写真家Jo-Ann Stokes氏

—写真写りは良い方ですか？

—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.

—どうして写真撮影業界に入ったのですか？

—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!

—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？

—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.

—旅行が好きですか？

—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.

—あなたの職業について一番好きなことは何ですか？

—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.

—あなたの職業について一番嫌いなことは何ですか？

—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!

—未来の写真撮影とはどのようなものでしょうか？

—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.

—あなたが専門とする特別な写真撮影のジャンルは？

—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"

—批判に対処するには？

—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!

—写真撮影でトレンドはありますか？

—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.

—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？

—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.

—撮影の際、絶対に受け入れがたいことは何でしょうか？

—Cheesy!

—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？

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

—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？

—The emotion, the impact of the image!

—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？

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

—どんな人を撮影したいですか？

—My next bride!

—プロとしてタブーとしている事はありますか？

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

—誰と一緒に写真を撮りたいですか？

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

—心配事はありますか。またその理由は何でしょうか？

—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.

—人生において最も印象的な瞬間とは何でしょうか？

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

—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？

—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.

—あなたの人生においてインスピレーションの元となるのはどんな人ですか？また、それは何故ですか？

—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.

—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？

—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.

—好かれたり、尊敬されたりするほうですか？

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

—これまで仕事上で犯した最大のミスは何ですか？

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

—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？

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

—所有しているガジェットの中で買わなければ良かったと思っているものはありますか？また、それは何故でしょうか？

—a few items ...too numerous to mention

—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？

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

—写真家として、誰の作品に一番影響を受けましたか？

—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.

—写真撮影を始めた頃、知っていればよかったと思う事は何でしょうか？

—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.

—自分の写真に対して何かコメントはありますか？

—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.

—写真撮影を続けさせる動機は何でしょうか？

—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.

—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？

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

—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？

—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.

—他の惑星にいる生命体はどうでしょう？

—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.

—あなたのヒーローは誰ですか？

—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

—あなたが敬意を払わない人はどんな人ですか？

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

—オフは何をしていますか？

—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.

—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？

—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.

—自分の作品に十分に満足するのはどんな時ですか？

—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!

—男性と女性の伝統的な役割の正当性を信じていますか？

—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.

—簡単に友達になることができますか？

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

—どこに住みたいですか？

—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 ;)

—今までにやることを同意した事の中で、一番くだらない事は何でしょうか？

—A nude shoot

—結婚後に人生は存在すると思いますか？

—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!

—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。

—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!

—犬や猫が好きですか？

—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!

—嫌いな人物や物はありますか？

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

—人生における最高のこと：

—free!

—人生で最も厄介なこと：

—People who do not listen

—何か変えたいと思っていることはありますか？

—Yes, our incompetent government!

—自分を変えたいと思っていますか？

—I wish I had more time!

—この世界の何を変えたいと思いますか？

—Evil

—新米の写真家にコツを教えていただけますか？

—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!

—もし宇宙人が地球にやってきて、あなたが最初にその宇宙人に出会うのだとしたら何を話しますか？

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

—もし映画の撮影を依頼されたら、どのようなジャンルを撮影しますか？

—A romance or a drama

—明日、これをしにいくつもりです...

—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!