As photographers, we’re all inspired by different styles of artists. I am inspired by news photographers, sports photographers, wedding photographers, photographers with a highly commercial feel, photographers with a very gritty feel, hell even product photographers have occasionally left me pondering, “how the hell did she do that?”. The beauty of this podcast is that is has allowed us to talk to such a variety of artists who have different different styles, different positions, different voices. And while I dislike pigeon-holing artists to narrow constructs, my point is to illustrate that our taste for creative consumption is vast. Aaron Anderson happens to be one of the photographers who inspires me most, partly because I can’t pigeon hole him at all. Yes he’s a portrait photographer, and yes he has a style. His work is identifiable, and yet not overly niched to the point of immediate recognition. I’m not sure how he views that, or if he even agrees with it, but I think that’s a wonderful sweet spot to live in.
Aaron’s work is both moody and playful. It hinges on edgy and delicate, and balances beauty with sheer radness.
When researching for our interview, one thing became abundantly clear to me; I wasn’t putting enough emphasis on my personal work. As someone who loves making portraits, the hard truth was I wasn’t doing enough. I wasn’t conceptualizing enough. I wasn’t scouting enough. I wasn’t budgeting enough. I wasn’t building my creative team well enough. I simply wasn’t creating enough. The built in excuse now is that quarantine gives me an easy out, but truth be told I probably would have been in the same situation had the last two months been right as rain. I would have prioritized commissioned jobs and saving every dollar. But there is a balance. To get the jobs you want, to be paid to make the photos that inspire you, it has to start somewhere.
Our conversation with Aaron wasn’t near long enough, but certainly fruitful enough to take away lasting concepts on creativity and uncompromising vision.
In this episode, you’ll hear Aaron’s thoughts on style and crafting personal projects; from budgeting to scouting to connecting with his subjects before the shoot. I don’t want to give away everything in this episode so I’m going to hope you listen to it instead. If you’re discovering our podcast for the first time, thank you for checking us out. You can listen to us on your favorite podcasting platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Anchor, Radio Public, and more.
I hope you all enjoy listening to this conversation. Aaron’s interview is ripe with insight. I hope it inspires you to think abundantly and creatively during a time where both principles are compromised. Thank you Aaron for gracing us with your time and inspiring us all to be more thoughtful artists and business owners.
Michael Der
Michael Der Blog 