Fotograf Jo-Ann Stokes

—Fotogenični ste?

—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.

—Kako ste ušli u svet fotografije?

—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!

—Šta smatrate da su ključni elementi dobre fotografije?

—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.

—Volite putovanja?

—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.

—Šta najviše volite u vezi sa svojim zanimanjem?

—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.

—Šta najmanje volite u vezi sa svojim zanimanjem?

—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!

—Kakva će biti budućnost fotografije?

—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.

—Šta je posebno kod vrste fotografije koja je vaša specijalnost?

—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"

—Kako podnosite 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!

—Da li u fotografiji postoje trendovi?

—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.

—Šta treba da budu kriterijumi kada klijent bira 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.

—Šta treba izbegavati kod snimanja?

—Cheesy!

—Koje najčešće neprimetne detalje primećuje fotograf?

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

—Šta utiče na vrednost fotografije? Šta su njeni elementi?

—The emotion, the impact of the image!

—Za koju ličnost smatrate da bi mogla da bude simbol 21. veka?

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

—Koga biste želeli da fotografišete?

—My next bride!

—Da li za vas u poslu postoji nešto zabranjeno?

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

—Sa kim biste želeli da sarađujete?

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

—Šta vas brine i zašto?

—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.

—Koji trenutak u vašem životu je bio najupečatljiviji?

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

—Koji lik iz crtaća, knjige ili filma biste bili i zašto?

—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.

—Ko vam je životna inspiracija i zašto?

—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.

—Šta za vas znači uspeh? Kako ga merite?

—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.

—Da li biste pre bili voljeni ili poštovani?

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

—Šta je najveća greška koju ste do sada napravili u poslu?

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

—Šta nosite sa sobom na putovanja i zašto?

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

—Da li ima nešto među vašim alatkama čiju kupovinu ste zažalili? Zašto?

—a few items ...too numerous to mention

—Kako se edukujete da biste bolje fotografisali?

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

—Čiji rad je najviše uticao na vas kao 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.

—Šta biste voleli da ste znali kad ste tek postali fotograf?

—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.

—Šta želite da poručite svojim fotografijama?

—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.

—Šta vas motiviše da se i dalje bavite fotografijom?

—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.

—Da li mislite da su vaši roditelji bili premalo ili previše strogi?

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

—Da možete da se vratite u prošlost, šta biste uradili drugačije?

—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.

—Šta mislite o životu na drugim planetama?

—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.

—Ko su vaši heroji?

—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

—Prema kome nemate nimalo poštovanja?

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

—Kako provodite slobodno vreme?

—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.

—Koji deo sebe nikada ne pokazujete javno?

—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.

—Kad ste potpuno zadovoljni svojim radom?

—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!

—Da li verujete u tradicionalne uloge muškaraca i žena?

—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.

—Da li lako sklapate prijateljstva?

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

—Gde biste voleli da živite?

—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 ;)

—Šta je najgluplja stvar u životu koju ste pristali da uradite?

—A nude shoot

—Da li postoji život posle braka?

—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!

—Imate omiljeni vic? Prepričajte nam ga.

—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!

—Da li volite pse ili mačke?

—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!

—Da li postoji neko ili nešto što mrzite?

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

—Najbolja stvar u životu je:

—free!

—Najiritantnija stvar u životu je:

—People who do not listen

—Da li ima nešto u vašem okruženju što biste promenili?

—Yes, our incompetent government!

—Šta biste promenili kod sebe?

—I wish I had more time!

—Šta biste promenili u svetu?

—Evil

—Da li imate neki savet za fotografe koji tek počinju?

—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!

—Kad bi vanzemaljci došli na Zemlju i prvo sreli vas, šta biste im rekli?

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

—Kad bi vas zvali da snimite film, koji biste žanr izabrali?

—A romance or a drama

—Od sutra ću da…

—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!