Fotograaf Steve Grogan

—Ennekõike - keda sa nimetaksid parimaks fotograafiks oma linnas? :)

—Oooooh crikey, that is a very good question. There are many that I admire from my home city, but I'll plump for Pete Farrell of Pixies in the Cellar. His eye for composition is just ridiculous!

—Kas sa oled fotogeenne?

—No. I absolutely hate having my photograph taken as I have a head like a thumb.

—Kuidas sa sattusid fotograafiamaailma?

—If you'd have told me 5-6 years ago that I'd be a wedding photographer I'd have laughed at you. I believed that all wedding photography was contrived nonsense and it didn't appeal to me at all. However, once I'd photographed a couple of weddings as a second shooter I realised that wedding photography could be whatever you wanted it to be. So I took the plunge!

—Mis on sinu arvates hea foto kõige olulisead komponendid?

—For me it's all about the moment and composition. I'm not overly technical and don't stress about a little over/under exposure. The moment is so important to me.

—Kas sulle meeldib reisida?

—Yes. I love it. Thankfully I've been able to travel rather a lot and being my own boss has enabled me to do more than ever.

—Mis sulle sinu töö juures kõige rohkem meeldib?

—Perhaps a little cliched, but I like the idea of leaving behind images for future generations to enjoy. Plus I get to work alongside some amazing people. I've made friends for life since I started out.

—Mis sulle sinu töö juures kõige vähem meeldib?

—Of course, there is always going to be something. The only part I don't enjoy is doing the staged group photos, but that's only a tiny percentage of the wedding so I can live with that.

—Millisena näed sa fotograafia tulevikku?

—I honestly have no idea. Who knows what the future holds?

—Mis on sinu fotograafiažanris erilist?

—Wedding photographers have to deal with a myriad of changing lighting situations throughout the day. This is definitely one of the most challenging aspects, especially when there are restrictions placed on you by churches for example, where you are rarely allowed to add any flash.

—Kuidas sa suhtud kriitikasse?

—I take it on the chin. If it's unsolicited then I'll always question it, but any constructive feedback I get is valued as it'll help me to improve.

—Kas fotograafias on teatud trende?

—A lot of weddings in the UK do follow a similar pattern, so it's quite easy for your images to eventually become repetitive.

—Millised peaksid fotograafi valides olema kliendi kriteeriumid?

—If I was looking for a wedding photographer then I'd obviously be looking for someone whose images connected with me in some way. Once you've established that you like the images then I would advise any future newlyweds to meet up with the photographer, go for a beer/coffee/cake, have a chat with them, see if you like them as they are going to be around for pretty much all of your day.

—Mida pildistades kindlasti ei tohiks teha?

—For me, not much. I'd photograph anything if it happened at a wedding. Obviously, if someone objected for any reason then I'd stop. But I'd also use my common sense and gut feeling.

—Mis võiksid olla need detailid, millele tavaliselt tähelepanu ei pöörata, kuid mida fotograaf võib märgata?

—One thing I learned quite early on was to step away from the couple for most of the day. There is so much going on around them that you can miss if you are too focussed on photographing just the couple. My couples seem to appreciate that I can show them images from moments they had no idea happened on their wedding day.

—Mis teeb fotost väärtusliku? Mis elemendid on olulised?

—Any photo can hold value to anyone. I've probably taken thousands of "average" simple photos that could be so valuable to my couples and their families/friends. For example, someone who has recently passed away. Those photos then become priceless.

—Milline inimene on sinu arvates 21. sajandi sümbol?

—Mark Zuckerberg, undoubtedly.

—Keda sa sooviksid pildistada?

—Easy one. I'd love to spend some time photographing and chatting with Sir Alex Ferguson.

—Mille pärast sa muretsed ja miks?

—Yes, the constant wars all over the world. Utterly awful.

—Kui sa oleksid tegelane multikast, raamatust või filmist, siis kes sa oleksid ja miks?

—Bananaman.

—Kuidas sa defineeriksid edu? Kuidas sa seda mõõdad?

—Happiness is the only measure of success. People who equate money to success are totally missing the point, in my opinion.

—Kas sa tahaksid, et sa pigem meeldiksid inimestele või et nad austaksid sind?

—A bit of both.

—Mida sa endaga reisides kaasa võtad ja miks?

—I travel light.

—Kuidas sa ennast koolitad, et paremaks fotograafiks saada?

—Practice, practice and practice. Take photos, thousands of them. And if you don't like them or they don't look right, figure out why that is, and then work on it. That's pretty much how I managed to become an established full-time professional. I lived and breathed photography until I was confident I'd reached a certain level of competency to be able to charge money for my work. Oh, and practice more. Did I mention practice?

—Kelle töö on sind kui fotograafi kõige rohkem mõjutanud?

—There are a few whose work I admire and these were inspiring for me when I was first dipping my toes into the world of wedding photography. Andrew Billington, Alan Law, Steven Rooney, Adam Johnson, Two Mann Studios & Pete Farrell are all wedding photographers that I admire. There are more, but these are the ones off the top of my head.

—Mis motiveerib sind fotograafina jätkama?

—The genuine love for what I do. Being surrounded by happy people is infectious and good for my soul. I rarely do negativity.

—Kas sa arvad, et sinu vanemad oleksid pidanud sinuga olema rangemad või leebemad?

—Possible more strict, especially at meal times as I have a lot of mental blocks to certain types of food.

—Kui sa saaksid ajas tagasi minna, mida sa teeksid erinevalt?

—I'd probably have traveled more in my late teens/early twenties.

—Kas sa arvad, et teistel planeetidel on elu?

—Based on the laws of probability, I'd say yes.

—Mida sa vabal ajal teed?

—With my family and friends plus lots of napping with my dogs, reading, traveling and being idle.

—Millist poolt sinust avalikkus kunagi ei näe?

—My insecurities tend to be kept under lock and key. But I worry myself to sleep most nights.

—Kas sa leiad kergesti sõpru?

—Yes, I like to think so.

—Kus sa tahaksid elada?

—Reykjavik, Iceland.

—Kas sul on lemmiknali? Räägi see meile.

—Why was the sand wet? Because the sea weed.

—Kas sulle meeldivad koerad või kassid?

—Dogs.

—Keda või mida sa vihkad?

—Hate is a strong word. Wow. That's a hard one. Perhaps Donald Trump or Theresa May could fall into that category.

—Homme hakkan ma...

—I'm going out with some fellow photographers for drinks in Manchester. Our weekends tend to be during the week given what we do for a living.