Fotograaf Adam Johnson

—Bent u fotogeniek?

—I think everyone is photogenic. Just not everyone appreciates it the first time they see a photo of themselves. I'm the kind of person who grows to like photos of myself over time, rather than instantly loving them.

—Hoe bent u beland in de fotografie-industrie?

—It just happened. I got married, bought a DSLR for my honeymoon, and became obsessed with it. I thought I was getting quite good, shot a friend's wedding (as a guest) and did a terrible job. So I went away, practised and studied super hard, bought better equipment then tried again. It went much better the second time and I was able to build a portfolio and website. 18 months later I quit my day job.

—Wat zijn volgens u de belangrijkste elementen van een goede foto?

—If we are talking about a wedding photo then it's all about emotion. Light is my obsession, but a beautifully lit emotionless or 'mute' wedding photo is pointless. A photo has to speak for itself, it shouldn't need a caption or an explanation.

—Houdt u van reizen?

—Of course. And I love that wedding photography is showing me more of the world than I would ever have seen without it.

—Wat vindt u het leukst aan uw beroep?

—Freedom of expression. The more you shoot, the better you get, the more people hear about you and know about your work, the more freedom you are given to express yourself artistically. That and what I said about traveling in the last question!

—Wat vindt u het minst leuk aan uw beroep?

—I am honestly grateful for this being my profession but of course, when you have young children at school, it can take its toll when you're out most weekends throughout the summer and not able to spend as much time with them as I would like.

—Wat ziet u de toekomst van fotografie?

—Who knows?! I just hope I'm able to change and adapt to however it changes. I truly believe there will always be a market for beautiful, well crafted photos – the technology and expectations may change but the product will not.

—Wat is er bijzonder aan het fotografiegenre waarin u zich specialiseert?

—People. That's what it's all about. People and relationships. Being invited into a private world and asked to document it for a day.

—Hoe gaat u om met kritiek?

—Badly. I do not like to be criticised. Often once it has sunk in I'm able to either reject or accept it and use it to improve, but I don't like it!

—Zijn er bepaalde trends in fotografie?

—Of course! I just prefer to ignore them.

—Welke criteria moet de klant hanteren bij het kiezen van een fotograaf?

—If the photographer's photos of a total stranger's wedding can make you feel something in your heart and soul, you've found your wedding photographer.

—Wat is er totaal uit den boze bij het fotograferen?

—There are no rules but I think each photographer will have their own principles or boundaries. If someone is crying because they are truly sad then I will not photograph them just to get that 'tear shot' that is so popular with wedding photographers these days. If I do not feel it is appropriate to shoot something, then I won't shoot it.

—Welke persoon kan volgens u symbool staan voor de 21e eeuw?

—Can we answer this with 85 years of the century remaining?! I think there are so many medical and technological advances we will see in this century and I expect icons to be created in these areas.

—Wie wil u graag fotograferen?

—Ben Folds, Cristiano Ronaldo and Manchester United.

—Heeft u bepaalde taboes op professioneel vlak?

—Not that I know of!

—Met wie zou u graag fotograferen?

—Annie Leibowitz, Joey L, James Nachtwey, Don McCullin, Richard Avedon... I love to shoot with other photographers, I think it's a good thing to do regularly.

—Waar maakt u zich zorgen over en waarom?

—I am a worrier. I worry about a lot of things! Professionally speaking I worry about becoming irrelevant, about getting stuck in a rut and left behind and nobody wanting me to take their wedding pictures!

—Wat is het meest indrukwekkende moment van uw leven?

—The births of my two children.

—Als u een personage van een cartoon, boek of film was, wie zou u dan zijn?

—Peter Pan. I want to stay young and always fight pirates.

—Wie inspireert u in uw leven en waarom?

—I don't know if they inspire me as such but my children are the reason that I do what I do and why I want to continually get better at it. I am inspired by anyone successful – in business, in photography, in sport, in life... Not in an arrogant way but I find my own successes an inspiration to keep trying harder and to achieve more.

—Hoe definieert u succes? Hoe meet u het?

—For me, people booking me to shoot photos of them, plus the recognition of my work by my peers is probably my yardstick of success professionally. Happiness and contentment are signs of success in wider life.

—Bent u liever graag gezien of gerespecteerd?

—I don't think it's possible for me personally to respect somebody I don't like, so I don't think you can be one or the other. I can quickly lose respect for someone who turns out to be a huge douchebag.

—Wat is de grootste fout die u ooit begaan heeft op professioneel vlak?

—I don't remember. I know I've made mistakes but I'm pretty good about moving on from stuff.

—Wat neemt u mee op reis en waarom?

—My iphone, my kindle, my macbook, my camera and some earphones.

—Is er iets dat u liever niet gekocht had tussen de gadgets die u bezit? Waarom?

—I tend to sell stuff if it doesn't fit into my life or work after I buy it. I remember I once bought a weird step trainer off an infomercial on the TV, it was so rubbish!

—Hoe leert u bij om betere foto's te maken?

—Taking pictures is the education. I'm quite analytical so if I see a photo I like I work out what I like and why... I do the same with my own photos, working out how I could've done better or what I could've done differently. I look at other photography a lot – in books, online, instagram and I think that seeps into my work.

—Wiens werk heeft u het meest beïnvloed als fotograaf?

—I think a turning point for me was doing a workshop with Daniel Aguilar from Mexico.

—Wat had u graag geweten toen u begon als fotograaf?

—That there were no rules!

—Wat wil u graag zeggen met uw foto's?

—I've no idea. Good stuff I hope.

—Wat motiveert u om foto's te blijven maken?

—The thing I love about taking photos, or any creative pursuit I guess is that it's just that – a pursuit – and you can never catch the thing you're chasing, but you're constantly improving, or changing at least. It's not static, or limited, or constrained. I know I've not taken my best photo, and I may never take it, but I will always keep striving for it.

—Hadden uw ouders strenger of minder streng moeten zijn?

—No comment.

—Wat zou u anders doen als u in de tijd kon terugkeren?

—Nothing, I don't think of life this way. I got to this point in my life, a point in which I am extremely happy, because of the choices I made. I don't want to change anything.That, or I'd go back and invest in Apple before they invented the iPod.Or I could invent the iPod.

—Wat denkt u over leven op andere planeten?

—Maybe, maybe not. I'm not concerned with it.

—Wie zijn uw helden?

—I have no heroes.

—Voor wie kan u geen respect opbrengen?

—An awful question.

—Wat doet u in uw vrije tijd?

—I play piano, play and watch football, watch TV shows and movies, go to the gym, spend time with friends and family, listen to music...I don't see life as spare time and work time. It's just life. I do all this stuff and I work, there's no split time. I work when I have to and I play whenever I can.

—Welke kant van u krijgt het publiek niet te zien?

—The public? As opposed to who?

—Wanneer bent u helemaal tevreden over uw werk?

—I love my own work. I love seeing progression in my work. I love it when my clients are in love with the photos I give to them. Completely satisfied? Is this possible?

—Gelooft u in een traditionele rolverdeling voor man en vrouw?

—My parents got divorced when I was young. This has skewed my view of tradition in the home... I don't really know what traditional roles are – women raise children, cook and clean and men just earn the money? Then no, I don't believe in that. A family is the sum of its parts, not separate and distinct people or roles.

—Maakt u gemakkelijk vrienden?

—Yeah I guess. I'm never the instigator, I'm shy so I tend to wait for people to make friends with me!

—Waar zou u graag wonen?

—If I could have four homes I would have one in the UK, probably near where I live now, one in New York City, a rural house in Southern France and one somewhere in California! Not that I'm greedy.

—Wat is het domste waarmee u ooit akkoord bent gegaan?

—I'm not sure I've ever agreed to something stupid.

—Is er een leven na het huwelijk?

—I've been married 8 years... I'm still alive.

—Heeft u een favoriete mop? Vertel ...

—What's invisible and smells like carrots?Rabbit farts.

—Houdt u van honden of van katten?

—Neither.

—Wie of wat haat u?

—I hate wasps. Passionately.

—Het beste in het leven is:

—Family time.

—Het vervelendste in het leven is:

—Traffic jams.

—Is er iets rondom u dat u graag zou veranderen?

—I want to make my house bigger!

—Wat zou u graag veranderen aan uzelf?

—I would like to break my iphone addiction!

—Wat zou u graag veranderen aan de wereld?

—Far too much to list. The world is a broken place.

—Kan u tips geven voor beginnende fotografen?

—You don't have to shoot every second of the wedding, you're not making a stop motion movie... Slow down, breathe, let your mind take in what is happening then tell the story with your photos. There are no rules.

—Als buitenaardse wezens naar de Aarde komen en u bent de eerste persoon die ze ontmoeten, wat zal u hen dan zeggen?

—You will never feel satisfied after eating a McDonalds...

—U wordt gevraagd om een film te maken, welk genre wordt het?

—Slapstick comedy.

—Morgen zal ik ... doen

—I'll go to the gym, do some editing, get ready for Saturday's wedding, kick a football with my children, eat food, drink coffee...