Before reading this interview I suggest reading my Introduction to Interviews with Photographers.

This is the second part of my interview with Katerina Lomonosov. Click here to read the first part.
To read the whole interview in one piece click here.

Let’s talk about the following photograph:

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Looking at it I feel vague associations with some of my childhood fears. What did you want to communicate through this photograph?

This photograph is named “Philosophy of Unfreedom”. At first this photograph is simply gives an impression of prisoned child staring outside from the “cage”. But I put also a hidden meaning here. Pay attention to the child’s hands. Look how hard he clings to his “cage”. How often we, being unfree in the literal or figurative meaning of this word, are afraid to loose our “cage”, fear to make changes in our lives, and feel comfortable in our unfreedom, though not always admit it?

Such interpretation doesn’t lie on the surface, and if a viewer won’t take time to “decipher” it, it will remain hidden. But even without it the photograph turned out to be deep, memorable, and strong – mostly thanks to a good acting of my five years old son ☺.

Photo “October…” I liked the most. It breathes with tenderness and freshness of the autumn… Tell us a bit about the creation of this photograph.

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

This work is one of my favorites. The model is a young woman who came to me. She wanted me to create beautiful photographs of her. So she wanted to look good in the pictures, and my goal was not to disappoint her…

The idea of hair-tree came immediately to my mind, but post-processing took several hours. Then I was ready to send the work to my customer, but something stopped me…
I was returning to work on it each day of that week – tried to add various elements, but nothing worked. Until one day I had the idea to add falling leafs to the tree… Then everything fell into place, and the photograph got its final look.

Tell us about the accessories that you use in your work.

Each composition gets its own accessories. Sometimes it’s gloves or a fan, often different types of fabric, sometimes flowers. I also like to use fruits and vegetables – they seem “real” to me, just as the nature created them, I think this is important for my work. Once I even brought a stepladder from work – it complemented the background of the composition, and I made some very nice pictures with it.

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

What equipment do you use? How important is quality equipment for photographer?

I started with a small point-and-shoot Fuji A210. Many of my early works, which are made with it, now participate in international exhibitions and competitions. Later, I bought Canon 350D and used it for three years. My best works are made using this camera.
Now I have Canon 5D Mk.II. I gladly switched to full frame, but still think that the photographer’s eyes and mind create the photograph and not the camera.

My opinion is that in most cases it is not essential which camera captured the picture – most important is when photograph reaches deep inside and touches your feelings.

Tell us a little about your work with light. What lighting techniques and equipment do you use?

Lighting? I use natural light that reaches my living room through the windows. Nothing more. I don’t use flashes, umbrellas, or reflectors. The important thing for me is to have free time during the daylight hours.

How much time you devote to Photoshop? What features of Photoshop you use the most?

Post-processing in Photoshop is crucial to me. I devote quite a lot of time to it. I work on each photograph for several hours. I use color-correction, add various textures, and work a lot with masks and layers.

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Is it possible to buy your work, and if so, where?

I sell my work in galleries on the internet, some of them are presented in the Moscow gallery “Fotoloft”

You can also purchase my work directly from me.

If you could give only one piece of advice to a beginner photographer, what would it be?

I would advise to photograph with your “soul”. To put a maximum of “yourself” in what you do, and the result will not be long in coming.

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Thank you Katerina for your time and knowledge! It has been a true pleasure talking with you.

If you liked Katerina’s works, you can visit her Gallery.

You can also contact Katerina regarding purchasing her work through her email: lomonosov.katerina at gmail.com

Popularity: unranked [?]

Before reading this interview I suggest reading my Introduction to Interviews with Photographers.
To read the whole interview in one piece click here.

Katerina has a unique style in photography and she is a winner of many international photographic competitions. I was very lucky to have a chance to interview her, and she also turned out to be a very nice person.

It is my pleasure to present you Katerina Lomonosov!

Click on the photo to enlarge.

First of all please tell us a little about yourself. When did you start getting interested in photography? Which stages of your development as photographer were the most important?

I was born in 1975, in Ukraine. As a child I liked drawing and graphics. In 1997 I moved to permanent residence in Israel, where I live now. From the year 2000 I am working as graphic-designer in an advertisement company.

I got interested in photography back in 2005. It so happened that at that time, a certain kind of emptiness appeared in my life. I wanted to fill that emptiness with something interesting, beautiful, bright… That “something” turned out to be photography…

I grow and evolve with my every new work, I’m a painter, I live, think and feel with my creations… Creative photography has become a crucial part of my life… I take part in various projects in the field of documentary and art photography, and I plan to grow and develop further in this area.

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Where are you drawing inspiration and ideas for your works?

Inspiration and ideas for my works come in different ways… Sometimes idea just pops up from the subconsciousness, and some things come from pictures of other authors on the Internet. Some of my works are inspired by paintings of famous artists. There are also ideas on a particular subject, which are literally “nursed” in my head for a long time before they find their way out to be captured in a photograph.

Who are your models? Are they your relatives, acquaintances, or maybe professional photo models? How do you choose them?

My first models were my children – my son, who was then five years old, and a daughter, she was thirteen back then. Later, some of my friends and acquaintances were added to my arsenal, and also friends of my daughter. Nowadays many professional photo models would be honored to participate in my photographic work.

The most important thing for me when I choose a model is not the professionalism of the model but his/her natural body language and an expressive face, especially the eyes.

For me it is important to show in my photographs not only the beauty of lines, and location of light-spots, but also something from the depths of human nature, you may call it the “soul”. In my work I always strive to give depth of meaning to my photographs, so that they would make people think and try to understand what I wanted to express. I want my photographs to reach for the person’s deepest feelings and emotions.

Photograph by Katerina Lomonosov. Click on the photo to enlarge.

How do you find and choose locations?

Most of my photographs are a created at my house’s living room. I just move the furniture aside and make a small “studio”, but it is more like a simple corner. Occasionally I get out with my friends to take pictures outside. When shooting outside I prefer abandoned houses, but with walls and windows still intact , so even outside I seek places that look like my familiar environment at home.

How much time in your weekly routine is given to photography?

In good times, every Friday is all about photography. One day a week. Sometimes I also shoot on Saturdays. But I also have busy periods, when I have to sacrifice my hobby for other matters, and several weeks can pass without me creating a single photograph.

*         *         *

This is the end of Part I of my interview with Katerina Lomonosov. Click here for Part II.

If you liked Katerina’s works, you can visit her Gallery.

You can also contact Katerina regarding purchasing her work through her email: lomonosov.katerina at gmail.com

Popularity: unranked [?]

I was introduced to Jairo’s work on Flickr, and I liked it very much. In my opinion Jairo has very good eye for people and different situations that involve people. I frequently visit his Flickr account and enjoy great new photos, which he posts pretty often.
Though Jairo has a very busy schedule, he kindly agreed to this interview, and I am very grateful for that!

First of all a little about you.

Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from? What do you do for a living?
My name is Jairo Abud and I’m 52 years old. I was born in Brazil and live in Sao Paulo. I’m professor of economics at a Business School.

When did you start getting involved in photography?

I always loved photography since I was a teenager. My brother-in-law had a darkroom back then. I used to take pictures in B&W and he would lend me his chemicals and his darkroom so that I could learn and get used to developing my own photos at the age of 16. After I graduated from college, I got involved more with work and did not have much time to spare for my hobby, so I slowed down with photography.
I used to photograph with Praktica (brand of camera manufactured by Pentacon), which is still working pretty well. But two years ago I decided to get a new camera and bought a Sony Alpha 100. And my love of photography came back stronger than before, I guess. My wife told me about Flickr and I decided to start sharing my photos with other people.

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

What do you like the most about photography?

Unlike in movies, I believe that people have different interpretations and feelings when they look at a photo. Your life experience is the main interpreter of the photos. I really believe that photograph can touch you and set your hidden feelings and sentiments free.

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Which subjects are your favorite to photograph?

I would say I’m a people’s photographer. I always like to see a human as subject when composing the whole photo scene. I like to take pictures in Sao Paulo downtown where I can compose images in which the architecture plays an important role, though the major role is played by the people of the city. As you know, Sao Paulo is the second largest city in Latin America, and you can find many different personages there – lonely people, people with sad or happy faces, and people with different life experiences. I like it when my photos try to illustrate that.

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Is there photographers that you are inspired by? Who ?

I like Sebastião Salgado, a Brazilian photographer – he always put the human being in the foreground. And I’m also a big fan of Bresson’s art (Henri Cartier-Bresson).

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

And now, a little more details for us, keen amateurs

What advice would you give to a beginner photographer?

I consider myself as an amateur too. And I always will be an apprentice. In my opinion the first step to take good photos is to observe and study different photos taken by different known photographers and try to make similar ones. It’s just like a painting learning process. Painters also try to emulate great painters of the past to learn their technique before painting their own art.

You can also do that as a photographer. With time, you will start to compose by yourself and to create your own style. It is a learning process. But this was my recommendation for a first step… The next, and most difficult one, is to be yourself, and take pictures the way you like taking pictures and not because other people like that style. After you have found out what you like, stop worrying about what others would say about your photos and just take them.

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

What photographic equipment do you primarily use?

I use a Nikon D90 with 3 different lenses: Tamron 10-24mm for landscapes, a 18-200mm for general purposes and a 80-200mm for photographing people. I also believe that good equipment is fundamental for you to improve your photos.

Other important thing: you have to know your equipment really well, and have control over it, to have the camera as an extension of yourself. My next camera will be a full frame, for sure.
I also use Photoshop CS4 for processing – especially for contrast and minor adjustments.

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Could you tell me a little bit about your typical photo-shoot?

I always invite friends to go out and take photos. After a couple of hours we take a break in a coffee shop and start to look at each other’s photos. That’s very interesting because you can realize that, even when you’re on the same spot, you find completely different photos among your friends.

I always try to take photos of people spontaneously, but if I see an interesting face that I would like to photograph, I ask that person’s permission and start talking to him or her to make them comfortable. And I always focus on their eyes, where the real emotion is.

Lately I’ve been trying a different way of taking photos: I don’t look at the camera display right after taking a photo – I think the movement of looking at the display will distract me and make me miss other important shots.

There is no “decisive moment” but a “decisive sequence”. After that sequence, those series of moments, you can choose the best shot.

Photograph by Jairo Abud. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Thank you Jairo for your time. I wish you all the best in your future endeavors!

If you liked Jairo’s photographs and want to see more of his work, visit him at:

Jairo’s Flicker Account

Popularity: unranked [?]

This Part III of my interview with freelance stock photographer Scott Stulberg. If you didn’t, please read Part I and Part II.

To read the whole interview in one piece click here.

Before reading this interview I suggest reading my Introduction to Interviews with Photographers.

Let’s talk about your beautiful panoramic photographs. I understand that choosing a composition and waiting for the right moment are deeply personal skills, but there is also a technical side to it. Which lenses are you using for panoramic photography and how many frames do you stitch together for your final image? What software do you use for that?

Panos? Well… I do love shooting them. They take some skill and a lot of patience. When the right moment and location hits you, it is time to lock and load. A good tripod is a necessity. So is a good ballhead. Making sure yo are perfectly level is crucial. I swing my camera from side to side, even if the level says I am level. You need to make sure that the horizon is at the exact same level on the right edge of your frame as on the left side side. You need a good ballhead to let you pan nice and smooth. A cheaper ball head that does not let you pan smoothly will never work. Always remember this!

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

As far as lenses – I use a nice wide angle or even a closer to normal lens, but usually on the wider side. I guess my favorite lens to use is my 16-35 2.8 L lens. Usually at a pretty high f/stop too.

I span the entire width a few times and decide how many shots I want to stitch together. You can shoot vertically and stitch more, or shoot horizontally. I usually like to shoot horizontally and not go too crazy… Maybe 4 to seven images total, and you have to make sure that you are in Manual mode. Anything else and you will mess up your exposure, as camera will try and vary your exposure automatically. So manual is a must. Tripod can’t move even a millimeter, which makes a good tripod also a must… not a cheapo, nothing too light or flimsy. A cable release is also a must.

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

And then starting from the left, you shoot one frame and then move across to the right, overlapping the image about 20 percent or so each time till you get to the right side. There you have it… easy as pie.

Then I use Photomerge in Photoshop. Works like a charm. Love shooting Panoramas. My shot of Santorini, Greece that I did in the rain years ago, is hanging up 72 inches wide in the new UCLA Medial Center here in LA. I love how powerful panos look and it is the best feeling to nail a good one! The one in Santorini was one of the most memorable times shooting in my life. When the rain started out of the blue, all of the people went back inside, giving me just what I wanted – an uncluttered view of the spectacular town of Santorini. And instead of a beautiful sunset, I got intense clouds and a very moody feeling that gave me something that most people do not get. What a moment for me!

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

What your advice for a beginner photographer would be ?

Read …read…… and then read some more. Everything you can. And also use the best tool in the world, the one I did not have growing up. The Internet. Wow… at the touch of a finger, you can see and read about every photographer in the world. This is a gold mine. You can learn from all the pros this way. Look at their style, learn their secrets, and understand so much anytime you want.

The computer has changed our lives in so many ways, but as far as a learning tool, there really is nothing better. But also, nothing beats having a camera with you at all times. The best camera to own is the one that you have with you. Make sure you remember that. Sometimes moments pop up out of the blue and you will be pretty bummed without that camera nearby.

Study and shoot all the time. Schools are fantastic, any classes will be the most helpful. Being around other students is so motivating too!! Nothing beats that!!

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

Thank you Scott for this informational and interesting interview! I learned a lot from it and I am sure that many of my readers will benefit from it too.

If you liked Scott’s photographs and want to see more of his work, visit him at:

www.asa100.com

Scott also has a blog where he writes about some of the stuff he shoots and gives Photoshop tips:

Scott’s Blog

You can also purchase the book that Scott mentioned in the interview on Amazon:

Popularity: unranked [?]

This is Part II of my interview with freelance stock photographer Scott Stulberg. Part I can be found here.

To read the whole interview in one piece click here.

Before reading this interview I suggest reading my Introduction to Interviews with Photographers.

Now let’s get to a more technical stuff.

Could you give any tips on shooting stock photography?

You have to be great at shooting people. You need to get rid of any inadequacies of being able to approach someone and ask them if you can shoot them for stock. So much of Stock photography has people in the shot, and the biggest tip I can give is to focus on capturing people in your images, no matter what the subject is. Look at ads all over the place, even on TV they include peole in every aspect of life and their daily routines, from drinking beer to working on a laptop.
You also should either focus on one subject , and get great at it…or be pretty diverse, and that’s what I like. I don’t want to just focus on shooting food, like some people do. I want to try and do many things. But travel shots are my favorite.

Photographs by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photos to enlarge.

Please describe your typical work flow after you click on the shutter release button.

Hmmmm. This interview is getting longer by the minute I see. My workflow? Well, I make sure that I back up my memory cards that night, whether at home or at the hotel. Open up my images in Photoshop, which is still my program of choice. After using a program for so many years like I have, and in my case, I have been using Photoshop since version 2, it is hard to change. I do like Lightroom and also Aperture, but I prefer to use the original and it works for me perfectly.
I work in Raw of course, and in Bridge, I flag my favorite files pretty quickly and save them into a “best raw folder”. Then I go over them again, giving a higher rating on my second pass. Then I open up my favs in camera raw and go to town on them. Feels good to be fast in Photoshop and so often I know exactly what a certain image needs.

What photographic equipment do you primarily use?

I have been a Canon shooter pretty much since the late 80’s when Canon switched over to the EOS system. That changed the whole ball game and I left Nikon and have not looked back since. Although, Nikon has finally come back with a vengeance and some of their stuff blows away Canon now, and finally we have some good competition that will help us all out.
Have a ton of lenses from super wide, my 15mm Fiisheye all the way to my super telephoto 500mm f4. Carbon fiber tripods, Lowe Pro camera bags and backpacks, and of course I work on a Mac. There really is no substitute there.

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

On your site I saw beautiful photographs from the Joshua Tree workshop. How these workshops are conducted? How to choose a workshop to suit your skill level and needs ? Could you recommend certain workshops?

Workshops? Well… There are so many ways to go on a workshop. Many schools have them available all over or you can just look in the back of photo magazines. They are usually in the back pages. You can also go online and scout them out. Workshops are possibly the best way to become a better photographer in a matter of days. You go out with other folks that want to learn too…and you pick the workshop that suits you the best.

The Joshua Tree Photo Safari I did was such a cool time for everyone, including the models. I invited 2 beautiful girls, had them bring plenty of nice clothes, and we all learned how to shoot them in the beautiful early morning and late afternoon light. People learned how to pose them, compose the whole feeling and how to understand the lighting in many situations. I showed them how to use reflectors and diffusers, flash the right way and even how to dress them with the right clothes for the right feeling. I even posed them for some stock ideas.

I brought up a piece of old luggage and put Kristin, the taller model in old jeans and a cool red sweater and then we bought a cool cowboy hat. I had her pose on the side of the road at sunrise, hitchhiking. Tried her in different poses, walking towards me and away from me, standing with her thumb out, sitting on her luggage, acting kind of bummed… and it was a super cool time. I even let everyone use my 500 telephoto to see the compression effect from using a long lens. Was a great stock shot that I loved getting. Knew I wanted to get it before I got to Joshua Tree and walked away with several different variations. The students loved trying it too.

Workshops are a great way to practice and learn a ton of new things. I like the Julia Dean workshops. My friend Paul Renner, also does some here in California and Africa. I have led some with him in both places. His site is rennerimages.com. My friend Art Wolfe also does some, out of Seattle. I teach up in Art’s Photography Center in Seattle and he is such an inspiration to me too. We both love the same things to shoot pretty much. He has been one great mentor to me.

Are you doing any kind of post-processing on your photographs? If yes, could you tell a little bit about it?
I try and get my images just how I want in camera for the most part. But I do have to make them as perfect for a magazine as possible in Photoshop too. I make sure the color balance is right on first. Clean up any distractions next. Could be dust on the sensor, a cigarette butt on the floor, or even a person who doesn’t belong. I do what the magazines need and what I tell all of my stock students is: “Photoshop is a photographers best friend!” If you want to make money from your images, you need to get good in Photoshop.

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

One thing that I use a lot also are Photoshop Plug-in filters. These are filters that you can buy and install into Photoshop to give you an amazing variety of effects and other options to make your images really shine. I recently co-wrote a book called the Digital Photographers New Guide to Photoshop Plug-ins. I show some of the best plug-ins out and how they work with many examples. They really do help a lot and the looks you can get with some of these super cool filters are amazing, and all in a matter of seconds. You don’t have to be a top Photoshop user to benefit from these things!

This is the end of Part II of the interview. Click here to read part III.

If you liked Scott’s photographs and want to see more of his work, visit him at:

www.asa100.com

Scott also has a blog where he writes about some of the stuff he shoots and gives Photoshop tips:

Scott’s Blog

You can also purchase the book that Scott mentioned in the interview on Amazon:

Popularity: unranked [?]

Before reading this interview I suggest reading my Introduction to Interviews with Photographers.

To read the whole interview in one piece click here.

Scott Stulberg is a professional photographer who travels the world and mostly shoots stock. But this is very dull description of him. I know him mainly through his photographs, and I can say that his photography is very much… alive! Just by seeing few of his photographs I could tell that this is a person who loves to take pictures. For example Scott’s photos of horses are among the best I have ever seen. In them Scott succeeded to show both the dynamics of the herd, the interaction between horses, and the tenderness of this beautiful animal.

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

I am honored to interview Scott on the pages of Photopathway, and without further ado, please welcome Scott Stulberg!

First of all a little about you.

When did you start getting involved in photography? Was there any kind of special event that triggered your interest?

I started to love photography at around 10 years old when my dad bought me a little point and shoot.  It was a plastic camera with roll film that you just dropped in. So easy….but that was the beginning of a very long love affair. My mom and grandfather had been photographers and I guess I had it in my blood.

Why do you like to take photographs and which subjects are your favorite?

It’s pretty easy to love to shoot photos. Having a camera with me is just instinctual.  It is just so natural, almost like putting on my clothes.  It feels like part of me and I love the ability to capture any little slice of life at any particular moment. And not just a piece of life, but getting it from my point of view. Putting my little twist on it, with my thought process.  It is very much like when a painter has a blank canvas in front of them.  They decide what it will be……what their take on this piece of art will be.  After all, photography has it’s roots from painting.  So, to me it is very similar.

Photographs by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photos to enlarge.

When did you decide to go pro and why ?

Not sure how many years ago, but it was while I was still a Landscape Designer.  I went to school for Landscape Architecture, and designed gardens for people’s homes for many, many years with my mother, who was a great Landscape Designer.  We both had a ton of fun working with plants and trees, flowers and everything else you can do in a garden. But I was always shooting back then. At night and on the weekends.  I used our huge guest house as a studio and just practiced my shooting skills every day. We had a swimming pool also and I joined the Los Angeles Underwater Photography Society and learned how to shoot underwater.  That was a whole new world for me and I fell totally in love with doing that too.

Is there photographers that you look up to? Who ?

So many.  So many of the early pioneers from the photo journalists like Robert Capa, whose images still knock me out, to Ansel Adams, whose work sort of guided me in so many ways… His methods also helped me tremendously in the darkroom, where I could be found almost every night till the wee hours.

Modern day, I am lucky to know so many professionals and learn from them and also shoot with them.  One of my mentors is one of the best fashion photographers of all time, Melvin Sokolsky, and his work is incredibly iconic.  His vision, methods and imagination is off the scale. Being around him is like if you were in love with painting and you could hang out with Michelangelo.  I have been pretty fortunate with knowing him.  Yesterday, I helped him shoot Anthony Hopkins and Andy Garcia for German Voque Magazine.  Was such a mellow time, in the Chateau Marmont Hotel here in Los Angeles, in a bungalow much the same as where John Belushi died of a drug overdose. Was pretty wild being in the same place as that tragic event.  But whether you are shooting famous actors or shooting architecture at night, it just feels right to know that you are capturing some special memories in your trusty little camera.

Why did you choose to shoot stock photography ?

Many years ago, I had a lot of friends that were shooting stock. What I loved was the versatility of it all. That one image could be of a herd of horses and the next of the Coliseum in Rome. It was fascinating to me. And then another shot could be something you manipulated in Photoshop and was your own creation. You could make money over and over, year after year, with the same images. I knew this was what I wanted to do. I knew back then, that I loved shooting many things and that I didn’t just want to shoot weddings, or just sports or any one field. Many people specialize in one thing, but I knew that after time, I would be bored.  Then photography would be more like a job.

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

I wanted it to be exciting and I knew shooting stock would be incredibly diverse. Plus let’s not forget about what really got me hooked. Travel stock. Going all over the world to capture images that would be used in magazines, greetings cards and so many other things. It is pretty awesome to pick up a magazine and see your images. It’s a great feeling that I love to this day. I just had a computer company in Africa ask me to use an image I did in Kenya of 4 Samburu tribes people, posing in the jungle with my laptop. They wanted to illustrate how they can bring technical awareness to even the remotest of places on this planet. It’s a nice feeling every time someone wants to use your images.

Photograph by Scott Stulberg. Click on the photo to enlarge.

This is the end of Part I of the interview. Click here to read Part II

If you liked Scott’s photographs and want to see more of his work, visit him at:

www.asa100.com

Scott also has a blog where he writes about some of the stuff he shoots and gives Photoshop tips:

Scott’s Blog

You can also purchase the book that Scott mentioned in the interview on Amazon:

Popularity: unranked [?]

Before reading this interview I suggest reading my Introduction to Interviews with Photographers.

When I found Yvan’s web site I was fascinated with his macro photography. I couldn’t stop looking at his photos, and finally bookmarked it to come back for new photos that he would present. Unfortunately for me Yvan’s web site is in French so I couldn’t understand the “about” page. But I wanted to know about him and his work, and finally I had enough courage to email him and ask for the interview. He accepted my proposal and answered all my questions!

I hope that this interview will be as helpful for you as it was for me.

Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome – Yvan Barbier!

Photograph by Olivier Nowakowski

Hello Yvan. First of all a little about you.

Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from? What do you do for a living?

I was born in Belgium, a small country more known for it’s capital : Brussels. I live in the french speaking part of Belgium, at the south of Brussels. I have two kids and a charming wife. Basically, I am agricultural engineer but I also have a phD in biological sciences. I work for a regional administration which is in charge of nature preservation. My job consists mainly of administering species and sites databases. I’m also involved in some field studies on species but it’s a minor part of my work.

What do you like the most about photography ?

What I like the most is, first of all, the pleasure to be into the wild. It is for me a source of inspiration and a good moment to forget all the little troubles of the life. It’s a kind of way to rejuvenate myself. I like also to observe plants and animals, their habitats, behaviours, … Photogaphy is for me a way of showing all the beauties of nature. In a sense, I feel like an ambassador of nature for humans

Libellula Depressa by Yvan Barbier

From your site it is obvious that you like macro photography. Why is that?

I think it is for two reasons: I am basically an entomologist (I have published several papers on insects) and I like insects. They are so diversified in the way they live that I am always fascinated to observe them. Secondly, it is for practical reasons. Unfortunately, I cannot allow as much time I would like for photography. I would like to take pictures of birds and mammals but demands for a huge time investment and for finances that I do not have. You can do macro photography with a modest equipment in your garden. This is more difficult if you want to do the same with mammals or birds.

Are there photographers that you are inspired by? Who ?

I like very much the pictures of André Maurer, a very talentuous Swiss photographer. He has a lot of sensitivity and is able to communicate it into his pictures. Ther are plenty others but it is not possible to cite all of them here.

Plebejus Argus by Yvan Barbier

And now, a little more technical details

Please describe your typical work flow after you click on the shutter release button.

My typical workflow is the following:
- I always shoot in RAW format (NEF in my case since I use a Nikon body)
- Once at home, after a shooting session, I transfert all the pictures to hard drive 1
- My disk is organized chronologically (year/month/day-location)
- If necessary, I use subfolders to organize images by white balance
- I batch convert all pictures into jpeg medium resolution (1400×930 pixels) with preset files I have made (one for each main white balance). Jpeg files are saved on hard disk 2
- Only after that conversion, I use a viewer to view the jpeg pictures. I do a first pass to eliminate pictures that have technical problems (focus,…). I delete jpeg and raw versions.
- I proceed to a second pass to keep only the best pictures and remove redundant ones. When possible, I use to take several pictures of the same scene, varying aperture. Often, there is one image better that the others in a series.
- I make a backup copy of raw and jpeg files on hard disk 3 and, periodically, on hard disk 4 that is not stored at home.

Photo by Yvan Barbier

Are you doing any kind of post-processing on your photographs? If yes, could you tell a little bit about it?

I do “basic” post-processing on my pictures: white balance, resizing, sharpenning. If necessary, I adjust other settings like exposure compensation.

But remember that post-processing is also depending of the settings that are applied on the body. For example, in my case, I’ve choosed to apply a low contrast directly on the body. If necessary, I change the contrast at post-processing (often by applying an S curve on the histogram). Another example is the color space conversion. My body is preset for the “Adobe RGB” color space. When I convert my raw files to jpeg, I convert the color space to sRGB, which is better for web display.

What photographic equipment do you primarily use for macro photography?

For the moment, my main body is a Nikon D700. I use it for 10 months with a great pleasure. I was a little bit afraid when I adopted the full frame (I had a D200 before). But finally, I don’t have any regret. I like it very much. I just regret that the viewfinder doesn’t have 100% coverage. In some cases it is very annoying when you try to make the “perfect frame” but still get parasitic object in your frame because you didn’t see it in the viewfinder and then you have to crop your pictures in post-processing.

Of course I also use some macro lenses. The 105 micro-Nikkor has been my main lens during several years. It is a superlative lens and I do appreciate it a lot. But I am now using longer focal lengths : the Sigma 150mm f/2.8 is one of my favorite lenses. It is very sharp, even at full aperture. For some months, I also use the micro-Nikkor 200mm f/4. It is a very good lens but I would not recommend it for a beginner since it requires to be very carefull when handling and focusing. I also like to use the Nikkor 300mm f/4 to do proxy-photography. It is a very good lens for that purpose. It allows you to isolate the subjet more easily and to get very beautifull backgrounds.

For high magnification factors, I use the Kenko extension tube set.
I also use flash but I try to avoid it since it’s light is never “as good” as the natural light. I use it as fill-in or as the main light source for greater magnification rates.

Anemone Nemerosa by Yvan Barbier

When shooting insects, are you going to the nature, or bring them to the studio?

I always go to nature. It is at the base of my approach. I like so much to be in the field that it is my first motivation. I go out very early in the morning, when the light is beautiful and the insects are still quiet. I also like the end of the day for the same reasons.

What your advice for a beginner photographer would be?

The first advice I should give is first to learn about what you want to photograph. If you want to take photographs of butterflies, you need to know where they live, which species you can meet, in wich habitat, etc… It is also absolutely necessary in order to avoid distrubing them. If you don’t know their habits, you can seriously disturb them.
Then, you also need to know the basics of photography and camera settings. You need to know what is aperture, ISO sensitivity, speed, etc… before going out to take photographs. You also need to know the basic settings of your camera body. I see sometimes beginners who don’t know the difference between “A” and “S” mode!

And finally, I don’t think that the equipment makes the photograph! You can start in macro photography with very little stuff: an entry level body and a simple macro lens is quite enough. I insist on recommending a macro lens. I often see beginners who only have an entry level zoom lens for doing macro. To really see results in macro photography, you need a macro lens.

Thank you Yvan for your time, and good luck in your future endeavors!

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If you liked Yvan’s work you are welcome to visit his web site with much more stunning photographs at:

www.yvanbarbier.com

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Ever since I started getting interested in photography I wanted to know more about photographers whose work I liked. I had many questions for them – how they started they journey in photography, what keeps them motivated, and of course technical stuff like what equipment they use and their workflow.
Having this blog created a unique opportunity for me – ask the photographers I like to give an interview for my readers.
I have been surfing the net for a while now searching for inspiration for my own photographic works, and occasionally I end up in a site not being able to leave it before I go over all the photographs there. I bookmark such sites and remember the names of the photographers. These are the guys that I will try to interview, and if they agree I will post the interviews here for the benefit of everybody.

I will also reveal a small secret – I already have one great photographer who accepted my interview proposal! So stay tuned for this interview, which will be posted sometime during the next week.

I would also really appreciate if you suggested photographers that you like so I could take a look at their work and learn a bit more myself.

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