5 Photographers That Inspire Me
Hello everybody, welcome to my blog. In this second post I will be talking about 5 photographers that inspire me. I will do a short introduction on each photographer and then I will talk about why they inspire me and what about their work inspires me or catches my eye. This list is in no particular order; and I have corresponded with each of these photographers to get permission to use a photo to provide an example of their work. Also, by clicking on their names you will be taken to their websites.
The first photographer on this list is Norwegian photographer Fredrick Stromme. He got his start into photography 20 some years ago by editing stock photos. He would use photoshop to edit these stock photos and create dark fantasy art. As he was doing this, he got the feeling that he wanted to create something more personal and unique. That was when he got started into landscape photography. He got his first camera and the rest is history.
What first catches my eye when I see Fredrick’s work is the atmosphere and mood. In every photo, there seems to be amazing light or amazing clouds. For example, the photo above, the warm light definitely helps create a certain feel to the photo. The second thing I notice about his work are the locations he travels to. I always find inspiration in seeing moody landscapes and his work has no shortage of that. Amongst his galleries are images from Norway and Iceland. However, the area of his work I find particularly pleasing and inspirational is his forest photography and the photos of grass roof structures. Forest photography is, in my opinion, one of the hardest genres of landscape photography; and he seems to do it flawlessly. The photo above is only one example of his forest work. So please go check out his work and also check out his post processing tutorials and articles on photography.
#2 Andy Mumford
The second photographer on this list is Andy Mumford. Andy remembers growing up and traveling with his family and says that sparked a wanderlust in his soul. He says that his love of travel eventually grew into a love of photography. One thing that inspires me about Andy is his love for teaching photography. He runs a Youtube channel focusing on his travels and photo education and also runs workshops. I was almost fortunate enough to attend one of his workshops, but 2020 had other plans.
As I said before, one of the main reasons I find Andy inspiring is because of his work on Youtube. I remember when I was getting started in photography and I was watching videos online to learn as much as I could, I came across a video of his and then just kept watching his content to learn more. In regards to his photography, when I look at his work I notice his use of mood and color. His images are moody but not overly so; and in most cases he seems to use color to portray that mood. For example the image above, there are subtle hues of purple, magenta and orange and it gives a very calm feeling to the image, but the purple areas are just dark enough that it gives it a moodiness that I really enjoy. Another thing I find really inspiring in Andy’s work are his more intimate scenes. He has this way of making the more intimate scenes feel grand. I don’t know if it’s his composition or subject matter, but you can check out his work and see what I mean. Finally, the last thing I love about his work is the amount of detail he gets in his photos and yet how clean his photos are. Like in the photo above, it has this very clean feel but you can see all the detail in those mountains and the small cracks and crevices. It’s something I struggle with in my work and something I try to fix and reproduce.
The third photographer on this list is Viktoria Haack. Originally from the UK she moved to British Columbia in 2007 and has been sharing her work from there ever since. Her background in fine art and anthropology, combined with her love of the world around her gives her work a very unique feel. Her work spans many different genres from landscape to commercial to weddings and lifestyle. For the purpose of this blog I will be focusing on her landscape photography, but for a special treat, check out her environmental portraits.
When I scroll through Viktoria’s photos, the first thing I really notice is her lovely use of light. Some of it can be enhanced in post processing, but when I see her work it doesn’t seem to be, it looks and feels so natural and so perfect. For example the photo above, there is a lovely glow from where the setting sun would be and it just looks and feels so natural to me. That is a theme I see in a lot of her work. Another thing I find that I really like in her work is her use of depth. To me, most of her photos have this very real 3 dimensional feel to them. Case in point the photo above, again. My eye is drawn to the grass in front and then just naturally flows along the shoreline to the mountains and beautiful sky in the background. I love photos like this because I love strong foreground subjects, it is something I use in my work quite often, but not as effectively as she does. The other thing I find really inspiring in her work is her subject matter. She features mountains and water a lot; and those are two things that I really find inspiring as subject matter.
#4 Nigel Danson
The fourth photographer on this list is Nigel Danson. Nigel is from the UK and got his start into photography when he was 11 years old. Later in his life, he had a terrible car accident and cardiac problems that caused him to take stock of his life and what he wanted out of it. He then decided to follow his passion and go full time into landscape photography.
If you are a fan of watching photographers on Youtube, you have probably seen or heard of Nigel. The thing I find most inspiring about Nigel is his passion for photography and photo education, and there is no way that comes across better than his Youtube channel. I have learned a lot from Nigel’s channel and I always look forward to his weekly video. His videos have a raw and real quality about them. By that I mean he doesn’t just show himself go to a location and end up with an amazing photo. He is always honest and really shows what we all go through as landscape photographers; the moments of success, the times when things don’t really pan out and he’s also very honest in the way he critiques his own photos. It’s that honesty combined with his passion for what he is doing that I find so inspiring about him as a photographer. Regarding his work, what I find inspiring is the mood he is able to catch and show. The locations he travels to are undoubtedly known as moody locations, but not everyone has the talent to make you feel like you could be there. The photo above is an example of that. For me, I look at this photo and I can honestly feel like I’m on a ridge overlooking this scene with the warm sun on my face and clouds swirling around in the wind. It’s feelings like that I try to portray in my own work.
The fifth and final photographer on this list is Catherine Simard. Catherine, or Cath as she goes by, is a self-taught photographer from Canada. Her story is quite unique, Cath started in the fashion industry and then left for various reasons. After leaving the fashion industry Cath began to travel around the world and discovered her love of photography along the way. Cath is also the only photographer on this list I know personally and have had the pleasure of taking photos with on a couple of occasions. I attended a workshop she co-lead in Scotland and after that, I joined her in Canada for a 1 to 1 workshop.
I don’t know if you can see the theme in this blog, but apparently I like moody and dramatic photos. When I see Cath’s work, there no shortage of either of those things. Her color palette and style are so uniquely her own, that I find that alone inspiring. Aside from the mood and style, I find her subject matter inspiring as well. She spends a lot of time trekking and being in the mountains and there is honestly nothing I find more inspiring than mountains. Her work seems to catch the mystery and ethos of the mountains that I feel when I am in their presence. That combined with her astrophotography work just gives her photos such a feeling. A feeling that can’t really be described; it’s almost like a sense of place in the universe. Cath’s ability as a photographer is without question but what you don’t see through social media or her website is her passion for sharing her love of photography and teaching those around her who want to learn. As I mentioned before, I was fortunate enough to go and learn from Cath and she really taught me a lot and helped me elevate my photography to a new level. Her passion for her art and teaching those around her are what I find really inspiring about her.
So there you have it! 5 photographers that inspire me. Again, I must say that this is not a finite list. I find many other photographers and their work inspiring; from photographers in my local area of Northeast Ohio, to world renown photographers like Nick Page. I find many people and many different styles inspiring and I always try to learn something from them or learn their process and see if I can use it in my own work flow. Feel free to let me know what you think about what I have written here and please go check out each of their websites, I really do appreciate any and all feedback. Also let me know if there are any topics you would like me to cover in future posts. I hope you all have a great rest of the week and stay safe out there. Cheers!