Fotografer Steve Grogan

—Pertama-tama – menurut Anda, siapa fotografer terbaik di Manchester, Inggris Raya? :)

—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!

—Anda fotogenik?

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

—Bagaimana awal Anda masuk ke bidang fotografi?

—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!

—Apa komponen terpenting dari foto yang baik menurut Anda?

—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.

—Anda suka bepergian?

—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.

—Apa yang paling Anda suka tentang profesi Anda?

—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.

—Apa yang paling tidak Anda suka tentang profesi Anda?

—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.

—Bagaimana masa depan fotografi?

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

—Apa yang istimewa dengan genre fotografi kekhususan Anda?

—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.

—Bagaimana Anda menangani kritik?

—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.

—Adakah tren dalam fotografi?

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

—Apa yang seharusnya menjadi kriteria bagi pelanggan dalam memilih fotografer?

—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.

—Hal-hal apa yang harus dihindari saat pemotretan?

—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.

—Detail apa yang umumnya lewat tanpa disadari yang tertangkap oleh fotografer?

—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.

—Apa yang memengaruhi nilai sebuah foto? Apa saja elemen-elemennya?

—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.

—Siapa yang dapat menjadi simbol abad ke-21 menurut pendapat Anda?

—Mark Zuckerberg, undoubtedly.

—Siapa yang ingin Anda jepret?

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

—Apa yang Anda khawatirkan, dan mengapa?

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

—Jika Anda karakter kartun, buku, atau film, siapakah Anda dan mengapa?

—Bananaman.

—Bagaimana Anda mendefinisikan kesuksesan? Bagaimana Anda mengukurnya?

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

—Anda lebih senang disukai atau dihormati?

—A bit of both.

—Saat Anda akan bepergian, apa saja barang yang Anda bawa dan mengapa?

—I travel light.

—Bagaimana Anda mengajari diri sendiri untuk mengambil gambar yang lebih baik?

—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?

—Karya siapa yang paling memengaruhi Anda sebagai fotografer?

—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.

—Apa yang memotivasi Anda untuk terus mengambil gambar?

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

—Apakah orang tua Anda seharusnya lebih atau tidak terlalu ketat?

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

—Jika Anda dapat kembali ke masa lalu, apa yang akan Anda lakukan secara berbeda?

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

—Bagaimana tentang kehidupan di planet lain?

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

—Apa yang Anda lakukan di waktu luang?

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

—Sisi diri Anda manakah yang tidak pernah dilihat orang?

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

—Anda mudah menjalin pertemanan?

—Yes, I like to think so.

—Di mana Anda ingin tinggal?

—Reykjavik, Iceland.

—Anda punya lelucon favorit? Beri tahu kami.

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

—Anda suka anjing atau kucing?

—Dogs.

—Siapa atau apa yang Anda benci?

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

—Besok saya akan pergi...

—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.