Фотограф Stephanie Kindermann

—Перше і найважливіше - кого ви можете назвати найкращим фотографом у вашому місті? :)

—Ha! There's a mad, crazy hoard of us.

—Чи ви фотогенічні?

—Yes, and I'll tell you why – I have a high threshold for embarrassment. The less self conscious you are, the better you photograph.

—Як ви опинилися у галузі фотографії?

—So here's the story – my father had been a wedding photographer and so I had my first little film disposables from about 5 years old. I’d shot probably thousands of rolls by the time I made it to photography college, but it was the moment where I was standing in the darkroom seeing that first image rise out of the chemical trays that I remember. Everyone else around me was fairly cool about the whole process but I couldn’t stop laughing with this electric thrill. This was the moment in my life where it became absolutely clear – I knew this is what I was going to do now. Weddings? Everyone loves a party. And a wedding is the best kind of party to shoot.

—Якими, на вашу думку, є найголовніші складові гарної фотографії?

—Good visual narrative – all the elements needed to give you context.
The split second – at the high point of madness.
The feels – something that makes your heart hurt or leap.

—Чи любите ви подорожувати?

—I live for it.

—Що вам більш за все подобається у вашій професії?

—Learning the world's secrets.
I'll share some of them with you.
No one cooks better than a Greek mama or parties as hard as a Croatian groomsman. Vietnamese elders are the bravest karaoke singers, the French do the best cigar and whiskey bar (not to mention the cheeses) and that Ghanaians will crush any dance floor. Chinese door games can be a hair raising experience, and it is deeply moving it is to see Maori women sing a welcoming song to the bride.

—Що вам менш за все подобається у вашій професії?

—When the alternate drop arrives, the chicken is always overcooked. Always.

—Яким буде майбутнє фотографії?

—Wow this is cool, I hope it will be some sort of virtual reality with a fully rendered 3D capture from the entire day. You'll be able to bang on your head set and take a walk through the entire event from any time and angle.

—Що робить жанр фотографії, в якому ви знімаєте, особливим?

—Often having a professional photograph your family is a very rare event. With this in mind I always devote a lot of time and care to capture portraits of treasured people – grandparents, GREAT grandparents, brothers, sisters, children.

—Як ви справляєтеся з критикою?

—I walked through a lot of fire in my early years of learning to shoot, and I'm still here :) Think of my teacher as being that old guy from Kill Bill who strokes his beard a lot.

—Чи є якісь тренди у фотографії?

—Yes, and they're mostly so cheesy. Things like making love hearts with your hands.... plz no!

—Якими для клієнта повинні бути критерії вибору фотографа?

—Love the work – don't employ your photographer then ask for an aesthetic from another artist!
Vibes! Would you want to drink a beer with them? Ideally you start the booking process with good vibes, and finish the wedding singing bad karaoke together.

—Чого слід уникати при фотозйомці?

—Hunger. Bride, groom, photographer and squad members should be loaded up with snacks. Picnic style canapes and champagne if you're fancy, sausage rolls and red bull if you're not.

—Які деталі, що, зазвичай, проходять непоміченими, може «зловити» фотограф?

—Ha! "Common people," love it.
One of my favourites is the tight-lipped, crazy-eyed stage-whispered threats of a parent to errant child – usually during a particularly tender moment during the ceremony.

—Що впливає на цінність фотографії? Якими є елементи цього?

—The value in a photo is, I feel, in how valued the subject is in it.
For example, a wife will always love a portrait of her husband that has captured how she sees him. If he's a charismatic person, than a genuine laugh. If he's a quiet person, then a photograph of him unaware, relaxed and thoughtful.

—Яка людина, на вашу думку, може бути символом 21-го століття?

—Elon Musk. Billionaire, genius, puts a model car in his real car then launches it into space. What a legend.

—Кого ви бажаєте сфотографувати?

—People madly in love.

—Чи маєте ви якісь професійні табу?

—I am a woman of no limits.

—З ким ви хотіли б пофотографувати?

—Jonas Peterson. He seems like a very relaxed, interesting fellow.

—Про що ви хвилюєтесь і чому?

—Mostly I have dreams where I've overslept my alarm and a bride is calling me, asking where I am, and I'm a 2 hour drive away. I guess that's my biggest worry.

—Який момент є найбільш вражаючим у вашому житті?

—Once, driving home very late from a wedding (of course), I saw space junk or a comet or the worlds most massive shooting star – so bright it illuminated everything around me. It travelled directly down the line of the straight highway I was driving for a full 10 seconds before burning out. An exceptional moment.

—Якщо ви були б персонажем мультика, книги або фільму, ким саме ви були б і чому?

—Trinity from The Matrix. She was cool and wore latex before lip injections and enormous butts became the symbols of beauty.

—Хто надихає вас у вашому житті і чому?

—Jimmy Nelson, photographer and author of Before They Pass Away. His is a body of work that is truly exceptional and of historical value.

—Як ви визначаєте успіх? Як ви його вимірюєте?

—Can't measure it but you can feel it – are you getting enough quality sleep? Are you eating well and sharing good wine with friends? Do you have leisure time with your loved ones, and does your work fill you with pleasure?

—Ви надали б перевагу тому, щоб вас любили чи все-таки поважали?

—Not everyone will like you all of the time, but you should always conduct yourself in a way that people have no loss of respect for you.

—Якою була найбільша помилка, якої ви припустилися на роботі?

—Working at a camera shop, shipped two very expensive video cameras to someone who turned out to be fraudulent. OOPS!

—Коли ви збираєтесь у подорож, що ви берете з собою і чому?

—My husband, because he can read maps.

—Чи є щось серед гаджетів, які вам належать, що ви воліли б краще не купувати? Чому?

—No, but people love to "gift" me their defunct camera gear. Please stop doing this baby boomer friends.

—Як ви вчитесь робити гарніші знімки?

—I spend A LOT of time on lovely curation sites like this one.

—Чиї роботи найбільше вплинули на вас, як на фотографа?

—Steve McCurry (again). Portrait photographer for National Geographic.

—Про яку одну річ ви хотіли б знати, коли розпочинали знімати фотографії?

—That the rules don't actually matter, and only diminish the potential expression of true moments.

—Що ви хочете сказати за допомогою ваших фотографій?

—This is a mirror of your life in this moment.

—Що мотивує вас продовжувати робити знімки?

—I have no other talents. LOL, no I can cook quite well. But photographing is my true purpose.

—Чи вашим батькам варто було б бути більш чи менш суворими?

—Less. I was raised conservative Catholic. Not allowed to watch The Simpsons when you're 17... come on!

—Якщо ви могли б повернутися назад у часі, що б ви зробили інакше?

—I wouldn't bother going to study, and instead buy a great kit and apprentice myself out 3 years earlier instead. I did the ol' highschool > study > apprentice > professional route. But study is now a moot point with online resources like Linda.com.

—А як щодо життя на інших планетах?

—Oh jeez I hope so. Certainly spices things up.

—Хто є вашими героями?

—My colleagues, for lifting my heavy, heavy camera bag up and down stairs and into the car innumerable times.

—Кого ви не поважаєте?

—Paedophiles

—Чим ви займаєтесь у свій вільній час?

—I punch through Netflix series like a karate master does bricks.

—Який ваш бік публіка ніколи не бачить?

—Lying around in pyjamas, no makeup, orange Dorito stained fingers, unshaved legs.

—Коли ви повністю задоволені своєю роботою?

—When a couple tells me they cried seeing the pictures. (With JOY).

—Чи ви вірите у традиційні ролі чоловіків та жінок?

—There are definitely things men are better at, like being muscly and crushing rocks with their bare fists. And there are definitely things women are better at, like looking good in high heels and jean shorts.

—Чи ви легко заводите друзів?

—Yes

—Де ви хотіли б жити?

—I'd love a couple of years in Istanbul. I'm a big fan!

—Який найбезглуздіший вчинок ви коли-небудь погодилися вчинити?

—To go on a VERY long bush walk, mere hours after getting home from a pub crawl.

—Чи є життя після укладення шлюбу?

—YES! It just keeps getting better!

—Чи є у вас улюблений жарт? Розкажіть нам.

—Any Gary Larson comic ever published. He might be the funniest man on earth.

—Ви любите собак чи котів?

—Cats. I'm not embarrassed.

—Кого або що ви ненавидите?

—Celery. Eww

—Найкраща річ у житті - це:

—Champagne and cheeses with friends.

—Те, що найбільш дратує в житті:

—People farting next to you on flights.

—Чи є щось таке навколо вас, що б ви хотіли змінити?

—I'm about to try my hand at home renovation, in a very literal interpretation of that question!

—Що б ви хотіли змінити в собі?

—I would love to learn Chinese. And sign language. And also do some pottery. And learn to ride horses. Probably should exercise more too.

—Що б ви хотіли змінити у світі?

—Let's turn down the level of racism shall we, it seems to be gaining momentum instead of losing it.

—Чи могли б ви дати кілька порад фотографам, які тільки починають свій шлях?

—Sure! Don't train yourself out of -not- shooting things. Such as the weird, or awkward, or funny or embarrassing moments. These are some of the greatest photographs you could take!

—Якщо іншопланетяни завітають на Землю, і ви будете першою людиною, яку вони зустрінуть, що ви їм розповісте?

—I guess I'd ask them if they wanted to join us for lunch, I know a good place...

—Якщо вас запросять знімати кіно, якого жанру воно буде?

—Whatever genre Monty Python calls itself.

—Завтра я піду і...

—EDIT! Pat my cat. Email clients! Poke around the fridge and hope for the best. Print some albums! Look at memes!