写真家Steve Grogan氏

—最初に - マンチェスター, イギリスで最高の写真家として誰の名前を挙げることができますか？:)

—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!

—写真写りは良い方ですか？

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

—どうして写真撮影業界に入ったのですか？

—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!

—良い写真を撮影するにあたって最も重要な要素とは何であるか、ご意見をお聞かせいただけますでしょうか？

—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.

—旅行が好きですか？

—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.

—あなたの職業について一番好きなことは何ですか？

—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.

—あなたの職業について一番嫌いなことは何ですか？

—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.

—未来の写真撮影とはどのようなものでしょうか？

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

—あなたが専門とする特別な写真撮影のジャンルは？

—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.

—批判に対処するには？

—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.

—写真撮影でトレンドはありますか？

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

—写真家選択の際に、お客様が基準とすべきことは何ですか？

—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.

—撮影の際、絶対に受け入れがたいことは何でしょうか？

—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.

—写真家が気づくことができる普段は見過ごさせる細かい点は何ですか？

—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.

—写真の価値に影響を与えるものとは何でしょうか？その要因は？

—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.

—どのような人物が 21世紀を象徴する人物になり得るとお考えでしょうか？

—Mark Zuckerberg, undoubtedly.

—どんな人を撮影したいですか？

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

—心配事はありますか。またその理由は何でしょうか？

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

—もしあなたがアニメ化されるとしたら、文学または映画の登場人物のどちらになりたいですか。またそれは何故ですか？

—Bananaman.

—あなたによって成功とは何でしょうか？また、それをどのように評価していますか？

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

—好かれたり、尊敬されたりするほうですか？

—A bit of both.

—旅行に出かける際には何を持っていきますか。また、それは何故ですか？

—I travel light.

—より良い写真を撮るために、どのように腕を磨いていますか？

—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?

—写真家として、誰の作品に一番影響を受けましたか？

—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.

—写真撮影を続けさせる動機は何でしょうか？

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

—ご両親は多かれ少なかれ、厳しい方だったのではないですか？

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

—過去に戻ることができるとしたら、違ったようにやりたいことはありますか？

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

—他の惑星にいる生命体はどうでしょう？

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

—オフは何をしていますか？

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

—人前では絶対に見せない、あなたのもう一つの側面とは何でしょうか？

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

—簡単に友達になることができますか？

—Yes, I like to think so.

—どこに住みたいですか？

—Reykjavik, Iceland.

—お気に入りのジョークはありますか？教えていただけますか。

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

—犬や猫が好きですか？

—Dogs.

—嫌いな人物や物はありますか？

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

—明日、これをしにいくつもりです...

—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.