Feature Interview - 365 days: Bella Kotak

Ok so I kinda lied...I have one more interview for the 365 feature, but I think you'll be greatful cause she's pretty bloody amazing!!

Here is the beautiful Bella Kotak!


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1. Fill me in on your background, where are you from and how did you get in to photography?

Hi, my name is Bella and I’m originally from Kenya, right now, I’m currently living in Oxford, England. I would say that my interest in photography began when I was very young, I was always fascinated by photos and would always play with my Dad’s camera. I began to take photography seriously nearly three years ago now when I came across Flickr. I was at a period of my life when I was feeling very lost and low and begun to crave for a creative outlet.



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2. What made you decide to start a 365?

When I began my 365 I was unemployed and since I had time I liked the idea of a routine. The feeling of accomplishing something new and different everyday motivated me. Plus it seemed like the perfect way to improve both artistically/ technically quickly.




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3. What is your process when taking your 365 from getting ideas to editing?

Haha oh I’d love to say that my pictures turned out exactly like I’d planned them but that would be an exaggeration. To be honest most of my pictures were nothing like I’d envisaged but in hindsight actually turned out better. Generally, I would have an idea about the location and the mood/ emotion I wanted to portray. I’d also rock up with a ton of props, just incase I decided to toss out original concepts and exchange them for something that was more suited! Editing wise I use photoshop CS5.




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4. What are your tools of the trade?

At the moment I use the Canon 450d, Canon 50mm f1.8, Canon 17-85mm lens, a manfrotto tripod and a remote.


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5. Why do you think people are drawn to starting and following 365’s?

I guess it could possibly come down to the fascination of another person’s art, life and thinking process. I know I follow people that have belief in their work, they have an idea of what they want to present to the world and are unashamed in laying themselves bare for comments and critique. Starting a 365 is also a creative way of documenting your life day by day, for a year. You learn a lot about yourself as a person in that time!



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6. What is your least favourite 365 shot you’ve taken so far and why?

There are quite a few, but possibly this one...



as I didn’t have much time and wasn’t feeling inspired at all, and it shows.

7. What is your favourite 365 shot you’ve taken so far and why?

This one...




...as it was one of the first few times that I’d begun to include my cat in my little stories.

8. What is your favourite 365 shot taken by another photographer?

There are too many!! One of them is definitely this one by Kalie Garrett...



It feels almost iconic. I could stare at it for hours..

9. What are some of your favourite things :)?

Haha I have lots of little things I like, one of my favourite things is my camera (of course!), my rings (I have too many!), fairy lights, sequins, my books and randomly, my postcards.. I have a collection from all the places I’ve visited in the world.



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10. What is your best tip to taking a striking photo?

Lighting! Good lighting can change an ordinary photo into an extraordinary one. It’s the first thing I notice and since I mostly work with natural light it’s core to where and when I take photos.



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11. Your 365 seem to incorporate your surroundings and the elements, is this a big part of your style?

Yes I think so. It’s happened naturally. I find the natural world so inspiring. It’s a perfect backdrop for mini adventures and fantastical things to take place. Plus because of the project I’ve discovered so many beautiful locations around me that I had no idea about!


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12. What do you do when you feel like giving it all up?

I guess when it all gets a bit too much or when I’ve lost motivation, I find that it helps when I take a little break. Go into hibernation of sorts. After a while I find I miss it and when I come back to it I feel refreshed and excited again.


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13. Who’s 365 has been the most inspiring to you?

Ah there are so many! I have to say that I loved Lissy Elle’s when she was doing it and Alex Stoddard’s. Both artists incorporate nature and fantasy beautifully! I also love Kalie Garrett’s work. Her photos are stunning.


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14. What are some of your favourite films, books and musicians?

Oh dear I have too many! Favourite films would be V for Vendetta, Totoro, Howl’s Moving Castle, Amelie, too many..

Favourite book only because I’ve read it so often would be South of the sun, west of the border by Haruki Murakami (all his books are beautifully written!) and favourite music would be the different subgenres of dubstep.


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15. What has been your biggest achievement so far with your photography and 365?

I would say that every opportunity that I’ve had from meeting new people, to booking jobs has been an achievement. From starting as a complete amateur to people trusting me to document the most important day of their lives, well, that’s just insane and so humbling.



16. Do you think it’s hard to be original within the 365 project? How do you keep your ideas original and fresh?

Sometimes. I guess as long as you recognise that as an individual you would have your own perspective on the world and particular ideas and once you begin to create with conviction in your own individuality then as a result no doubt your work will be original!



17. Which 365 shot was the most difficult to capture?

Haha it’s hard to pick! But I’d say this one -



I didn’t have a remote so had to run to and from the camera to press the shutter and check focus. It also didn’t help that my bike doesn’t have a stand so it kept toppling over, sometimes taking me with it. I think at some point I was also standing in a patch of stinging nettles and of course. as usual, I was wearing inappropriate footwear! Needless to say I had very sore feet and was a little exhausted afterwards :)

18. Do you often change a lot of the original photo in Photoshop?
Yes, more often than not the image is manipulated in Photoshop. Exposure, tone and white balance is corrected and colours are played with. Photoshop allows me to translate what I see and feel at that moment into something tangible.



19. Do you think you have an original style that is you own?

No, I don’t think I do. I think as a young artist it’s really important to experiment and to keep shooting. I hope that the more I shoot and produce the more my creative eye will sharpen.



20. What is your favourite time of year to take photos?

I love taking photos in spring and autumn! The atmosphere of colour and change is hard to resist.



21. If you could photograph any person alive or dead who would it be and why?

Hm maybe a young Kate Moss or a younger Angelina Jolie, it would be fascinating to meet them too!



22. Give us the skinny, what’s the next big project you’ve got coming up?

There’s something in the pipeline which I’m very excited about but won’t talk of it just yet least I jinx it. Otherwise one of my resolutions this year is to shoot more, once a week if I can organise myself!



23. Which actor would play you in the film of your life?

Hmm I don’t know.. Even though we look nothing alike, maybe Audrey Tautou? (haha another girl crush!)



24. What did you want to grow up to be when you were a kid?

I wanted to be everything! But I think it was up to the age of 17 that I wanted to be an astronaut.

 

Thank you so much Bella, see more of her amazing work on her stream here

Peace xx

Feature Interview - 365 days: Joel Robison (a.k.a Boy Wonder)

It's been a while since my last interview, but boy am I making up for that with this next interview! Joel (Boy Wonder) has literally today finished his 3rd 365, his images are so impeccably crafted and his imagination seems just endless.

This will change your life!


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1. Fill me in on your background, where are you from and how did you get in to photography?

Well, my name is Joel Robison and I live in Cranbrook, British Columbia, in Canada. It's a small town in the Rocky Mountains. I first started to get into photography about 4 years ago, I had stumbled across Flickr and saw a few people doing different projects and I thought it was a fun hobby to try out. I've been active on Flickr ever since!






2. What made you decide to start a 365?

I started my first one about 3 years ago and I had started just because I saw some other people doing it and I thought it looked like fun. I didn't finish that first try, but I ended up trying it again a few months later and stuck with it. I decided to do my 2nd and 3rd 365 projects because I think it's an excellent way to grow as an artist and to stretch yourself creatively.




3. What is your process when taking your 365 from getting ideas to editing? 

I have a notebook that bring with me all the time that I use to brainstorm different ideas, when I think of a concept or a theme I write it out and then branch out possible photos I could do with it. Then I go out and shoot! I'm almost always alone when I work, I find it's easier to stay focussed and to get the shots that I need when I'm by myself. Depending on the shot I'm working on, it takes anywhere from 20 minutes to 2 hours of shooting to get all the images I need. I try to edit the photos right away because I feel that it really helps to work on an image in the same mindset. Most of my images are edited in between an hour to two hours.






4. What are your tools of the trade?

Well, I use a Canon Xti which is an older model but it does the trick! I mainly use a 50mm 1.8 lens. I also have a lightweight tripod and a wireless remote. I use Photoshop to edit my images.




5. Why do you think people are drawn to starting and following 365's?

I think they are drawn to it because it's a challenge and it's a chance to try new things. I also think it's a great visual diary of a year of your life so it's a chance to document your life and share it with others. I think that people like following them because it gives you a great opportunity to get to know an artist and learn about their lives and see them grow day to day.




6. What is your least favourate 365 shot you've taken so far and why?

I would say this one:



I was in a bad mood that day and I got caught in a thunderstorm which ended up making me stranded in this little brick hut for a few hours. I didn't feel like taking anything else that day so I was stuck with this shot and I didn't really like it.

7. What is your favourate 365 shot you've taken so far and why?

Wow, it's hard to pick a favourite but if I had to, I would say this one:



because it came out exactly the way I had in my head and that never happens. I was feeling really stressed at that time with a job that I didn't like and feeling like I didn't know where my life was going and this really felt like it fit how I felt about life, that I was just a silhouette and nothing real.

8. What is your favourite 365 shot taken by another photographer?

Wow, an even HARDER question! I would have to say this one by David Talley:



He is so clever and his use of space and light is just beautiful. I love how this image is just simply done yet speaks so much.

9. What are some of your favourate things :)?

Well, I love bicycles, coffee, gnomes, peace signs, and cameras :)




10. What is your best tip to taking a striking photo?

Use manual settings! If you learn everything that your camera can do, it's the first step to being able to take a shot in any situation.




11. Your 365 seem to incorporate your surroundings and the elements, is this a big part of your style?

I think so. I live a beautiful area of the world and I want to incorporate as much of it as i can, partly because it inspires me and partly because I want to share it with the rest of the world.



12. Who's 365 has been the most inspiring to you?

I would have to say Brooke Shaden's 365 project. I was able to see it from just about the beginning to end and her growth and development as an artist was beautiful to see.




13. What are some of your favourite films, books and musicians?

I really enjoy Canadian music like Sarah Slean, Sarah Harmer, and Feist but I also enjoy Coldplay :) I like a variety of movies, mostly ones with lots of whimsy or surrealism like Alice In Wonderland.



14. What has been your biggest achievement so far with your photography and 365?

I would say for me the biggest achievement has been the growth that I've been able to make from the start of my project until now, I'm proud of the skills I've learned and i'm happy that people enjoy what I do.



15. Do you think it’s hard to be original within the 365 project? How do you keep your ideas original and fresh?

I think that it can be hard not to do cliche things in a 365 project but each person can interpret ideas in their own way which makes it original. I think that as long as you are staying true to your own vision, it's original!




16. Which 365 shot was the most difficult to capture?

Easily this one:



Not because the image itself was difficult to do, but the mosquitoes were so thick that there was literally a black cloud following me, with about 100 of them biting me at once. I could only manage to take about 10 photos before having minor freak out and at one point I think I swore quite loudly!

17. Do you often change a lot of the original photo in Photoshop?

It really depends on the image itself, sometimes I just play with the tones and contrast a bit but other times I create a lot of additions like lighting, props, and textures.




18. Do you think you have an original style that is you own?

Um, I don't think I do, but other people have told me that I do. I think that I use a lot of the same techniques like multiple objects close to the edge to create DOF, but I don't know if that's original style or not :)



19. What is your favourate time of year to take photos?

Hmmm......I would say spring time because the weather is usually nice and the sun is out long enough to give me lots of time to shoot. Each season brings with it, it's own set of advantages and disadvantages and the fun part is trying to incorporate them all!




20. If you could photograph any person alive or dead who would it be and why?

Wow...tough question. I think if I could photography anyone it would be my grandparents. I only have one living grandmother now and I would love to have been as involved in photography when my other grandparents were alive to capture them in my own way.



21. Give us the skinny, what's the next big project you've got coming up?

haha! Well, I have a blog that I'll be posting tutorials and different stuff (joelrobisonphoto.wordpress.com ) I'm also hoping to being a 52 weeks project in January called The Teleidoscope.






22. Which actor would play you in the film of your life?

Um....if I got to choose I would say maybe Ryan Gosling :)



23. What did you want to grow up to be when you were a kid

I would always answer with: A Disney Animator



This was definately one of the hardest interviews to construct simply because I wanted to pick so many images to feature!!!

Although Joel has finished his 3rd 365 Day Project (seriously this guy is magic!) he says he will still be posting regularly, plus...I only managed to show you a small sample of the amazing journey (or rather one of the amazing journey's) Joel has been on.

So go HERE and view more of Joel's insanely amazing work :)

I hope you liked the 365 feature, please let me know if you have any ideas for upcoming features, if you know any photographers you think I should feature....or if you would like to be featured yourself!

Peace

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