It has to be said we have a couple of creative geniuses in our midst in the form of our two photographers, Ush and Jack. We wanted to know more about that makes them tick so this is the first of a two part creative journey, beginning with the musings of Ush:
How long have you been a photographer?
4 years in Property photography, 5 years freelance event photography, 5 years event production and photography
How long have you been at Move Revolution? How many photographs have you taken?
A year and 10 months. My shutter count lies at around 40,000 for that duration.
What photographer/s do you admire most and why?
Ansel Adams for changing the way landscapes were photographed on a technical level. Also for creating his own methods for developing and printing to accommodate for the massive scale of his prints. It was groundbreaking at the time and his prints are still incredible in person. If you ever get the chance to visit an exhibition of his prints which tour the world. Don’t hesitate.
At the other end of the spectrum, Ryan Brenizer for embracing new technology and pioneering some methods for compositing that go relatively unnoticed to the casual viewer other than to create a visually appealing effect. One which is out of the realms of capability for the equipment used.
Don McCullin. Again, out of my realm and I think that’s what I’ve enjoyed most about his work. It’s so beyond comprehension. Don was an utterly fearless documentary photographer from London. He was born in the midst of World War II and quite literally lived with war his whole life. Be it the conflicts close to home in Northern Ireland, to far afield in Vietnam. One story he’ll always have under his belt is that his Nikon stopped a bullet which was sent his way. His work has been some of the most moving photography you could ever lay your eyes on. One of the first, along with Eddie Adams, to really go out of his way to communicate what war-time suffering is like. So much so that he was banned from shipping out to the Falklands conflict for fear of his photography scaring the Brits at home. Government level censorship at it’s best.
What is your favourite all time photograph, that you have taken & why
I change my mind far too much to nail this down to one photograph. I often like to revisit old photos to re-edit them. One image I’m I’ve really loved recently was this photo from Scotland when I visited with my Girlfriend and some friends. I love that the trees fill the frame and continue off the top, while my friends stand at the bottom of the frame, tiny in comparison. If I ever get a long tall wall. I’d love to get this printed out.
Here are some other more recent shots from a trip to Canada.
What is your favourite photograph (that you didn’t take!)
Again I could easily change my mind, especially with Ansel’s work. It’s easy to get caught up with some of the amazing images that are taken every day around the world and shared on social media. Standing back to appreciate the effort involved in a capture is worth a moment if your time. In this case. Ansel Adams has an image called Winter Sunrise, taken in Sierra Nevada. At first it’s a simple landscape shot, but it’s so striking with the intensely detailed snow caps on the mountains to the still-in-morning-shadow foreground peaks cutting straight through them. With the cloud cover, dark sky and grazing cattle on the bottom of the frame there is multiple horizontal layers of this image. Look at the way there’s a stream of light hitting the area where that cow is grazing! Ansel had a habit of getting up in the middle of the night to reach these places and staying there all morning or evening to wait for the right shot. If he didn’t get it one day, he’d check the weather and return the next. Now imagine this image printed by hand in a dark room on paper 4 metres wide. The monumental effort at the time is verging on overwhelming to somebody such as myself who’s more akin to shooting hundreds of images a day and sitting infront of a computer to edit them for an afternoon.
It’s this kind of image that drives me out to shoot for myself, and take the time. Photography can be therapeutic and relaxing if you know how to slow your pace down.
What is a normal ‘day’ like being a photographer at Move Revolution?
Every day and every house will throw a new challenge at you. It’s always nice to see photos taken by a previous agent and even other professional photographers and then visiting a property knowing you have to produce better work. Getting feedback from customers and on social media is addictive and motivating.
Thanks Ush, we love the fastidiousness you bring to the photography team and know you go the extra mile to bring out the best in every property you photograph.
Next time we’ll be with Jack, the other half of the creative team. Stay tuned for more insights!
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