Фотограф Stephanie Kindermann

—Самый волнующий нас вопрос – кто лучший фотограф в вашем городе? :)

—Ha! There's a mad, crazy hoard of us.

—Вы фотогеничны?

—Yes, and I'll tell you why – I have a high threshold for embarrassment. The less self conscious you are, the better you photograph.

—Как вы попали в индустрию фотографии?

—So here's the story – my father had been a wedding photographer and so I had my first little film disposables from about 5 years old. I’d shot probably thousands of rolls by the time I made it to photography college, but it was the moment where I was standing in the darkroom seeing that first image rise out of the chemical trays that I remember. Everyone else around me was fairly cool about the whole process but I couldn’t stop laughing with this electric thrill. This was the moment in my life where it became absolutely clear – I knew this is what I was going to do now. Weddings? Everyone loves a party. And a wedding is the best kind of party to shoot.

—Как вы считаете, какие самые важные составляющие хорошей фотографии?

—Good visual narrative – all the elements needed to give you context.
The split second – at the high point of madness.
The feels – something that makes your heart hurt or leap.

—Любите путешествовать?

—I live for it.

—Что в вашей профессии вам нравится больше всего?

—Learning the world's secrets.
I'll share some of them with you.
No one cooks better than a Greek mama or parties as hard as a Croatian groomsman. Vietnamese elders are the bravest karaoke singers, the French do the best cigar and whiskey bar (not to mention the cheeses) and that Ghanaians will crush any dance floor. Chinese door games can be a hair raising experience, and it is deeply moving it is to see Maori women sing a welcoming song to the bride.

—Что в вашей профессии вам нравится меньше всего?

—When the alternate drop arrives, the chicken is always overcooked. Always.

—Каким вы видите будущее фотографии?

—Wow this is cool, I hope it will be some sort of virtual reality with a fully rendered 3D capture from the entire day. You'll be able to bang on your head set and take a walk through the entire event from any time and angle.

—Что делает жанр фотографии, в котором вы снимаете, особенным?

—Often having a professional photograph your family is a very rare event. With this in mind I always devote a lot of time and care to capture portraits of treasured people – grandparents, GREAT grandparents, brothers, sisters, children.

—Как вы относитесь к критике?

—I walked through a lot of fire in my early years of learning to shoot, and I'm still here :) Think of my teacher as being that old guy from Kill Bill who strokes his beard a lot.

—Есть ли в фотографии своя мода?

—Yes, and they're mostly so cheesy. Things like making love hearts with your hands.... plz no!

—По каким критериям клиенты должны выбирать своего фотографа?

—Love the work – don't employ your photographer then ask for an aesthetic from another artist!
Vibes! Would you want to drink a beer with them? Ideally you start the booking process with good vibes, and finish the wedding singing bad karaoke together.

—Чего нельзя допускать при съемке?

—Hunger. Bride, groom, photographer and squad members should be loaded up with snacks. Picnic style canapes and champagne if you're fancy, sausage rolls and red bull if you're not.

—Что обычные люди упускают из виду, в то время как фотограф может увидеть?

—Ha! "Common people," love it.
One of my favourites is the tight-lipped, crazy-eyed stage-whispered threats of a parent to errant child – usually during a particularly tender moment during the ceremony.

—Что влияет на ценность фотографии? Из чего она складывается?

—The value in a photo is, I feel, in how valued the subject is in it.
For example, a wife will always love a portrait of her husband that has captured how she sees him. If he's a charismatic person, than a genuine laugh. If he's a quiet person, then a photograph of him unaware, relaxed and thoughtful.

—Кого бы вы назвали символом XXI века?

—Elon Musk. Billionaire, genius, puts a model car in his real car then launches it into space. What a legend.

—Кого бы вы хотели поснимать?

—People madly in love.

—Есть ли у вас какие-то табу в работе?

—I am a woman of no limits.

—С кем вы хотели бы поснимать?

—Jonas Peterson. He seems like a very relaxed, interesting fellow.

—О чем вы беспокоитесь и почему?

—Mostly I have dreams where I've overslept my alarm and a bride is calling me, asking where I am, and I'm a 2 hour drive away. I guess that's my biggest worry.

—Расскажите о самом сильном впечатлении в своей жизни.

—Once, driving home very late from a wedding (of course), I saw space junk or a comet or the worlds most massive shooting star – so bright it illuminated everything around me. It travelled directly down the line of the straight highway I was driving for a full 10 seconds before burning out. An exceptional moment.

—Каким персонажем из мультфильма, книги или кино вы были бы и почему?

—Trinity from The Matrix. She was cool and wore latex before lip injections and enormous butts became the symbols of beauty.

—Кто вдохновляет вас и почему?

—Jimmy Nelson, photographer and author of Before They Pass Away. His is a body of work that is truly exceptional and of historical value.

—Как вы определяете успех? Можно ли его измерить?

—Can't measure it but you can feel it – are you getting enough quality sleep? Are you eating well and sharing good wine with friends? Do you have leisure time with your loved ones, and does your work fill you with pleasure?

—Что для вас важнее: любовь окружающих или уважение?

—Not everyone will like you all of the time, but you should always conduct yourself in a way that people have no loss of respect for you.

—Расскажите о своей самой большой ошибке в работе.

—Working at a camera shop, shipped two very expensive video cameras to someone who turned out to be fraudulent. OOPS!

—Что вы берете с собой в путешествие и почему?

—My husband, because he can read maps.

—Есть ли среди вашей техники что-то, чего покупать не следовало бы? Почему вы так считаете?

—No, but people love to "gift" me their defunct camera gear. Please stop doing this baby boomer friends.

—Расскажите о своем самообучении: что вы делаете, чтобы снимать лучше?

—I spend A LOT of time on lovely curation sites like this one.

—Чья работа больше всего повлияла на ваше становление как фотографа?

—Steve McCurry (again). Portrait photographer for National Geographic.

—Как вы считаете, что вам следовало бы знать в первую очередь, когда вы начинали фотографировать?

—That the rules don't actually matter, and only diminish the potential expression of true moments.

—Что вы хотите донести до людей с помощью фотографии?

—This is a mirror of your life in this moment.

—Что побуждает вас продолжать заниматься фотографией?

—I have no other talents. LOL, no I can cook quite well. But photographing is my true purpose.

—Следовало ли вашим родителям быть более (менее) строгими?

—Less. I was raised conservative Catholic. Not allowed to watch The Simpsons when you're 17... come on!

—Если бы можно было вернуться в прошлое, что бы вы сделали иначе?

—I wouldn't bother going to study, and instead buy a great kit and apprentice myself out 3 years earlier instead. I did the ol' highschool > study > apprentice > professional route. But study is now a moot point with online resources like Linda.com.

—Есть ли жизнь на других планетах?

—Oh jeez I hope so. Certainly spices things up.

—Кто для вас пример для подражания?

—My colleagues, for lifting my heavy, heavy camera bag up and down stairs and into the car innumerable times.

—Кого вы считаете недостойным уважения?

—Paedophiles

—Чем вы занимаетесь в свободное время?

—I punch through Netflix series like a karate master does bricks.

—Какая часть вашей личности скрыта от окружающих?

—Lying around in pyjamas, no makeup, orange Dorito stained fingers, unshaved legs.

—В каких случаях вы бываете полностью довольны своей работой?

—When a couple tells me they cried seeing the pictures. (With JOY).

—Придаете ли вы значение традиционным ролям мужчин и женщин?

—There are definitely things men are better at, like being muscly and crushing rocks with their bare fists. And there are definitely things women are better at, like looking good in high heels and jean shorts.

—Легко ли вы заводите друзей?

—Yes

—Где вы хотели бы жить?

—I'd love a couple of years in Istanbul. I'm a big fan!

—Расскажите о самой большой глупости, которую вы согласились сделать.

—To go on a VERY long bush walk, mere hours after getting home from a pub crawl.

—Есть ли жизнь после свадьбы?

—YES! It just keeps getting better!

—У вас есть любимая шутка? Поделитесь с нами!

—Any Gary Larson comic ever published. He might be the funniest man on earth.

—Вы любите собак? А кошек?

—Cats. I'm not embarrassed.

—Что или кого вы очень не любите?

—Celery. Eww

—Самое лучшее в жизни — это:

—Champagne and cheeses with friends.

—Самое неприятное в жизни — это:

—People farting next to you on flights.

—Есть ли что-то вокруг вас, что вы хотели бы изменить?

—I'm about to try my hand at home renovation, in a very literal interpretation of that question!

—Что вы хотели бы изменить в себе?

—I would love to learn Chinese. And sign language. And also do some pottery. And learn to ride horses. Probably should exercise more too.

—Что вы хотели бы изменить в мире?

—Let's turn down the level of racism shall we, it seems to be gaining momentum instead of losing it.

—Что бы вы посоветовали начинающим фотографам?

—Sure! Don't train yourself out of -not- shooting things. Such as the weird, or awkward, or funny or embarrassing moments. These are some of the greatest photographs you could take!

—Если бы на Землю прилетели инопланетяне и вы оказались первым человеком, которого они встретили, что бы вы сказали им?

—I guess I'd ask them if they wanted to join us for lunch, I know a good place...

—Если бы вам пришлось снимать фильм, в каком жанре он был бы?

—Whatever genre Monty Python calls itself.

—Завтра я пойду и сделаю…

—EDIT! Pat my cat. Email clients! Poke around the fridge and hope for the best. Print some albums! Look at memes!