Fotografo Jo-Ann Stokes

—Sei fotogenico?

—Unfortunately not ....but probably best that I am not because it makes me try extra hard to make my couples feel comfortable in front of the lens and capture beautiful photographs that they will love of themselves.

—Come sei entrato nell'industria della fotografia?

—Purely by accident to be honest! My trip into photography started by documenting my life, my kids and then into landscape photography. A friend saw my photos, told her friend who was getting married and they contacted me and asked me to do their wedding. I explained that I had never done a wedding but they were fine with that. I loved it ....and the rest ...is history! And my first clients are still one of my biggest fans!

—Secondo te, quali sono le componenti più importanti di una bella foto?

—A photograph that touches your soul ...no matter the composition, the editing etc ...that makes for a good photo ...no actually, that makes for a "great" photo ....but if all you want is good ..then good composition, good lighting and good posing would make a good photo .....I continuously strive to take a "great" photo.

—Ti piace viaggiare?

—Do you seriously have to ask? I "love" to travel ...it feeds my soul, opens my eyes, enriches my life and makes me appreciate everything that God created for us.

—Che cosa ti piace di più nella tua professione?

—The creativity ...if you can visualise it ....you can photograph it! The continious learning curve....there are new things to learn all the time! I am continiously challenged and excited by my profession.

—Che cosa ti piace di meno nella tua professione?

—The admin!! Wish we were taking photographs 100% of the time ...unfortunately its only a small portion of our workload. And selling myself ...I find it so hard to do!

—Quale sarà il futuro della fotografia?

—There will alwasy be a future for wedding photography ...people will continously fall in love and want to get married and start families of that I have no doubt ....I think how we photograph weddings will stay fundamentally the same ..but the way we grab our image might change. I see change coming in the fact that we will film the wedding and grab our photographs from the video ...and I am excited about that because a hair breadth of a second can make all the difference to an image.

—Cosa c'è di speciale nel genere di fotografia in cui sei specializzato?

—Wedding photography is special because it makes you forget all the bad things in the world for a few brief moments. It makes you believe that the world is all rosy, full of love and that there is bright future ahead and there is truth in fairytales and the "happy ever after"

—Come gestisci la critica?

—Well I am a creative ...so lets just say ...it can hurt! But I am also open-minded so I can take a step back and look at it through that persons eyes and see if their criticism is valuable. Good criticism is worth its weight in gold!

—Ci sono determinate tendenze nella fotografia?

—There are always trends in photography! The question needs to be asked ..how will your images look in 30 years ...will the trend stand the test of time. Quality, timeless photography will never date.

—Quali criteri dovrebbe utilizzare un cliente per scegliere un fotografo?

—Initially the couple should love the photography ...it should speak to them. But the most important criteria is that you like your photographer and feel comfortable with them....you will spend a large part of your day with this person in your space ..its best that you like them.

—Che cosa non è ammesso durante la ripresa fotografica?

—Cheesy!

—Quali dettagli, che solitamente passano inosservati, riesce a notare un fotografo?

—We can see moments that develop and are waiting for them to happen.

—Che cosa influisce sul valore di una foto? Quali sono le sue componenti?

—The emotion, the impact of the image!

—Secondo te, chi può essere considerato simbolo del XXI secolo?

—The co-founders of google, Larry Page and Sergey Brin. And our very own, Nelson Mandela!

—Chi vorresti fotografare?

—My next bride!

—Hai qualche tabù professionale?

—One or two ...nudity is not my thing!

—Con chi vorresti fare una sessione di ripresa fotografica?

—Thats a tough one ...Jose Villa, ..I love his pastel, airy, film look but I also love the dark, moody look from Susan Stripling.

—Che cosa ti fa preoccupare e perché?

—I worry about my children ...I am first and foremost a Mom! From a wedding photographers perspective ..that I lose a wedding due to faulty cards, crashing computers & harddrives. I have made every provision to safeguard my clients weddings but it is natural to worry about their images.

—Qual è stato il momento più impressionante della tua vita?

—The birth of my sons. Everything else pales into insignificance in comparison to those moments.

—Se tu fossi un personaggio di cartone animato, libro o film, chi saresti e perché?

—I am enjoying the character, Elizabeth McCord from Madam Secretary at the moment. She handles problems with intelligence, respect and sensitivity in very fragile situations.

—Chi ti ispira nella vita e perché?

—My family inspire me ...they inspire me to be better...they inspire me to prove to them that life is for living and that you make your own destiny with the choices and decisions that you make. Every action has a reaction. Mistakes are not always bad as the experience it teaches you is sometimes more valuable that getting something 100% correct.

—Come puoi definire il successo? Come si misura?

—A successful person is a person who has balance in their life! A happy marriage, family life & career ..is my definition of success! Only having a successful career with money in the bank ...can make for a very lonely/empty life.

—Preferiresti essere amato o rispettato?

—Neither ....I would prefer to be loved!

—Qual è stato il più grande errore che hai commesso nel lavoro?

—When I worked in banking ....I paid a rather large sum of money into the wrong persons account!

—Preparandoti per partire, che cosa metteresti in valigia e perché?

—My camera and a lens ...do I need anything more?

—Tra i gadget che possiedi, c'è qualcosa che vorresti non aver comprato? Perché?

—a few items ...too numerous to mention

—Che formazione professionale segui per fare fotografie migliori?

—I attend workshops, watch videos, practice, practice, practice!

—Il lavoro di chi ha avuto la maggiore influenza su di te come fotografo?

—Many of my photographer friends have in their own small way influenced me. Each one has at some stage dropped a pearl of wisdom on my eager ears.

—Qual è l'unica cosa che vorresti aver saputo iniziando a scattare foto?

—I initially started to play around with a camera when i was a teenager ...I wish I had figured out then, that this was the career that I loved.

—Che cosa vuoi dire con le tue fotografie?

—I am not big into props ....I prefer the people in my photographs to be the focal point. It is their essence, emotions that tell the story.

—Qual è la tua motivazione per continuare a scattare fotografie?

—I dont think there is anything that motivates me to continue to take photos ....I think it is an extension of who I am ...even when I dont have my camera with me ...I am still framing photos in my eye and taking a mental photo of a scene.

—Pensi che i tuoi genitori avrebbero dovuto essere più o meno severi?

—They were perfect. I like the way I turned out ...lol!

—Se potessi tornare nel passato, che cosa faresti in modo diverso?

—Nothing ...if i went back in time to change anything ...then my outcome might be very different to where I am now ....and I kind of like where I am now. And if I had actually done photography from a teenager then my people skills would not have been developed. I believe there was a reason for only discovering my love for photography later on.

—Che cosa pensi della vita su altri pianeti?

—Possible ...but have no interest in finding out ...its bad enough controlling the human race that we have here ...we sure as heck dont need the headache of another race somewhere else.

—Chi sono i tuoi eroi?

—There are no heroes ....everyone is only human ...we all err on this road we call life. There are people who I respect i.e Nelson Mandela, FW De Klerk, Mother Theresa, Pope Francis, Thuli Madonsela

—Per chi non hai rispetto?

—Dictators, bad politicians, criminals, children and animal abusers! Our president, Jacob Zuma, Stupidity, Robert Mugabe.

—Che cosa fai nel tuo tempo libero?

—My hubby has a Harley Davidson motorbike and we often will go on road trips around the Cape and needless to say ...I take photos. I enjoy socialising with fellow photographers. I walk in a farm close to my house with my dogs.

—Quale lato di te non è mai visibile al pubblico?

—They dont see me stressed or worried. I show a calm face to the outside world and behind the scenes I make a plan. I also have a wicked sense of humour that I try to keep in check.

—Quando ti senti completamente soddisfatto dal tuo lavoro?

—I wish I knew the answer ...then i would create a formula and stick to it ..but there again then I might end up being bored!

—Credi nei ruoli tradizionali di donne e uomini?

—Yes and no ....I believe women can do anything they put their minds too ...but I also believe that men are traditionally the hunters and do not enjoy being the hunted. Let them enjoy the chase.

—Fai facilmente amicizia?

—Very easily. I can chat to complete strangers wherever I am.

—Dove ti piacerebbe vivere?

—If I couldnt live in Cape Town for whatever reason ...then I would go to the next extreme and live in London ...but only if I had a lot of money ;)

—Qual è stata la cosa più stupida che hai accettato di fare?

—A nude shoot

—Esiste la vita dopo il matrimonio?

—lol ...yes, definitely! I have done more and had more fun with my husband than with any other human being. He is the one who has my back, who I rely on, who I can be real with, who accepts me for who I am ...who will look after me when I am sick or sad ....to lend a Greys Anatomy line ..."he is my person" ...but yes there were times when I could have lovingly strangled his neck..he definitely still knows how to push my buttons!

—Hai uno scherzo preferito? Raccontacelo.

—Yes ..I do ...but I think it might be a bit too dirty for a wedding blog ...especially for people considering getting married ...lol! Only old married couples would find it amusing!

—Ti piacciono i cani o i gatti?

—Dogs ...grew up with them all my life! My dad was allergic to cats ..so was never allowed to have one ....so not too sure if I would have loved cats more!

—Chi o che cosa odi?

—People who are rigid and the world is black and white and do not see outside the box.

—La cosa migliore nella vita è:

—free!

—La cosa più fastidiosa nella vita è:

—People who do not listen

—C'è qualcosa intorno a te che vorresti cambiare?

—Yes, our incompetent government!

—Che cosa vorresti cambiare in te stesso?

—I wish I had more time!

—Che cosa vorresti cambiare nel mondo?

—Evil

—Puoi dare alcuni consigli ai fotografi alle prime armi?

—Be unique ...find your own style ....do not be like sheep and copy everyone else! Trust in the way you see the world ..you will develop!

—Se gli alieni dovessero arrivare sulla Terra e tu fossi la prima persona ad incontrarli, che cosa diresti?

—If you know whats good for you ...turn around and run in the opposite direction

—Se dovessi essere invitato a girare un film, di che genere sarebbe?

—A romance or a drama

—Domani vado a fare...

—some food shopping, a maternity shoot, some editing ...watch our national rugby team , the Springboks play their first game at the Rugby World Cup 15 in England against Japan!