Photographer Steve Grogan

—Unang una sa lahat - sino ang papangalanan mo na pinakamahusay na photographer sa Manchester, United Kingdom? :)

—Oooooh crikey, that is a very good question. There are many that I admire from my home city, but I'll plump for Pete Farrell of Pixies in the Cellar. His eye for composition is just ridiculous!

—Ikaw ba ay photogenic?

—No. I absolutely hate having my photograph taken as I have a head like a thumb.

—Paano ka nagsimula sa industriya ng photography?

—If you'd have told me 5-6 years ago that I'd be a wedding photographer I'd have laughed at you. I believed that all wedding photography was contrived nonsense and it didn't appeal to me at all. However, once I'd photographed a couple of weddings as a second shooter I realised that wedding photography could be whatever you wanted it to be. So I took the plunge!

—Ano ang mga mahahalagang bahagi ng isang magandang larawan sa iyong opinyon?

—For me it's all about the moment and composition. I'm not overly technical and don't stress about a little over/under exposure. The moment is so important to me.

—Mahilig ka ba maglakbay?

—Yes. I love it. Thankfully I've been able to travel rather a lot and being my own boss has enabled me to do more than ever.

—Ano ang pinakagusto mo sa iyong propesyon?

—Perhaps a little cliched, but I like the idea of leaving behind images for future generations to enjoy. Plus I get to work alongside some amazing people. I've made friends for life since I started out.

—Ano ang hindi mo gusto sa iyong propesyon?

—Of course, there is always going to be something. The only part I don't enjoy is doing the staged group photos, but that's only a tiny percentage of the wedding so I can live with that.

—Ano ang magiging kinabukasan ng photography?

—I honestly have no idea. Who knows what the future holds?

—Ano ang espesyal sa kategorya ng photography kung saan ka dalubhasa?

—Wedding photographers have to deal with a myriad of changing lighting situations throughout the day. This is definitely one of the most challenging aspects, especially when there are restrictions placed on you by churches for example, where you are rarely allowed to add any flash.

—Paano ka tumatanggap ng pagpuna?

—I take it on the chin. If it's unsolicited then I'll always question it, but any constructive feedback I get is valued as it'll help me to improve.

—Mayroon bang mga trend ang photography?

—A lot of weddings in the UK do follow a similar pattern, so it's quite easy for your images to eventually become repetitive.

—Ano ang dapat na pamantayan ng isang customer sa pagpili ng photographer?

—If I was looking for a wedding photographer then I'd obviously be looking for someone whose images connected with me in some way. Once you've established that you like the images then I would advise any future newlyweds to meet up with the photographer, go for a beer/coffee/cake, have a chat with them, see if you like them as they are going to be around for pretty much all of your day.

—Ano ang mga bagay na dapat iwasan kapag kumukuha ng larawan?

—For me, not much. I'd photograph anything if it happened at a wedding. Obviously, if someone objected for any reason then I'd stop. But I'd also use my common sense and gut feeling.

—Ano ang mga detalye na kadalasan ay hindi napapansin na napapansin ng photographer?

—One thing I learned quite early on was to step away from the couple for most of the day. There is so much going on around them that you can miss if you are too focussed on photographing just the couple. My couples seem to appreciate that I can show them images from moments they had no idea happened on their wedding day.

—Ano ang mga umiimpluwensya sa kahalagahan ng isang larawan? Ano ang mga element nito?

—Any photo can hold value to anyone. I've probably taken thousands of "average" simple photos that could be so valuable to my couples and their families/friends. For example, someone who has recently passed away. Those photos then become priceless.

—Sinong tao ang sumisimbolo sa ika-21 siglo sa iyong opinyon?

—Mark Zuckerberg, undoubtedly.

—Sino ang gusto mong kuhaan?

—Easy one. I'd love to spend some time photographing and chatting with Sir Alex Ferguson.

—Ano ang ikinababahala mo, at bakit?

—Yes, the constant wars all over the world. Utterly awful.

—Kung ikaw ay isang kartun, libro o karakter sa pelikula, sino ang gugustuhin mong maging at bakit?

—Bananaman.

—Paano mo binibigyang kahulugan ang tagumpay? Paano mo tinitimbang ito?

—Happiness is the only measure of success. People who equate money to success are totally missing the point, in my opinion.

—Mas pipiliin mo bang magustuhan o nirerespeto?

—A bit of both.

—Kapag ikaw ay naglalakbay, ano ang dinadala mo at bakit?

—I travel light.

—Paano mo tinuturuan ang sarili mo na kumuha ng mas magagandang mga larawan?

—Practice, practice and practice. Take photos, thousands of them. And if you don't like them or they don't look right, figure out why that is, and then work on it. That's pretty much how I managed to become an established full-time professional. I lived and breathed photography until I was confident I'd reached a certain level of competency to be able to charge money for my work. Oh, and practice more. Did I mention practice?

—Kaninong mga gawa ang may malaking nagimpluwensiya sa iyo bilang photographer?

—There are a few whose work I admire and these were inspiring for me when I was first dipping my toes into the world of wedding photography. Andrew Billington, Alan Law, Steven Rooney, Adam Johnson, Two Mann Studios & Pete Farrell are all wedding photographers that I admire. There are more, but these are the ones off the top of my head.

—Ano ang nag-uudyok sa iyo na ipagpatuloy ang pagkuha ng mga larawan?

—The genuine love for what I do. Being surrounded by happy people is infectious and good for my soul. I rarely do negativity.

—Ang iyong magulang ba ay dapat naging mas o hindi gaanong istrikto?

—Possible more strict, especially at meal times as I have a lot of mental blocks to certain types of food.

—Kung maaari mong balikan ang nakaraan, ano ang babaguhin mo?

—I'd probably have traveled more in my late teens/early twenties.

—Paano naman ang buhay sa ibang mga planeta?

—Based on the laws of probability, I'd say yes.

—Ano ang iyong ginagawa sa iyong bakanteng oras?

—With my family and friends plus lots of napping with my dogs, reading, traveling and being idle.

—Anong bahagi mo ang hindi nakikita ng publiko?

—My insecurities tend to be kept under lock and key. But I worry myself to sleep most nights.

—Mabilis ka ba makipagkaibigan?

—Yes, I like to think so.

—Saan mo gustong manirahan?

—Reykjavik, Iceland.

—Mayroon ka bang paboritong biro? Sabihin mo sa amin.

—Why was the sand wet? Because the sea weed.

—Mahilig ka ba sa mga aso at pusa?

—Dogs.

—Sino o ano ang iyong kinasusuklaman?

—Hate is a strong word. Wow. That's a hard one. Perhaps Donald Trump or Theresa May could fall into that category.

—Bukas ako pupunta at gagawa...

—I'm going out with some fellow photographers for drinks in Manchester. Our weekends tend to be during the week given what we do for a living.