Φωτογράφος James Richardson

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

—The best photographer doesn't exist, only styles! Today there are so many photographers, and each one has their own style. As long as you work hard to constantly grow and push yourself then you will be happy, your clients will be happy and you will become a great photographer.

—Έχετε φωτογένεια;

—To be honest, no not really. That is why I hide behind the camera :P

—Πώς ξεκίνησες να ασχολείσαι με τη φωτογραφία;

—You could say that it was hidden away inside me for a long time. Without realising I have always had a camera to hand since I was little. Love my dads Canon 650 EOS and always used to take it off his hands. Never thought that it would turn out to be something that I loved doing.

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

—A good photo has to have life in it. If a photo does not have a penetrating look, or the calmness of a smile, then for me that photo is not natural enough and that is what I always look for in my wedding photos.

—Σας αρέσει να ταξιδεύετε;

—I love new and unknown territories, this make you push your skills and ideas to the limits and keeps you improving. I have several trips lined up this year and cant wait to work somewhere new. And if it is for vacactional purpose, then without a doubt, but I can assure you that my camera will never leave my side.

—Τι σας αρέσει περισσότερο στο επάγγελμά σας;

—The reaction when I hand my work in and the happiness it brings. I will love photography no matter what, and will always love it no matter what people say about my work. All photographers want to exceed their expectations, improve, update themselves, master new techniques, and we are very perfectionist when it comes down to our own work, so it is a fantastic feeling when others congratulate you on your efforts.

—Τι σας αρέσει λιγότερο στο επάγγελμά σας;

—Nothing, I came from a financial work environment with a stressful background to something that I dreamt about doing for a long time. And when you manage to do something you dream about there will be some down moments but you remember what you are doing and why you are doing it, and that motivating crawls right back in and you thrive again.

—Ποιο θα είναι το μέλλον της φωτογραφίας;

—Well who knows, it is constantly changing and there are so many different styles and techniques to choose from. But hopefully, it will become less fictional and more natural.

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

—The atmosphere, the mood, the happiness, capturing of the moment that will be shown to every family member and friends, current and future. But more importantly you are immortalising a moment in someone's life which details can be forgot via thought but sealed in a photograph

—Πώς αντιμετωπίζετε την κριτική;

—Constructive criticism helps me improve, mature and evolve. There is always a positive way of looking at things, and criticism can be broken down and used in a positive manner.

—Υπάρχουν τάσεις στη φωτογραφία;

—Right at this point in time in the trend of the sameday, where we process photos on the same day of the wedding before the dance. It have become very popular here in Spain.

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

—To select the photographer via his/her work and style and not the price, with out forgetting that they must connect.

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

—Pressure on the bride and groom. In order to take the best and most natural shots we need the bride and groom to be as relaxed as possible. And also mobile and table devises. There are numerous of occasions when the groom could not see the bride walking down the isle due to the amount of people leaning out with their phones and tables.

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

—I try to study the bride and groom before the wedding, assuring those personal gestures are captured so that when their friends and family see the photos, they recognise the naturalness of the image and the moment captured.

—Τι επηρεάζει την αξία της φωτογραφίας; Ποια στοιχεία;

—There are so many things to cover for this question. But if i had to sum it up in one, the naturalness of the the photo is highly important.

—Ποιον θέλετε να φωτογραφήσετε;

—Everything I can see with my eyes, as long as I add my personal touch.

—Έχετε επαγγελματικά ταμπού;

—No

—Με ποιους σας αρέσει να τραβάτε φωτογραφίες;

—Steve McCurry, Chema Madoz, Sebastiao Salgado, El Marco Rojo, Ramone El Marco Rojo.

—Τι σας ανησυχεί και γιατί;

—I worry about not having enough time. There is never enough time in one day, but the important this is to make the most out of the time you have.

—Ποια ήταν η πιο εντυπωσιακή στιγμή στη ζωή σας;

—When my little ones were born.

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

—Peter Parker, obvious right?

—Τι σας εμπνέει στη ζωή σας και γιατί;

—My partner, she is always motivating my and pushing be to be better and do better in all aspects of my life.

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

—Success for me would be to continue capturing the best moments and continue to improving.

—Είναι προτιμότερο να είστε αρεστός ή να σας σέβονται;

—Respected, first of all you understand who a person is then you respect them and then you start to like them for who they are.

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

—I try not to make any mistakes, but hey, we are not perfect. When I started as a wedding photographer, I forgot to check the wedding images after downloading them and had the auto delete after download turned on, resulting in deleting the whole ceremony and service photos. I thank lexar for their amazing recovery app.

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

—My fujifilm x30 and my D750 with my 35mm f1.4 – Fuji is easy to store and lightweight. And my D750 because of its amazing quality for those special shots.

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

—I love all gadgets and never regret buying anything as I make sure I study everything before purchase.

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

—Workshops, seminars, and other photographer friends.

—Ποιανού δουλειά σας έχει επηρεάσει περισσότερο ως φωτογράφο;

—There are so many photographers out there. I just try to learn from all and adapt my own style. But if I had to thank a specific photographer it would be El Marco Rojo.