Φωτογράφος Ed Mash

—Πρώτον και κύριον – ποιόν μπορείτε να ονομάσετε ως τον καλύτερο φωτογράφο στην πόλη σας; :)

—That's such a personal choice for clients. Here in Exeter there are different styles to choose, and different personalities. Clients should pick someone they're comfortable with on the BIG day

—Έχετε φωτογένεια;

—Photographers don't appear in many pictures do they....i find it hard to judge an image of myself! I keep getting invited back to parties so I cant be that bad :)

—Πώς ξεκίνησες να ασχολείσαι με τη φωτογραφία;

—Initially I only photographed weddings of close friends, and people I knew, but by personal recommendation the demand has grown....so I made the leap!

—Ποια είναι τα πιο σημαντικά στοιχεία μιας καλής φωτογραφίας κατά τη γνώμη σας;

—I think a great photograph has resonance, and shares something with the viewer. Personally if it makes me say 'WOW' or smile, or conveys an idea then it's attractive.

—Σας αρέσει να ταξιδεύετε;

—YES. I've travelled a great deal.....every continent except Antarctica....and I still have a thirst for those unusual out of the way places.

—Τι σας αρέσει περισσότερο στο επάγγελμά σας;

—I love seeing the world through a lens, it brings me close to people, and the important events in their lives. It's a real privilege

—Τι σας αρέσει λιγότερο στο επάγγελμά σας;

—Missing a special moment.....you can see the image in your mind, and you know you haven't got it...its very disappointing.

—Ποιο θα είναι το μέλλον της φωτογραφίας;

—Technology is changing cameras, in the future the processing power of the computer will be more integrated into the camera body, with better colour processing, and skin tone rendition.

—Τι το ιδιαίτερο υπάρχει στο φωτογραφικό είδος στο οποίο εξειδικεύεσαι;

—I love wedding photography, everyone is dressed up, smiling, and determined to have a great time. The atmosphere is exciting and clients are always happy to engage with the camera.

—Πώς αντιμετωπίζετε την κριτική;

—....I haven't received any so far from clients, but I did have a co worker who was brutally critical of everything I did. Its important to listen, be objective, and use it as a learning process.

—Υπάρχουν τάσεις στη φωτογραφία;

—I think there is a tendency to use deep apertures, and sharpness as its an inherent part of the digital world. However I always appreciate a photographer who can skilfully handle a shallow aperture to tell the viewer exactly where to look (Sorry that was a technical answer!)

—Με ποια κριτήρια θα πρέπει ένας πελάτης να επιλέγει φωτογράφο;

—Choose a style of photography that speaks to you personally and best encapsulates your values. Also go for the best budget you can afford...a good photographer will make memories you'll look back on for the rest of your life.

—Ποια πράγματα δεν επιτρέπονται σε καμία περίπτωση κατά τη φωτογράφηση;

—Never force a situation...never make people feel uncomfortable, dress for the wedding and blend into the guests to capture those discreet moments.

—Ποιες λεπτομέρειες που συνήθως περνούν απαρατήρητες μπορεί να παρατηρήσει ένας φωτογράφος;

—I think unnoticed details is a fault in a wedding photographer, great photographers are masters of seeing, rather than just looking.

—Τι επηρεάζει την αξία της φωτογραφίας; Ποια στοιχεία;

—A valuable photo is very much of its time. It's not a wedding photo but Frank Cappas photo "falling Soldier" taken during the Spanish civil war stopped me in my tracks. It's a painful subject but it has always fascinated and haunted me at the same time, you think of the victim, the photographer standing in a war with a camera, and the soldier who fired the bullet.

—Ποιο πρόσωπο αποτελεί το σύμβολο του 21ου αιώνα κατά τη γνώμη σας;

—There are so many.....Ghandi probably made the most significant difference to the largest amount of people, so numerically he's top of the list.

—Ποιον θέλετε να φωτογραφήσετε;

—No one springs to mind, but I'm confident I could draw out the best in anyone......so long as they wanted to work with me!

—Έχετε επαγγελματικά ταμπού;

—I don't believe you should step to far from reality in post production. IMHO over processed photo's don't stand the test of time.

—Με ποιους σας αρέσει να τραβάτε φωτογραφίες;

—Working in a team, or with a partner can be immensely rewarding, I'm always happy working with talented people with ideas and enthusiasm.

—Τι σας ανησυχεί και γιατί;

—Its a worry trying to cover the increasing cost of, cameras, lenses, hard disk storage, and computers. Most clients are unaware of this. For instance at the last wedding I photographed my equipment totalled 25K (that said Ive got the best kit in the world, and that's to be expected on the big day)

—Ποια ήταν η πιο εντυπωσιακή στιγμή στη ζωή σας;

—The birth of my first son.

—Εάν ήσασταν ένας λογοτεχνικός ή κινηματογραφικός χαρακτήρας ποιος θα θέλατε να είσαστε και γιατί;

—Great question! Put me down as Harry Potter, I like the glasses, and the wand would be very useful on shoots.

—Τι σας εμπνέει στη ζωή σας και γιατί;

—I don't think there's one person, but I'm also a painter, and so art, paintings, and ideas, have always been a constant source of inspiration.

—Ποιος είναι ο ορισμός της επιτυχίας; Πώς μετριέται η επιτυχία;

—It's hard to quantify success but I have all the important things I need in my life already.

—Είναι προτιμότερο να είστε αρεστός ή να σας σέβονται;

—I always strive for high end results so for me its more important to be liked for the person I am, and the body of my work. If people don't respect me there's not much I can do about it.

—Ποιο είναι το μεγαλύτερο σφάλμα που έχετε κάνει ποτέ στη δουλειά σας;

—Missing THE shot!

—Όταν πρόκειται να ταξιδέψετε, τι παίρνετε μαζί σας και γιατί;

—When I was 23 a good friend gave me a copy of "Four Quartets" by T.S Eliot. Its slim and fits in every rucsac or camera bag. I only carry it when I'm travelling but its quixotic view of infinity constantly surprises me with its relevance in new locations.

—Σε σχέση με τον εξοπλισμό που σας ανήκει, υπάρχει κάτι που εύχεστε να μην το είχατε αγοράσει. Γιατί;

—I don't like phone calls when I'm working so I have to say the mobile phone....I know that's heretical these days!

—Πώς εκπαιδεύετε τον εαυτό σας για να μάθει να παίρνει καλύτερες φωτογραφίες;

—Research is a big part of expanding your skill set. I'm constantly looking to develop and expand through experimentation with the camera or computer, or both.

—Ποιανού δουλειά σας έχει επηρεάσει περισσότερο ως φωτογράφο;

—I think I'm influenced by many images rather than one photographer in person.

—Τι εύχεστε να γνωρίζατε όταν ξεκινήσατε να τραβάτε φωτογραφίες;

—More computer skills:)

—Τι θέλετε να πείτε με τις φωτογραφίες σας;

—Intimacy and resonance are very important, but also a sense of place....images are like time capsules I want people to look back and feel connected with the images, again and again.

—Τι σας παρακινεί να συνεχίσετε να τραβάτε φωτογραφίες;

—There's always a sense of the perfect shot being around the next corner, something more special, more romantic, more FUN.....so I keep searching.

—Οι γονείς σας θα έπρεπε να είναι περισσότερο ή λιγότερο αυστηροί;

—My parents were very relaxed and open minded in their guidance....so I guess a tiny bit more strictness might have been a good thing?

—Εάν μπορούσατε να πάτε πίσω στο χρόνο, τι θα κάνετε διαφορετικά;

—I'm a very positive person and I think reflection on the past can be self absorbing so I prefer to embrace the future.

—Τι πιστεύετε για τη ζωή σε άλλους πλανήτες;

—Definitely...sadly due to deep time its going to be very hard to find.

—Ποιοι είναι οι ήρωες σας;

—I've mentioned Ghandi but I'd happily add Leonardo Da Vinci, Einstein, Marie Curie, Dickens, Tesla, Jane Austen.

—Για ποιον δεν έχετε καθόλου σεβασμό;

—The tiny minded despots who've sacrificed millions of lives in vain.

—Τι κάνετε στον ελεύθερο χρόνο σας;

—Well the camera's always with me out walking, or at art galleries, meeting up with friends, and of course with my family. At home I love to cook, and my garden is a small oasis.

—Ποια πλευρά του εαυτού σας δεν βλέπει ποτέ το κοινό;

—Its always good to keep your professional side towards the public, but if I'm honest I'm a bit shy so I keep that well hidden.

—Πότε είστε τελείως ικανοποιημένος με τη δουλειά σας;

—Tough question......i need to learn to stop tweaking.

—Πιστεύετε στους παραδοσιακούς ρόλους για τους άνδρες και τις γυναίκες;

—I'm not really a traditional person, and having had a very liberal background I trust other people to make the choices that are best suited to them and their perception of gender.

—Κάνετε εύκολα φίλους;

—Yes I make friends easily and I'm very lucky in the friends I have, I still have all my school friends:)

—Που θα θέλατε να ζήσετε;

—I live in Devon so I'm spoilt by beautiful coastline in every direction, and two very different national parks. This is a great base for getting the work life balance just right. I'm happy right here.

—Ποιο είναι το πιο ανόητο πράγμα που έχετε δεχτεί ποτέ να κάνετε;

—So many things.

—Υπάρχει ζωή μετά το γάμο;

—Personally speaking I'm divorced so YES :)

—Έχετε ένα αγαπημένο ανέκδοτο; Πείτε το μας.

—" I've gone on the Whisky Diet-I've lost four days already" Tommy Cooper

—Συμπαθείτε τα σκυλιά ή τις γάτες;

—Dogs

—Ποιον ή τι μισείτε;

—The art of forgiveness means you don't have to hate anyone, it so unhealthy to carry that emotion around inside you.

—Το καλύτερο πράγμα στη ζωή είναι:

—Sharing

—Το πιο ενοχλητικό πράγμα στη ζωή είναι:

—Climate change.

—Υπάρχει κάτι γύρω σας που θα θέλατε να αλλάξετε;

—Personally not much, but politics, world affairs, and the environment are concerns for me.... greater awareness and action by the majority would be a step in the right direction.

—Τι θα θέλατε να αλλάξετε στον εαυτό σας;

—I feel its better to work with what you've got.

—Τι θα θέλατε να αλλάξετε στον κόσμο;

—A greater sense of balance with the environment.

—Μπορείτε να δώσετε μερικές συμβουλές για τους φωτογράφους που ξεκινάνε να φωτογραφίζουν;

—If you know where to point a camera, then its easy to learn the technical aspects as you progress. Until then trust your instincts, appreciate your own talent, and go and grab as much experience as you possibly can.

—Εάν έρθουν εξωγήινοι στη γη και είστε ο πρώτο άνθρωπος που συναντήσουν, τι θα τους πείτε;

—Watch out for the others!

—Εάν σας ζητήσουν να γυρίσετε μια ταινία, τι είδους ταινία θα είναι;

—Science Fiction

—Αύριο θα πάω και θα κάνω...

—Put the house in order and get organised.