BEHIND THE LENS

 

1. Amateur or Pro?​​​

 

- Amateur.

 

 

2. Describe your feed in 3 words.

 

- ​​Natural, light, movement.

 

 

3. What’s in your toolbox for taking and editing photos?

 

- I only use my iPhone for images that I post to Instagram (right now that is an iPhone 5) and I edit with Snapseed and VSCO Cam apps. For side projects (outside of Instagram) that require a higher resolution, I use a Canon 5D Mark III + a 50 mm or 70-200 mm lens. If I edit my DSLR images, I use Lightroom.

 

4. What is Instagram for you?​

 

- Instagram is digital sketchbook for me. I use it to quickly document and compose ideas that I often will rely on later as reference material for my full-time work as a painter. Being able to gain immediate feedback on an image from followers when I post inspires me to improve and is also a help when I occasionally share my paintings on Instagram as well. I greatly value the community itself. In my travels, I've had the opportunity to meet many people in person whom I first connected with through Instagram and have gained lifetime friends.

 

 

​​5. Who and/or what inspires you?

 

- I'm inspired by people who see completely differently than I do. My style tends to be fluid and off-center, so designers and photographers who capture clean symmetry and sharp lines challenge me to approach my more organic work with a goal of simplicity and attention to contrast.

6. What is your best advice to a fellow photographer?​

 

- Learn from others but forge your own path. Trends aren't always a bad thing, but it is especially easy to fall into the pattern of photographing "like everyone else" when you observe and share work in a an online community. If you doubt if you should post an image because you think it will not be widely accepted, then you should probably be taking the leap to share it because it may just be the rough start of a unique direction (I struggle to take my own advice on this at times).

 

 

7. Who is your favourite photographer on Instagram?​ 

 

- That is a difficult question because there are many whom I admire...I really cannot just choose one!

 

 

8. ​Best photography secret?​

 

​- Learn light. Observe how the angle, time of day, or weather conditions will affect the lighting of a subject and practice making the best of every situation.

9. Things you want to be better at as a photographer?

 

-  I really do not feel like a photographer. I shoot the same way that I paint -- paying more attention to the mood of the light rather than drawing from any deep knowledge of "the rules" of photography. In many ways, this works for me, but I really want to become more disciplined in keeping track of the technical aspects of what I am shooting so that I can more quickly prepare to tackle situations that I have experienced before instead of feeling my way along.

10. How much time do you spend on photography?

 

- on average, 2-5 hours a week.

 

 

THANK YOU!

We want to thank Laura for taking the time to talk to us and share her knowledge and thoughts about photography. Make sure you visit her Instagram profile! Simply click her Instagram username under her profile photo on the top.

We would also like to thank our moderator Anthony (@gotd_mod_sixlegs) for having a chat with her!