Fotograf Ben Kelmer

—Først og fremst, hvem vil du si er den beste fotografen i Tel Aviv, Israel? :)

—I think one of the most interesting photographers in tel Aviv is Jen sladkov
jensladkov.com/

—Er du fotogen?

—Depend on when I wake up

—Hvordan ble du en del av fotografbransjen?

—Well, I was always into photography since high school, but 10 years ago I got a job as a photographer for an internet news website in Israel and from that point on things started to take off

—Hva er de viktigste komponentene i et bra bilde etter din mening?

—when I look at a photo I try to see real filings and real emotions, in my eyes, those are the thing that will get the viewers eyes the most

—Er du glad i å reise?

—Sure, and especially now when I have two kids its fantastic thing to travel with them and to have the ability to show them the world

—Hva liker du best med yrket ditt?

—I think the chance I have in meeting new people almost every day is something that I will never get bored off

—Hva liker du minst med yrket ditt?

—all the logistic stuff (booking, meetings, accounting, etc..) let me shoot all day and I will be fine

—Hvordan ser fremtiden ut for fotografering?

—These days when I'm answering this interview (Covid-19), we are having one of the most challenging times as photographers.
But I see more and more bookings for small family portraits; people want to remember and to have a visual memory of themself.

—Hva er det spesielle med den fotografisjanger du har spesialisert deg i?

—I shoot people, and I don't describe my self, if it's with people and to document real situations, I'm in. I think that that's the unique thing about it, the ability to show people how that looks like and how they beehive with their own family.

—Hvordan takler du kritikk?

—It's part of the job, and you have to understand that not everyone is going to like what you do, and I think that's good. You want to distinguish yourself from other photographers, not to be like everyone else.

—Finnes det noen trender innen fotografering?

—Sure, like in any other industry, but try to avoid it, trends are for people that don't want to be creative if you're going to be unique, so don't copy-paste other people work

—Hva bør kriteriene være for en kunde som skal velge en fotograf?

—I don't think there's one criterion, in the end, it comes to how people create when they see a photo of you, how it makes them feel.

—Hvilke ting er absolutt ikke tillatt under fotograferingen?

—in my opinion, I try not to tell people how to act and how to move when I photograph them, I want them to be themselves for them to resonate with the work I do

—Hvilke detaljer, som vanligvis ingen ville lagt merke til, kan en fotograf fange opp?

—The small thing that people don't pay attention to, let's say the groom forget to unzip one button, the photographer will notice it and will tell him to close it

—Hvilken person kan være symbolet på det 21. århundre etter din mening?

—I think that in these days, its Donald Trump, unfortunately, but I think he represents the fact that people are looking for shortcuts in life and in business. And there's no shortcut, if you want to succeed you have to put in the work. I think people elected him cause that thought that in 4 years he will come and change everything and now we see that its not the case.

—Hvem kunne du tenkt deg å fotografere?

—I would be happy to photograph the Queen of England. I already photograph her son and one grandson.

—Har du noen yrkesmessige tabuer?

—I was a photojournalist for almost seven years, and I shoot a lot of stuff that happened in my country even during challenging situations, but I would not photograph something that I would have thought that will cause the other person to fill like I misrepresent what really took place.

—Hvem kunne du tenkt deg å fotografere sammen med?

—I would like to work with Magnum photographer Alex Webb

—Hva bekymrer deg, og hvorfor?

—I worry about the fact that there are more and more wedding photographers out there today that don't know how to price the work that they do and they are bringing the industry down

—Hva er det mest imponerende øyeblikket i livet ditt?

—I think the birth of my children's :)

—Hvilken animert figur, literær person eller filmkarakter ville du vært, og hvorfor?

—Spiderman, for sure, to have the ability to reach places in the coolest way.

—Hvem inspirerer deg i ditt liv, og hvorfor?

—I think that my father was an inspiration to me, he was a captain on container ships and he works hard, I think the working morality I got is from him.

—Hvordan definerer du suksess? Hvordan måler du graden av suksess?

—It changes every time, I think. now success for me is to see my children grow up and becoming the amazing people that they are ❤️

—Foretrekker du å bli likt eller respektert?

—respected for sure.

—Hva er den største tabben du noensinne har gjort på jobben?

—only one? :) that's how we learn the best, one time, I doubled book a wedding, and I only noticed it a week before the wedding.

—Når du skal ut å reise; hva tar du med deg, og hvorfor?

—Now I try to travel as light as I can. So I only take with me the FUJIX100F, which is small and great for traveling + the Yashica 635 with B&W film for the more artwork that I do.

—Er de noe blant dine gadgets du angrer på å ha kjøpt? Hvorfor?

—I bought a polaroid Fujifilm camera that I only used a few times and then I got bored with it

—Hvordan utdanner du deg for stadig å ta bedre bilder?

—I try (before covid19) to attend a workshop once a year, it doesn't have to be from a wedding photographer.
My all-time favorite workshop was in NYC with Alex Webb.

—Hvem sitt arbeid har inspirert deg mest som fotograf?

—Alex Webb is one of the greatest photographers, in my opinion. I also really like the work of Chris Hondros, that was one of the greatest war photographers in modern times.

—Hva spesifikt skulle du ønske at du visste da du begynte å fotografere?

—How to charge for my work

—Hva ønsker du å formidle gjennom dine bilder?

—I'm just trying to tell an authentic story.

—Hva motiverer deg til å fortsette med fotografering?

—The feedback from my clients but also I just like it too much, it feels great every time I see that I have an exciting frame.

—Hva ville du ha gjort annerledes hvis du kunne reise tilbake i tid?

—I would have acted differently with the money I earned and invest it more carefully

—Hva gjør du i fritiden din?

—I love the sea, so I try to go swimming when I can or going on diving trips.

—Hvilken side av deg viser du aldri offentlig?

—I don't share a lot of my family, it's our moments.

—Når er du helt fornøyd med arbeidet ditt?

—Never :)

—Tror du på tradisjonelle manne- og kvinneroller?

—No, in our house we are equal, we both have demanding jobs and the kids.
we try to be both of us with them and without the iPhone from 5-7 when its just family time

—Har du lett for å få nye venner?

—Yes, part of being a people photographer.

—Hvor kunne du tenke deg å bo?

—I would like to live for one year in New Zealand, as a Hobbit fun, I think that's the perfect place for me.

—Finnes det et liv etter bryllupet?

—Sure, it's just gets better over time

—Liker du hunder eller katter?

—Dogs

—Det beste i livet er:

—As you may have guessed i think that my time with my kids is the best thing I have

—Er det noe omkring du kunne tenkt deg å forandre på?

—A lot.

—Kan du komme med noen gode råd til fotografer i startfasen?

—Yes, understand that success is something that takes time, be patient in the long run, keep learning, and do every job the best you can, and the work plus success will follow.

—Forestill deg at romvesener ankommer jorda, og at du er den første de treffer. Hva ville du sagt til dem?

—Want coffee?

—Hvis du ble spurt om å spille inn en film, hvilken sjanger ville den være?

—SCI-FI

—I morgen skal jeg...

—The same