205dpi Issue Sep’15
Emma Graveling Illustrator www.emmagraveling.co.uk
This issue Sep’15
Who are we? We are photographers. Journalistic ones. We document, record and capture anything we find interesting, beautiful or captivating. Sometimes our stories may seem strange or unusual, but we are the eye behind it all; and that’s what this magazine is all about. From cakes to paralympics, graffiti to kickboxing, our editorial documentary style takes us around Cornwall, the UK and the rest of the world. Follow us and our collective of photographers as we capture our adventures, our remarkable stories and our everyday lives.
What’ve we been doing? This month celebrates two years on from the beginning of 205DPI Magazine. Started as just a conversation and idea in a 8 hour traffic jam, our team of staff and supporters have made what we have today a reality. A huge thank you to everyone who has helped make this possible - and happy birthday us!
p.s. keep updated: 4.
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42 Feature Story Lorentz Renowned editorial and advertising photographer Lorentz Gullachsen gives insight to his work.
22 2. Dina
Dubrovskaya
Explores a project delving into her own and others teenage hopes and ambitions.
Monthly Single Images: Gemma Abbott Nine Derricott
1. Harvey
Montagu
Photographed the sleepy Swedish town of Norrfj채rden, known for its commuter community.
30 3. Mick
Buston
Documented a growing scene of street artists and their incredible aerosol portraiture.
36 4. Tory Ho
Investigated the past and present stories that live and evolve in a British household.
5.
Real Talk with
Lorentz Gullachsen
“I have made it a policy to specialise in not specialising! ” This month’s interview comes from a very experienced practitioner. Lorentz Gullachsen has been in the photographic industry for 25 years, and covers almost every photographic genre imaginable. From still life to editorial portraiture, commercial advertising and fine art; Lorentz has worked for galleries, tourist boards, and clients such as Vodafone, Land Rover and Honda.
In this interview he enlightens us with his many varied stories and gives us his views about his of visual communications and photography.
Hi Lorentz Can you explain to us a little bit about yourself and the journey you’ve been on to where you are now? I was a young teenager when I saw ‘Blow Up’ the Michelangelo Antonioni film, and as soon as I saw that photography ‘glamour’, I was smitten. However, it was a long journey from Birmingham’s West Bromwich to shooting internationally. I soon realised that the only way to achieve my goals was to work bloody hard; and my incredible luck helped a lot too. Along that path, I also found out that although it can be ‘glamorous’ it is very hard work. Maybe I’m not very efficient or as good as the others, so that’s why I have to put in a lot of hours! One days shooting can be from 5am till
midnight, and even the non-shooting days are usually from 8am till 7pm. It’s inspiring to see a photographer with so many strings to his bow – all of equal strength. Could you explain a little about how you’ve ended up with such a variety of photographic skills? I fell in love with photography and started out as taking on any job that came my way. I only have one answer ‘yes I can do that’, and then I find out how! I made many mistakes, one of which was not assisting for very long. I know that that hampered my development, as I needed an insight into the way others worked, but I just took on work and produced the best I could. I knew that lighting was key to most photography and so my early still life
Feature - Real Talk with Lorentz Gullachsen
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work gave me a great grounding. Along the way I worked with some great art directors and they taught me all sorts, but I’m still learning today, and that’s one of the great things about photography; every challenge is different. If I only did one thing, I‘d get bored, so I have made it a policy to specialise in not specialising! For some clients this doesn’t work, they want to put you in a box. So I try to present my portfolio with work that is relevant to that client - harder to do with a website, but I have five websites to address that issue. That way, it’s simpler for everyone. Advertising, portraiture, editorial, still life, landscapes, and documentary – you really have done it all! Is there a genre of photography that you prefer? This week, I’m a portrait photographer and that is my favorite this week, but next week I’m photographing food, and that will be my favorite then. I’m just a photographer; I love the medium, not so much the genre. However, I would love to be a painter, or better still, a sculptor. I have skills that enable me to work, doing what I love, how good is that? Seriously though, I love pure observational work, just going to a place and responding to what I see. That is why I love to travel and see fresh locations and enjoy a new vista every day. I do however need to make a living, so a commission is what I need and hopefully it takes me into a place that is exciting and not too hot or cold! I love the Desert and wilderness but battling against the extreme elements is something that I leave to the experts. Any temperature that is below -20c or over 40c is hard work, but if someone wants my services and its that extreme, maybe? If I did have to choose what I had to do as one genre, it’s lifestyle & portraiture on location,
shooting for tourist boards has got to be my favorite, and there are so many places I have yet to see. What is the kind of photographic job that excites you? One that challenges me and hopefully the results will surprise me. But if I had to choose, it would be for a purpose that would benefit the greater good. Pretentious, maybe! But I have been able to work on some projects that make a difference - charities, healthcare and even tourism, can change lives. A great advertising campaign can impact a countries tourism industry and improve the lives of those who work in that industry and the wider community. But that requires careful control, and that is down to others. I just hope to always be able to work for the ‘good guys’. I believe being a good photographer requires much more than technical skill. It’s about healthy work morale and refreshing your talent; putting yourself outside of your comfort zone etc. How do you make sure you keep pushing yourself with your projects? Or are there times that things slack? As I have said, I never stop learning and develop new skills all the time. If I never had another commission, I would still produce work for myself, and I also have an archive of material I need to work on. When the recession hit, I was in the middle of an MA course in Visual Communication. I should have done it earlier as it had a great impact on my practice, but it changed my direction and unfortunately the commissions then dried up. I was better able to work, so I pursued lecturing as I thought that was what I wanted. It was but only part time and I am lucky that I have worked on some very good BA courses. It’s different, exciting and rewarding, and it re-energised my own work. At the present I’m working with moving images more and more.
Feature - Real Talk with Lorentz Gullachsen 11.
So if I find a slack time, I shall probably be working on improving that area. It’s exciting and although still image is my first love, I do see my future in new media, especially the use of moving images. What’s your most memorable shoot to date?
want. It’s my job to deliver what they need and hopefully exceed their expectations. I always work to producing what they want, but often shoot ‘my version’. Strangely it’s my version that usually gets used, but most the time I work with great Art Directors and clients and we all work toward a common goal and score!
I’m hoping it’s still to come! But again, there are so many shoots that all have great memories. My first trip to New Zealand was special, but that was partly because I was working in the Oman desert, seeing nobody for days in some of the most stunning landscapes on earth. I can think of maybe twenty shoots that can easily compete for my favourite, which is a great sign to me, and I do not take it for granted. Most are related to trips that have placed me in another culture with real people. Photographing for a brief but also producing a personal project is nice, I try always to add a few extra days to the trip to make the most of it. Even if it’s in a environment that is just industrial, there are always wonderful or at least interesting people to meet and photograph.
How much of your website content is personal work? Do you try to always maintain one project going or just an idea?
Within your advertising work, how do you find the balance between fulfilling a client brief, whilst keeping the photography in your style and preferences?
Do you have any new exciting work on the horizon?
One of the most important decisions a client makes is choosing the right photographer for the job. It’s important that the chemistry is right and the brief is solid. It is important that I get to understand the brief and the intended audience first. If you start on that footing, it should generally follow through to a great result. However, sometimes the client changes the brief or worse still has no idea what they
12.
50% is probably personal, but it has gone on to become published or is used as stock. My most successful image was my ‘Venice Flowerman’ that was taken on a day off after a long 10 day shoot across Europe. That started an on going love affair with Venice that I am still shooting as a personal project as well as the odd commission there. I have three ongoing projects, one portrait based, one reportage/street, and one landscape - all ongoing, although the portrait project is soon to be exhibited, but it shall be continued as it is open ended .
I hope so, but until it’s confirmed I think, I may never work again! Maybe that is the big motivator? I know I am very lucky and that there are so many great photographers that clients can choose. I hope that they choose me, but if not I shall be grateful that I have the work I’ve already done. Interview: Lois Golding
Feature - Real Talk with Lorentz Gullachsen
Gemma Abbott Monthly single image www.gemmaabbott.wix.com/gemmaabbottphoto
A Bedroom Town Harvey photographed a sleepy day-time town and its nocturnal inhabitants.
‘A Bedroom Town’ is commonly known as a commuter town, whose residents often work elsewhere. Sometimes referred to as this due to the occupants only being present in their hometown at night. Accordingly a creation from railway companies to create a higher demand for their lines, however it wasn’t until recently, with such an excellent transport systems that bedroom towns have become desirable. Norrfjärden (65.421514, 21.496408), located on the North East coast of Sweden is home to 2600 people, most of which commute to the cities Piteå, fifteen minutes south or Luleå, thirty minutes north. Because of this mass daily migration it creates the illusion of an unoccupied town with the only exception of it being well maintained. Norrfjärden is one of the last seventeen remaining church towns in Sweden and keeps its annual traditions strong with religious feasts. The manifestation of a church town came around due to the necessity of farmers needing somewhere to stay after service. Service became more than just being about communion but helped structure a vast community. It was a chance for farmers to be part of their nearest town and religious feasts became a platform to create new acquaintances. In 1963 the church burnt down due to a lightning strike and Norrfjärden is now home to the youngest church in the Piteå district. As a result of competition from nearby cities, businesses in Norrfjärden have become
18. Harvey Montagu
progressively poor with only a handful of shops remaining and the largest employer in town, which is the local ‘Pet Food’ store, has only around twenty spaces. The majority of work is either in the manufacture of paper or steel. Sweden relies on industries like these due to its economy being heavily export orientated. Norrfjärden is located right next to the European Route E4, which is a highway running all the way down the east coast making it an ideal place to travel from. With current proposals to build more industries closer to the town, Norrfjärden’s population has been increasing over recent years because of its suitable location.
It has been the obscurity of this demographic pattern that drew me into the idea of ‘A Bedroom Town’. Although reasonably populated for the area, it suffers dramatically from daytime desertion. This gave me the opportunity to photograph a perfectly working town but without the interruption of human activity, which I believe is hard to come by. It created the chance to slow down as much as possible and photograph what I hope to be a true representation of Norrfjärden whilst still highlighting this peculiarity.
Harvey Montagu
19.
A Promise of Beauty Dina explores the fast-changing years of female teenagehood.
Dasha, 13 >>> “I liked a guy once, but I didn’t know how to tell him about my feelings, so I just said we were friends. And now I regret it.”
Anya, 14 >>> “My favorite band is Green Day, I’ve been listening to them since I was ten.”
At thirteen I was absolutely happy. Everything was changing for me then, and yet as I look back, nothing really happened. Yes, I grew a few centimeters taller and we started to study physics at school, but nothing more. Nevertheless, only then I felt so acutely that I knew everything in the world and was the world’s most important part. Somehow, day by day this feeling disappeared and as I turned 14 I didn’t feel so blessed anymore. I have almost no photographs taken during this special year. How I wish that somebody stopped a 13-year-old me, made me look into the camera and asked me what I was thinking about at that particular moment. That’s what I am doing within this project. I am trying to create a catalog of faces that will change so soon, a list of thoughts that will be so surprising for their owners in just a couple of years. Looking at these girls I remember how it felt then. They are different and yet there’s something that makes them look alike. Their faces bear a promise of beauty which is subtler than beauty itself.
Vicka, 13 ^^^ “I like reading science fiction, especially Ray Bradbury - there is something special about his stories.”
26. Dina Dubrovskaya
Yana, 14 ^^^ “I have a toy which was a present from my friend. We don’t talk much now, but when I hold this toy he gave me, the memories come like a huge wave.”
Paulina, 14 ^^^ “In just a year I grew up, started to understand life and people, everything that was going on around me. And I also don’t feel so bad when I fail now.”
Katya, 14 ^^^ “My parents want me to study mathematics, but I am going to go to the USA and work there as a family psychologist.”
Dina Dubrovskaya
27.
“A good photograph is knowing where to stand.”
- Ansel Adams
Pottergate Portraits Mick documented the ever-changing scenery found in a Norwich Underpass.
This was a personal project that emerged from a series of daily photo walks carried out for a couple of months in 2014 around golden hour, that magical time for photographers just before sunrise or sundown. One walk took me to an underpass on a Friday evening where three young guys were busy with aerosols. Apprehensive at first of approaching them as evening gave way to night, I would soon learn that any preconceptions I originally had were unfounded. All 3 were students at Norwich University of the Arts, two in graphic design and one in fine arts. They had just finished their academic year
32. Mick Buston
and were heading back to their respective home towns for the summer over the coming days. Their end of year blowout didn’t involve getting wasted, they preferred to get creative instead. I spent the next hour talking to them, taking some photographs and studying the existing work that decorated the underpass. What struck me initially were the portraits, some of celebrities, others pure figment of imagination, and I decided to come back again to document some more. It was a portrait of The Prodigy lead singer Keith Flint that really captured me. The likeness and detail were astounding and all created
with just spray cans. The next time I went back, Keith Flint was already giving way to the next piece of street art and that determined the direction of the project. For the next 12 months I set out to permanently record a cross-section of these incredible portraits that within days, sometimes hours, would gave way to something new. For all the art featured in this project, these photographs are the only permanent record that they ever existed. Known as West Pottergate underpass, this small area of Norwich was designated as a street art tolerance zone where artists
are actively encouraged to express their creativity so long as they were considerate of others and their surroundings. From May 2014, I would continue to revisit the area at least once per week, document any change and speak to both the artists and to those who used the underpass on their daily pedestrian commute to and from the city in Norwich. This project is both a celebration of the artists who created the work and hopefully a catalyst for more people to appreciate this as an art form and not to simply dismiss it as vandalism. I knew from the outset of this project that I
Mick Buston
33.
wanted to print it as a book. Once completed, I designed and self-published it through Blurb print on demand. Whilst not the cheapest option, it did allow me to experiment with different paper stocks before deciding on a lustre paper that held the contrast really well. I wanted to create a permanent physical record of work that within days, sometimes just hours, gave way to something new. Pottergate Portraits features street art by Gnasher, Parlee, Henry Boon and other local, national and international artists. Book available to buy from Blurb www.blurb.co.uk/user/mickbuston
34. Mick Buston
The Manor House Tory follows the evolution of English heritage as it merges with modern and international times.
The Manor House was built around 1740 where the Lord & Lady of the day lived; Since then, this house and pieces of the original land has been sold to different occupants. Cynthia and Robert Lyden are the current occupants of The Manor House, they have been in residence for the last 20 years since moving back to England from Hong Kong. Their move back to England brought with them various bits and pieces of Hong Kong that adorn the walls and halls of the house. Over time, as each occupant moves in and adds a little piece of themselves to the house, the house itself then becomes the past and the future. As Chris SteelePerkin puts it, “they are institutions with both a
past and a future”; It is extraordinary how this one place can transcend time. While we can continue building and expanding our modern cities, there is nothing more amazing to know that the house you walk through is filled with stories of the past. There is a great historic significance attached to houses such as The Manor House, while nothing ‘major’ in the historical sense occurred at this house, it is still an important part of the English history, heritage and culture. Without buildings like these, every country would be the same; If every part of every country was modernised, the world would not be such an interesting place.
Tory Ho
39.
Nine Derricott Monthly single image www.ninederricott.com
This issue’s stars 1. 2.
Gemma Abbott
www.gemmaabbott.wix.com/gemmaabbottphoto
Harvey Montagu
‘A Bedroom Town’ harveymontagu.co.uk
Dina Dubrovskaya
3. 4.
‘A Pomise of Beauty’ ddina@bk.ru www.cargocollective.com/dinadubrovskaya
Mick Buston
‘Pottergate Portraits’ www.instagram.com/mickbuston mickbuston@mac.com www.mickbuston.co.uk
Tory Ho
5. 6. 44.
‘The Manor House’ 07592 477354 tory.ho@gmail.com www.toryho.com
Nine Derricott
www.ninederricott.com
With thanks to.. Lois Golding
Editor-in-chief www.loisgolding.carbonmade.com
Production team Tom Sandberg Manager
Paige Harrison Editor & Writer
Sophie Sear
Assistant Manager
Matt Cox
Brand designer & sign writing god Instagram - mattcox904
Lorentz Gullachsen
Special feature photographer. www.gullachsen.com
Toby Ellis
General assistance.
45.
Emma Graveling Illustrator www.emmagraveling.co.uk
To contact for requests, questions or more information: team@205dpi.com All images and text published in 205dpi are the sole propertry of the featured authors and the subject copyright. 2015 Š 205dpi