Portrait

Interviewer:

Hi Jason, you're here today to talk about your photos. I see you have chosen to take up a range of photography styles such as Portraiture, Landscape photography and Architectural photography- these photos have been uploaded to your website. First, let’s talk about your Portraitures. I’ve noticed that the focus of all your photos centre around the elderly; many of these portraits feature a blurred background. Is there any significance behind this effect? If so, what is it and what lens did you use to achieve this?

Jason:

The intention of selecting the elderly to be the highlight of my portraits is because they hold a personal significance to me and I feel like they truly have a story to tell. I used the 60D to create the bokeh effect that you see on my photos. The reason is because I want to draw the viewer's attention right to the subject matter.

Interviewer:

Were there any troubles getting your desired shots? Did you have to do anything to get the photo you wanted?

Jason:

It was ultimately down to timing and luck. I roamed around everywhere with my camera, and when the right opportunity arises, I start snapping away! I was quite lucky to have my grandad visit our family for a few days. During that time, I seized the chance to take photos of him. However, I had to be careful not to be intrusive, otherwise the photos may turn out to look quite unnatural and posed, therefore I’d say that would be one of the difficulties I had faced. As for my grandmother, it just so happened that we had a family gathering one Sunday when I had my camera with me. Whilst everybody was eating, I attempted to take several candid photos and one of my favourite ones is the photo featuring the tea being poured whilst my grandma can be seen in the background.

Interviewer:

Speaking of that picture, I’m curious, is there a story behind that picture? Why does the photo focus on the tea being poured?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason:

The photo captures a seemingly mundane activity, however, I feel like there is a great tradition that entrenched in this simple action. My grandma has always loved Chinese tea; not only does she enjoy the sweet, yet bitter tastes, but sharing a pot of tea is usually done amongst a group of friends or family. This representation of warmth and togetherness integrates very well with my intended theme of my portraits- family.

Interviewer:

This next photo depicts your grandad staring something very intently that is out of frame. What is he doing and how do you compose your photos?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason:

At that moment, he was simply watching TV. I feel like these ordinary activities should not be left out of my portraits because it is a realistic reflection of what the elderly typically spends their days doing. I want my pictures to be relatable and not overly composed, allowing there to be a sense of naturalness and ease to them. I’ve also chosen to use bokeh and the rule of thirds in the photo. However, if I could make one adjustment to the photo, I would perhaps take it from another angle as I think the background looks rather distracting and takes the viewers focus away from the main subject.

 

 

Landscape

Interviewer:

Moving on to your Landscapes. I’ve noticed that some of your photos display a rich colour palette, how do you use light to your advantage?

Jason:

Well of course, my timing and getting the right angles were crucial. I positioned my camera to face towards the sun at a low angle and I had to make sure that I arrive to the location some time before the sun sets so that I could get the perfect shot.

Interviewer:

There was this one photo that piqued my interest. I was wondering, how do you compose this particular photo and what are the features that make this photo a landscape piece?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason:

When looking at this photo, your attention is immediately drawn to the long narrowing pathway on the left. What I wanted to do is to draw a contrast between man-made structures and nature. You can clearly see the distinctive contrast between the two. Also, if you look closely, you may notice the string of buildings on the far right; this is to further contrasts man-made vs nature. I think this photo depicts landscape very well because I want to show the different types of spaces in Hong Kong.

Interviewer:

Taking a look at this photo, I assume there is also a story behind this? Did you have any difficulty in obtaining the shot

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason:

I believe that the story lies behind this tree, I think that it’s unusual for an autumn tree to be here during the winter. Whilst I was wondering around and looking for inspiration I came across this tree, I had to get out of my way in order to get closer to this tree and capture it. I could have used the 10-18mm lens or the 15-85mm lens as I’ve heard that those lens are best used for landscape photography, instead, I used the 18-135mm lens while taking this photo because I think this would be an appropriate lens that covers range.

 

Architectural

Interviewer:

Now for your Architectural photography, I’ve noticed that your concept centers around old buildings. Is there a reason why you chose this as your main focus?

Jason:

The intention behind taking photos of old buildings was because I wanted to show people contrast between old buildings and new buildings around Hong Kong. In such a densely packed city, it’s not difficult to see a row of modern architecture right next to buildings that have been around for decades. I find this quite an interesting contrast that is commonly seen in Hong Kong. This juxtaposition of old and new buildings really emphasize the progress and development that has taken place over the years as well as illustrate the stark contrast between people of different social backgrounds in the city.

Interviewer:

Now, let’s take a look at this photo. Can you please explain how this is Architectural photography?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason:

Architectural photography is not only confined to outdoor buildings, but it can also take place indoors and these infrastructure seem old and fragile. I thought that they had a story to tell. As you can see, these wooden beams used to support a second floor above, but now the building is derelict. In raises some questions like what room these beams support before? How long was this building in use?

 

Interviewer:

This next photo you’ve taken shows a very modern looking building. What do you think did well and what could you have done better when taking this photo?

 

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Jason:

What I think I’ve done well when taking this photo was that I implicitly showed the contrast between old buildings and modern buildings. As you can see, I’ve use the reflection of this modern building to reflect the more older buildings which shows contrast. However, I could have done better by taking this photo at another side because there are obstructions in the shot which I didn’t anticipate like billboard or trees you can see.

 

Interviewer:

Alright, Thank You for having you today and I hope to see you again in the next interview.