve read hundreds of books and thousands of articles in magazines – the internet has been my greatest resource by far. Websites like NaturePhotographer.net and OutbackPhoto.com offer fantastic articles for beginners and professionals alike. Sites like FredMiranda.com allow photographers to post their photos and exchange critiques with others. We all learn from each other on these sites, and even the most inexperienced can participate. I’ve been posting my photos online for years, and I am enormously grateful to all those who took the time to honestly critique my work… my photography is much better because I listened.

Photograph by Varina Patel, All Rights Reserved,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Can you mention how people interested in your work can contact you?

VP: Just drop me an email anytime – varinac@msn.com. You can find my website at www.photographybyvarina.com or by googling my name. You’ll find a wealth of information on my site – galleries, upcoming classes, articles, free downloads, news, travel data, and more. My blog provides regular updates (though it tends to be a bit thin in summer, when my children are home all day) – you can check it out at http://photographybyvarina.blogspot.com. I can also be found on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Thanks Varina!

Comments are welcome!

[poll id="22"]

This week’s interview is with John W. Wall. I first came across John’s first blog John Wall’s Natural California when looking for some photo locations around San Francisco. I kept coming back to read his really informative articles and look at his photos. Now, John has a book made out of his blog – you can buy it at John’s Blurb site.

John has moved on to start a new group blog – California Nature Photographers. He talks a bit about what and why of this new group blog in the interview.

Here is what John has to say:

Dunderberg Meadow, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into photography?

JWW: I’ve gotten into it at different times in my life and at various intensities, but my first photos were taken of Hawaii when at age 13 I was heartbroken to learn we would be moving away. One of my favorite shots, taken with a Kodak Instamatic, is of my mother dressed in a muumuu on the Big Island’s Black Sand Beach with palm trees framing one side and the beautiful blue ocean washing up around her feet on the other. My mother passed away a few years ago, and the beach was covered by lava quite a few years ago. I’m sure that treasured image would not still be a part of me had I not photographed it.

I got into photography again while I was in the Navy after high school, getting a lot of support from some of the guys in the photography division. I started out with a Canon AT-1, then graduated to an F-1, but switched to Nikon when the F3 came out. (I continued to use an F3 until I bought a D200 a couple years ago.) My favorite shots coming out of that time are from liberty ports in Italy and Israel, from shipboard life, and from walkabouts around my home port of Norfolk, Virginia — and only now, all these years later, do I wish I’d shot a whole lot more!

I’d heard about Brooks Institute of Photography while in the Navy, so that’s where I headed after serving my four-year hitch. I drove out here with a friend from the Navy and his new wife, and we were mesmerized by the beauty of Santa Barbara, and by the gorgeous Brooks campus. Although I was only able to afford a very brief stint there, I made a quantum leap in my approach to photography by working side by side with other talented photographers, gaining darkroom skills, and shooting with a view camera.

Hiking in the Santa Ynez mountains behind Santa Barbara resurrected an interest in nature’s particulars that I hadn’t felt since snorkeling over the reefs as a kid in Hawaii. Wildflowers caught my interest at first, and in order to learn more about them than just their names I took a botany class at the local city college. I fell in love with biology, but even though my studies started out well, I bogged down in the mathematics requirements and switched over to the journalism department.

I got to shoot a wide variety of subjects stringing for the local paper in Arcata, working for the school paper at Humboldt State, and then for a couple of small daily newspapers after graduating, but I was always a reporter first and photographer second. At one point, in response to a nice form letter response I got from National Geographic, I applied to a master’s program in photojournalism, and although I was accepted and was awed by the school, I decided not to go, mainly for financial reasons, but also because print journalism was already on its way out. The school’s entire crop of photojournalism graduates from the previous year was still unemployed.

Ironically, economic hard times have led to my most productive period in photography. I was able to cut back to a four-day workweek in 2004 and have done ten-times more shooting in the last few years than in the previous 20.

Snow Geese and Shasta, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: You photograph a lot of animals, birds, wildlife …. How did you get interested in this kind of photography?

JWW:My father bought me a subscription to National Geographic when I was born, and made it a lifetime subscription as soon as it was allowed (you couldn’t get one for a newborn!). Maybe that rubbed off on me. But like I said in response to your last question, my interest in nature bloomed while snorkeling at an underwater wildlife preserve on Oahu called Hanauma Bay. I was learning the names of all the fish and other sea creatures and experienced my first episode of “gear envy” over the Nikonos underwater camera when our family up and moved to Maryland. Santa Barbara revived my interest, but I did very little nature photography until moving to San Francisco and finding Mt. Tamalpais.

Staying in one place for a long time has been new to me, and diving in deep at Mt. Tam opened nature photography up in a whole new way. For a couple of years I hiked its trails at least once or twice a month with just two lenses — a 24mm and a 200mm micro — learning about and documenting its natural history.

Strawberry hedgehog Cactus, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: You used to write a blog – John Wall’s Natural California which I used to read regularly. What got you started on photoblogging? What has that experience taught you?

JWW:I like to document and share my explorations. There’s really no reason behind it. It’s just a kind of insanity I’m afflicted with. What the blog taught me is that I can’t do what I want to do — document and share explorations of the whole state of California in real-time throughout the year — without a whole lot of help! The jury’s still out on whether I can find enough other folks with a passion for this project to make it happen.

Ruby Crowned Kinglet, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: You have now started a new group blog called California Nature Photographers. What do you envision for this blog in the short and long term?

JWW: In the short term I hope to find a core group of nature photographers from different parts of the state to participate on a regular basis. Everybody likes to travel around the state, but we still have more ready access and know our home areas best. I’d like to see the blog become an artistic documentary project on the natural diversity of California to a degree that no single person could accomplish.

Dawn on the Sacramento River, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Photographically speaking, what are you goals? Do you have any projects / ideas you are working on currently?

JWW: I think about the question of my goal quite a bit. With such an expensive hobby, it’s only natural to ask yourself where all the money is going! Like any other passion it can also be a source of strain in your personal relationships. Right now I’d just like to see the blog take root, but I’m also interested in developing the creative side of my photography and bringing more depth to my nature documentary work. I’ve been getting back to my roots on Mt. Tam lately, building on what I started in 2002-2003. I’m also building a collection of my work on Flickr, arranged by months of the year, that will give me sort of a “full circle” perspective of my California work so far. Since self-publishing books has become so easy I’ve turned several photo projects into book projects, and I don’t see any end in sight for that.

Fallen Madrone Berry, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Any recommendations? (like Photographers, Photo techniques, Music, Books, quotes, food..anything?)

JWW: A few nature photography books that inspire me are “Life” by Frans Lanting, “ Yellowstone To Yukon” by Florian Shulz, “California” by David and Marc Muench, “Arctic National Wildlife Refuge” by Subhankar Banerjee, “Lagunitas Creek” by Todd Pickering, “Point Reyes Visions” by Goodwin and Blair, “The California Surf Project” by Soderquist and Burkard, and one that I just picked up for $2.99 in the remaindered stacks called “Between the Wingtips: The Secret Life of Birds” by Brutus Ostling.

I’ve also been inspired by good nature writing, including some of the old-school stuff like the “Audubon Book of True Nature Stories” and anything by John Muir, Joseph Wharton Lippincott, John K. Terres and Ernest Thompson Seton. For California background I like “The Ohlone Way” by Malcolm Margolin.

I always have my iPod cranked on the way to and from my destinations, but when I’m actually at a place where I’m ready to start doing photography I like to shut it all off and just listen to nature.

Big Bull in his Harem, Photograph by John W. Wall,
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Can you mention how people interested in your work can contact you?

JWW: Drop me an email: jwallphoto [at] yahoo.com.

Thanks John!

Comments are welcome!

[poll id="21"]

This week’s interview is with Younes Bounhar, a nature, travel and landscape photographer living in Canada. His amazing photos have won has won the PhotographyCorner.com award for the 2007 Photograph of the year contest. You should head out to his website to see some examples of of his exquisite photographs – and experience the places he photographs.

Here is the interview:

Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into photography?

YB: I was going to come up with some awesome story on how I knew in my heart of hearts that photography was my calling for as long as I can remember, but that would be quite far from the truth. In all honesty, I never thought I had a creative bone in my body until a couple of years ago. I am mostly a nerd, the scientist of the house (I have trained as a molecular biologist, but really I wanted to be a farmer). I did well in school, I read lots of books, no glasses but braces, for 3 long years. The Artist in the house is my younger sister, not me. In any case, I left Morocco at age 18 to come and study in Canada and decided that it would be my home (it has to be because of the weather). In 2006, after an endless number of years in University, I finally started getting paid enough to fulfill a longstanding dream of mine: visit Australia. Little did I know how that would change my life, literally. No, I didn’t fall on my head, nor did I receive the visit of some angel. I accidentally landed in one of Peter Lik’s galleries and I can still, to this day, remember the feeling of awe I had looking at these huge velvia prints of Yosemite and Antelope Canyon. Since I loved traveling, a voice in my head went something like this: “now, wouldn’t it be cool to travel to all these neat places and take photos?” It was as naïve as that. When went back home, I picked up my first dSLR, a couple of lenses and the rest is history…

Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: You are predominantly a landscape photographer. How did you choose this discipline in photography?

YB: While I would rather refer to myself as a landscape and travel photographer, it is true that landscape largely dominates my galleries at this point. I think it’s mainly for two reasons:

- I’ve always been close to Nature, living things, I used to love the BBC and National Geo shows aired on TV, and that, sort of stuck in the back of my head. So it was a natural inclination primarily;

- secondly, despite my friends’ assertions to the contrary, I am a fairly shy person and, conveniently, landscapes don’t move and don’t talk back. So as far as learning goes, I had the time and opportunity to hone my skills without having someone expecting to see their phenomenal portrait.

That said, I am really drawn to the creative aspect of photography rather than to a particular discipline. I draw as much pleasure from catching a sunrise over the Rockies as I do capturing the curves of a building or the smile of a child.

The Light Show V, Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: Looking at your galleries, water in various forms jumps out. Can you talk about why you photograph water in so many forms, the challenges and rewards?

YB: The answer here is likely to disappoint you…Canada just happens to have tons of that H2O thing, so you sort of find it everywhere you go. It’s really funny how I grew up in a place where we would go 10 years without a drop of rain to the greatest water reservoir on Earth. That might have something to do with it in retrospect.

Seriously though, water is such a dynamic elements, comes in so many forms (ice, mist, snow, rushing water, still lakes), that it’s an endless supply of opportunities. I mean, you can stand at the same spot in front of a river and take a hundred completely different shots that are equally appealing. I often feel like a child in a candy store when I sit across a stream. You can play with reflections, light bouncing off the water, texture of the water… Again, it’s just a great subject where you can just let your imagination run wild.

Another reason I am drawn to water, is that it is a great place to teach your cameras how to swim…I have a strong inclination for dropping my cameras in the river (2 out of 3 already, that’s a pretty good record), so I guess if there was no water, I wouldn’t have these stories to tell…

Cavell Alpenglow, Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: Can you give us some idea about the equipment and the photography techniques you like to use to achieve your vision? What are you working on currently?

YB: Let me start with a disclaimer: Equipment is just a set of tools to achieve your vision. Until they come out with the X7billion.5 with the “No crappy image” function, there is no substitute for vision and creativity. As I like to repeat often, it is the photographer, not the camera that presses the shutter…

That said, I am a Nikon shooter. I currently use the Nikon D700 and D200 cameras. As far as lenses go, I have the 14-24 2.8, 28-70 2.8, 50 1.8, 105 2.8 macro and 70-300 4-5.6 VR, they allow me to cover a large range of focal lengths and have excellent optical qualities. I tend to use most of my lenses and do a lot of lens swapping when I am shooting. I started out with a great affinity for dramatic wide-angle landscape shots, but have really grown fonder of the more intimate, abstract nature photographs.

What I enjoy the most in photography, is the creative side involved, which also explains why I have been exploring intimate abstracts a bit more. While I love (and always will) a dramatic sunrise or sunset scenes, I draw even more pleasure from finding hidden compositions in the least expected places. You simply have to open your mind and learn how to look at your world differently to start seeing beauty in your everyday life. Therefore, when I am out with my camera, I am always on the lookout for patterns, lines, shapes and colours and the interplay between them. As my photography matures, my mantra is to open my mind and look beyond the obvious.

Johnston Canyon, Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: How did you start giving photo workshops? What does it take in terms of resources and energy to do so? Do you have any words of wisdom for those who want to get started?

YB: I would rather skip this question, since I’ve just started giving workshops and I frankly have no wisdom to share

Slider, Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: Any recommendations? (like Photographers, Photo techniques, Music, Books, quotes, food..anything?)

YB: How about I list a few of my favorite things:

Photographers: There are so many whose work I absolutely adore, Art Wolfe is a great inspiration, not only as a photographer and pioneer, but he is also one of the nicest guys I know.

Music: I would be really in trouble if I landed on a deserted island and they asked me which ONE musician I could take with me. I am a huge fan of Bob Marley, Carlos Santana and Leo Ferre (a French singer).

Books: Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series is probably one my most memorable set of books.

Food: I love food, one of the three pillars of life in my humble opinions. I’ll admit it, I suffer from severe gluttony. I absolutely LOVE Indian food. Authentic Italian cuisine. Thai, Moroccan couscous is hard to beat, the French can be pretentious but they know a thing or two about cuisine…well you get the drift…

Quotes: I have a terrible memory for these kind of things, I can’t remember a line to save my life.

The Forest Behind the Tree, Photograph by Younes Bounhar, All Rights Reserved

SU: Can you mention how people interested in your work can contact you?

YB: To contact me is pretty simple:
You can email me directly at Younes [at] younesbounhar.com
Alternatively you can click on the “contact” link on my website (http://younesbounhar.com).

Thanks Younes!

Comments are welcome!

[poll id="20"]

Today’s interview is with Tamara Danoyan. I found her work when looking at photos at the Foto Nova 19: An Exhibition by Bay Area Photographers, at Modernbook Gallery in Palo Alto – http://www.modernbook.com/fotonova19/danoyan/images.htm. Apart from the Photo Nova exhibition, Tamara’s work has also been exhibited recently at Stanford Art Spaces, and at the recent “Frames of View” show at Foothill College.

You should definitely visit her website to check out the variety and beauty of her work – www.tomasview.com.

Here is the interview:

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into photography?

TD: I have always been attracted to photography, but did not think it was something I could do. I was too intimidated by the technical side of it. At the same time I felt a strong need for visual self-expression. After studying graphic design and some web design, it became clear to me that what attracted me in both were actual images. So, after a detour, which took a while, but proved to be very useful for my photography, I finally enrolled in b&w photography class at Foothill College in 2005. In 2006 I moved to Sydney, Australia, and took classes at the Australian Centre for Photography. One of my pictures can still be found on ACP’s website:
http://tmp.acp.org.au/gallery/index.php?obj_id=2006_03
In 2007 I returned to the Bay Area and continued studying photography at Foothill College. Classes motivate me to get out there and shoot, the teachers are excellent, and I like very much a feeling of being surrounded by people with the same passion.

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: You photograph a variety of subjects. Why do you choose what you choose to photograph?

TD: When I started taking pictures, I never thought of what I was focusing on or question myself what I wanted to photograph. I photographed anything that caught my attention and inspired me. Only later, when I accumulated a certain number of images I looked at them and realized that there were certain themes, subjects, colors. I still photograph whatever catches my eye, but sometimes I also consciously make a decision to create series of work inspired by the same subject. Then I go out there with a specific goal in mind, in search of very specific kinds of images. Funny enough, even in these cases, a project often takes on a life of its own and I gladly let it.

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Your photographs have a very graphic quality in them, whatever subject they may be. Can you talk more about this? Can you also give an insight into the technical part of your work.

TD: This was also something that I did not notice at first. I guess, this is just the way I see things. My favorite and most used lens is my 300mm telephoto lens. I like how it allows me to get close and how it compresses distances, making a 3 dimensional reality very flat and 2 dimensional.

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: You had a show of your work in Modern Book Gallery and having another one right now.. Can you give us some pointers on how to be successful as you are?

TD:Oh, thank you. If only I knew what makes a photographer successful…I feel I have just began a long process of figuring it out and hopefully achieving it. What I have learned so far, though, is that hard work is definitely one of the components. Success is nice, but it shouldn’t be the main motivation. Like many photographers, I take pictures, because I can’t help myself. If people love and buy my work – even better!

My show at Stanford Art Spaces is on display until May 14, 2009. More information can be found here:http://cis.stanford.edu/~marigros/
There is also Frames of View group show going on right now at KCI, Foothill College, one of my images is in it. The exhibition will be up until April 30, 2009.

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: How do you go about improving your photography?

TD: I don’t do anything special, I think it matures and refines itself with time and more shooting. I have started going to more and more photo exhibitions, looking on-line at other people’s work, looking at photography books. I need to do a lot more of it, but time, or rather, lack of it, is a huge issue right now.

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Any recommendations? (like Photographers, Photo techniques, Music, Books, quotes, food..anything?)

TD: I would pay attention to what inspires you in life, what gives you joy or makes you experience any other strong emotion, which you are willing to explore. It can be anything! Something you hear, touch, taste, do or want to see over and over again. We all have our little obsessions, which can be easily translated into photography.

Photograph by Tamara Danoyan, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Can you mention how people interested in your work can contact you?

TD: Sure, they can write to me at tamara@tomasview.com and visit my website tomasview.com for more information.

Thanks Tamara!

And readers, we would love to read your comments!

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This week’s interview is with Thomas Clavel. I first found Thomas’ work when going through his “Terre Mer Ciel” photographs of the “Foto Nova 19: An Exhibition by Bay Area Photographers” at Modernbook Gallery in Palo Alto. From there, I went on to Thomas’ website to spend a few hours browsing through his photographs – www.pictin.com.

Thomas’s “Terre Mer Ciel” photographs have been published in the 2008 Folio edition of Silvershotz Magazine. He also has a book called “Terre Mer Ciel: a Portrait of San Francisco“, presenting the Terre Mer Ciel photographs. This body has also been exhibited in 2008 at the Appel Gallery in Sacramento.

I urge you to look through Thomas’ website – www.pictin.com and look at his different projects, so different from each other, yet distinctive. You can also keep in touch through his Facebook blog follow him on Twitter.

Here is the interview and photos from his newest “Vapeurs” project.

Photograph by Thomas Clavel , All Rights Reserved, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Tell me a little about yourself. How did you get into photography?

TC: A little by accident, and a little by fate. At 12 I wanted to have a point-and-shoot camera but instead my uncle and aunt offered me a fully manual SLR – a Praktica MTL-5. I struggled a bit, but I eventually learned how to really take pictures as opposed to snap them. Had my wish of a point-and-shoot camera be realized I would probably not have gotten into photography.

As far as I can recall I have always been fascinated by the visual arts. Knowing the odds of making it as a movie director, I never engaged in that way beyond high school. I was eager to communicate in a visual way and photography gave me that opportunity. Through that medium I am able to convey my vision and share it with my audience.

Today I’m very thankful to my uncle and aunt for their gift. And I certainly appreciate how in many ways photography is superior to motion pictures.

Photograph by Thomas Clavel , All Rights Reserved, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Your photography cannot be easily classified into a particular type. Can you talk about how you choose your subjects for each of your series?

TC: Yes, you are right. Over the last 15 or 18 years my work has evolved quite a bit.

Early, I composed my photos around geometrical lines and perspectives. I was quickly drawn to water environments so some of my early work is focused on beach and water areas. I then built up my composition skills and moved on to urban and street sceneries. These were my formative years, the first ten years or so.

But I am convinced that mastering an art requires focus and so my next four series have been focusing on landscape photography – most of them in black and white. Landscape photography is a natural means for me to show how my view of the world is different.

How do I pick my subjects? A subject has to both have a personal connection and enable me to push my own photographic limits. When working on a new series I spend a tremendous time reviewing my own photographs. I am always very critical of my own work and my next subject will be the one that enables me to accomplish what I couldn’t with my previous series. Auto-critique is what makes me move from one subject to the next.

Photograph by Thomas Clavel , All Rights Reserved, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: In each of your series, the look and feel of the photographs are very different – from lomo type to ‘traditional’ black and white. How do you achieve these different looks and why?

TC: Many photographers and the best ones are constraining their art to a specific look and feel. It is part of their art and also part of their photographic brand. Moving from one look-and-feel to another is part of my learning experience. I don’t try to apply lomo or infrared to my photographs. Rather I come up with a vision and my vision shapes the techniques I utilize, to realize that vision.

Photograph by Thomas Clavel , All Rights Reserved, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Can you tell us about your current project “Vapeurs”? How did the idea come about? What is your goal for this series? What does it take to see a project like this from beginning to end?

TC:For a long time I have been intrigued by the fact that we cannot see either infrared or ultraviolet. Since we cannot see these colors, then the world around us is not really the way we see it. “Vapeurs” is about revealing this alternative world that we cannot see – with a focus on skyscapes because skies and clouds are the common denominator to what we all see every day. “Vapeurs” is about exploring what we’ve seen many times already and what most people probably don’t even pay attention to anymore.

It takes three things to take a project like this to the end. First clarity of my vision: understanding of what I am trying to show. Then flexibility: I don’t want to restrict myself to too many specific elements and I am open to experimentations. And third, patience.

Photograph by Thomas Clavel , All Rights Reserved, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: You have photos published in Silvershotz magazine, a book out. Your work has been seen in a few exhibitions. How did you get to where you are today?

TC: In France we say that cathedrals are built one stone as a time. Being published, being represented or exhibiting must happen one at a time.

I first focused on my work, exploring who I am photographically speaking. Once I had that photographic personality matured, I tried to understand my surroundings. I took on workshops about the photography business, started to attend openings, and discovered other people’s works. I learned from others. The third step was to be organized and take action. Don’t contact galleries by random, look at what they do, understand they expectations. And build things one on top of the other: try to be published then use your publications to be featured in galleries and shows, and in turn leverage those shows to be published in other magazines.

But most important of all, always understand that you can only reach one person at a time. Reaching more people depends on how much your contacts will support your work. So be nice and open to their feedback.

Photograph by Thomas Clavel , All Rights Reserved, All Rights Reserved
Photos hosted on Flickr

SU: Any recommendations? (like Photographers, Photo techniques, Music, Books, quotes, food..anything?)

TC: One suggestion and two recommendations.

Many fellow photographers ask me “how did you do this?”, and then start talking about focal and aperture. What they should ask instead is “why did you show that?”. What prevails is the vision of the photographer, not his or her technique. The technique is not the end but a means to the end. Confronting your vision with that of other photographers is very helpful in one’s maturation process.

My first recommendation is Silvershotz Magazine. I have been very disappointed with American magazines and then I discovered this magazine at Border’s. Silvershotz is a bi-monthly magazine from the UK and distributed globally. I recommend reading it, for the quality of the work presented there is very good and very inspirational.

My second recommendation is the “History of Photography” class by Jeff Curto, professor at the College of DuPage in Chicago. I listen to them on iTunes. They are free and most enlightening. Like Jeff, I believe that understanding where photography is coming from is essential to the creative process. I highly recommend listening to his podcasts.

SU: Can you mention how people interested in your work can contact you?

TC: Yes please, people contact me! You can inquire about my work by contacting the Modernbook Gallery at info@modernbook.com. You can also write directly to me at thomas@pictin.com. Until March 29 some of my Terre Mer Ciel series is exhibited at Modernbook Gallery in Palo Alto, California (www.modernbook.com). My web site is there for people to visit (www.pictin.com), you can also follow my blog on Facebook (artist page registered under Thomas Clavel) and follow my tweet on Twitter (VividLight). Whether you like my work or not, I am always curious to hear about it and why.

Thanks Thomas!

And readers, we would love to read your comments!

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