Nhiếp ảnh gia Jo-Ann Stokes

—Bạn có ăn ảnh không?

—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.

—Bạn bước chân vào nghề chụp ảnh như thế nào?

—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!

—Theo ý kiến của bạn, những thành phần nào là quan trọng nhất của một bức ảnh đẹp?

—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.

—Bạn có yêu thích du lịch không?

—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.

—Điều bạn thích nhất trong nghề của mình là gì?

—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.

—Điều bạn không thích nhất trong nghề của mình là gì?

—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!

—Tương lai của nghề chụp ảnh sẽ như thế nào?

—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.

—Bạn có chuyên môn đặc biệt về thể loại ảnh nào?

—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"

—Thái độ của bạn trước những lời phê bình như thế nào?

—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!

—Có bất kỳ xu hướng nào trong ngành nhiếp ảnh không?

—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.

—Khách hàng nên có tiêu chí nào để lựa chọn nhiếp ảnh gia?

—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.

—Cần tránh những điều gì khi chụp ảnh?

—Cheesy!

—Những chi tiết nào thường bị bỏ qua mà một nhiếp ảnh gia lại để ý?

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

—Cái gì ảnh hưởng tới giá trị của một tấm ảnh? Giá trị gồm các yếu tố nào?

—The emotion, the impact of the image!

—Theo ý kiến của bạn người nào có thể là biểu tượng của thế kỷ 21?

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

—Bạn muốn chụp ai?

—My next bride!

—Bạn có bất kỳ điều gì cấm kỵ trong nghề nghiệp không?

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

—Bạn thích chụp ảnh cùng ai?

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

—Bạn lo lắng điều gì, và tại sao?

—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.

—Khoảnh khắc ấn tượng nhất trong đời bạn là gì?

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

—Nếu bạn là một nhân vật trong một bộ phim hoạt hình, một cuốn sách hay một bộ phim thì bạn muốn là ai và tại sao?

—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.

—Ai truyền cảm hứng cho bạn trong đời và tại sao?

—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.

—Bạn định nghĩa thành công là gì? Bạn đo lường thành công như thế nào?

—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.

—Bạn muốn được yêu thích hay được tôn trọng?

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

—Sai lầm lớn nhất của bạn trong công việc là gì?

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

—Khi đi du lịch, bạn mang theo những thứ gì và tại sao?

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

—Có bất kỳ thứ gì mà bạn ước mình đã không mua trong số các thiết bị của bạn không? Tại sao?

—a few items ...too numerous to mention

—Bạn tự học cách chụp ảnh như thế nào?

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

—Tác phẩm của ai gây ảnh hưởng nhiều nhất với bạn khi làm nhiếp ảnh gia?

—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.

—Có điều gì bạn ước mình đã biết khi bắt đầu chụp ảnh?

—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.

—Bạn muốn nói điều gì với những tấm ảnh của mình?

—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.

—Động lực nào khiến bạn tiếp tục chụp ảnh?

—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.

—Bố mẹ bạn nên nghiêm khắc hơn hay bớt nghiêm khắc đi?

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

—Nếu bạn có thể du hành ngược thời gian, bạn sẽ làm điều gì khác đi?

—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.

—Cuộc sống trên các hành tinh khác như thế nào?

—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.

—Ai là người hùng của bạn?

—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

—Bạn không tôn trọng ai?

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

—Bạn làm gì trong thời gian rỗi?

—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.

—Khía cạnh nào trong con người bạn mà người ngoài không bao giờ thấy?

—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.

—Khi nào bạn hoàn toàn hài lòng với tác phẩm của mình?

—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!

—Bạn có tin vào các vai trò truyền thống của nam giới và phụ nữ không?

—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.

—Bạn có dễ dàng kết bạn không?

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

—Bạn muốn sống ở đâu?

—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 ;)

—Điều ngu ngốc nhất bạn từng đồng ý làm là gì?

—A nude shoot

—Sau hôn nhân còn gì đáng sống không?

—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!

—Bạn có câu đùa yêu thích nào không? Hãy kể cho chúng tôi.

—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!

—Bạn thích chó hay mèo?

—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!

—Bạn ghét ai hay cái gì?

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

—Điều tốt đẹp nhất trong cuộc sống là:

—free!

—Điều khó chịu nhất trong cuộc sống là:

—People who do not listen

—Bạn có muốn thay đổi bất kỳ điều gì quanh bạn không?

—Yes, our incompetent government!

—Bạn muốn thay đổi điều gì trong bản thân mình?

—I wish I had more time!

—Bạn muốn thay đổi điều gì trên thế giới?

—Evil

—Bạn có thể đưa ra vài lời khuyên cho các nhiếp ảnh gia vừa mới bắt đầu không?

—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!

—Nếu người ngoài hành tinh đến Trái đất và bạn là người đầu tiên họ gặp, bạn sẽ cho họ biết những gì?

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

—Nếu bạn được mời quay một bộ phim, đó sẽ là thể loại nào?

—A romance or a drama

—Ngày mai tôi sẽ đi làm...

—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!