Fotograf Jo-Ann Stokes

—Ste fotogenický?

—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.

—Ako ste sa dostali do fotografického priemyslu?

—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!

—Aké sú podľa vás najdôležitejšie súčasti dobrej fotografie?

—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.

—Máte radi cestovanie?

—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.

—Čo máte najradšej na vašej profesii?

—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.

—Čo sa vám páči najmenej na vašej profesii?

—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!

—Aká bude budúcnosť fotenia?

—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.

—Čo je výnimočné na žánri fotografií, na ktorý sa špecializujete?

—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"

—Ako zvládate kritiku?

—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!

—Sú nejaké trendy v oblasti fotografie?

—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.

—Aké by mal mať zákazník kritérium pri výbere fotografa?

—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.

—Čomu sa určite vyhnúť pri práci?

—Cheesy!

—Aké detaily, ktoré zvyčajne prejdú bez povšimnutia, si môže fotograf všimnúť?

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

—Čo ovplyvňuje hodnotu fotografie? Aké sú jej prvky?

—The emotion, the impact of the image!

—Ktorá osoba môže byť podľa vás symbolom 21. storočia?

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

—Koho chcete fotografovať?

—My next bride!

—Máte nejaké profesionálne tabu?

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

—S kým by ste chceli fotografovať?

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

—Čoho sa obávate a prečo?

—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.

—Aký bol váš najpôsobivejší okamih v živote?

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

—Ak by ste boli animovaná, literárna alebo filmová postava, kto by ste boli a prečo?

—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.

—Kto vás vo vašom živote inšpiruje a prečo?

—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.

—Ako definujete úspech? Ako ho meriate?

—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.

—Boli by ste radšej obľúbení alebo rešpektovaní?

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

—Aká je najväčšia chyba, ktorú ste kedy v práci urobili?

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

—Keď cestujete, čo si so sebou beriete a prečo?

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

—Existuje niečo, čo by ste si boli radšej nekúpili zo zariadení, ktoré vlastníte? Prečo?

—a few items ...too numerous to mention

—Ako sa vzdelávate, aby ste robili lepšie fotografie?

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

—Koho práca vás ovplyvnila najviac ako fotografa?

—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.

—Jedna vec, ktorú by ste chceli vedieť, keď ste začínali s fotením?

—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.

—Čo by ste chceli povedať cez vaše 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.

—Čo vás motivuje v ďalšom fotografovaní?

—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.

—Mali byť vaši rodičia menej alebo viac prísni?

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

—Ak by ste sa mohli vrátiť v čase, čo by ste urobili inak?

—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.

—Čo tak život na druhých planétach?

—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.

—Kto sú vaši hrdinovia?

—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

—Kto nemá u vás žiadny rešpekt?

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

—Čo robíte vo svojom voľnom čase?

—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.

—Akú vašu tvár nikdy neukazujte na verejnosti?

—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.

—Kedy ste úplne spokojní s vašou prácou?

—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!

—Veríte v tradičné role mužov a žien?

—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.

—Získavate ľahko nových priateľov?

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

—Kde by ste radi žili?

—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 ;)

—Čo je tá najhlúpejšia vec, na ktorú ste kedy pristúpili?

—A nude shoot

—Existuje život po svadbe?

—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!

—Máte obľúbený vtip? Povedzte nám ho.

—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!

—Máte radi psy alebo mačky?

—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!

—Koho alebo čo nenávidíte?

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

—Najlepšia vec v živote je:

—free!

—Najviac znepokojujúca vec v živote je:

—People who do not listen

—Existuje niečo okolo vás, čo by ste chceli zmeniť?

—Yes, our incompetent government!

—Čo by ste chceli zmeniť na sebe?

—I wish I had more time!

—Čo by ste chceli zmeniť vo svete?

—Evil

—Môžete dať niekoľko tipov pre fotografov, ktorí práve začínajú?

—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!

—Keby prišli na našu planétu mimozemšťania a vy by ste boli prvou osobou, s ktorou sa stretnú, čo by ste im povedali?

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

—Ak by ste mali natočiť film, aký žáner by to bol?

—A romance or a drama

—Zajtra pôjdem a urobím...

—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!