Jeff Ascough Interview July 2009

<p>Oistein - No I don't bring any flash kit to weddings any more. I think I have a 550 EX flash in my car somewhere, but I'm not sure if there are any batteries in it. I always use available light.<br>

I think that I can never have enough pixels, especially as I shoot a lot of wide angles. The more pixels means more information and a smoother tonal range, and this is a godsend for wide angle images. In the past, because of the pixel count, a wide angle image that contained a lot of information would end up looking crunchy in the fine detail areas, now they don't. Also the more pixels that we have available, the more we can do to the file without it breaking up.<br>

I have no interest in medium format digital photography. The cameras are just too big and clumsy and suffer from poor high iso and slow lenses.</p>

 

<p>Joseph - No I don't use handstraps or battery grips. I carry both cameras on my body, sometimes one around my neck and the other on my shoulder. Sometimes both on one shoulder. Sometimes one on each shoulder. It depends on what I'm doing at the time. The straps are set at different lengths so that the cameras hang at different heights. This prevents them from bashing into each other.</p>

<p>Ian - the Silver actions are more of an upgrade than a replacement for the old actions. There are several actions which are designed to make use of CS4's new functions.<br>

I use Aperture to get a basic colour/density correction, and then drop the images into PS and use the actions to convert to b/w etc via my actions. Then they come back into Aperture for a final tweak if required. I have to say that I rarely have to do much in Aperture to get a decent image. Maybe an autolevels adjustment, and possibly a tweak in white balance. That's about it.</p>

<p>Jeff, I wondered if you would elaborate on your statement " I would think it has more to do with marketing than anything else. We market my business in a very deliberate way; it is all about the images." In what way do you do you market in a deliberate way: Bridal Magazines? <br>

And thanks for being so generous and simply straightforward and such a great artist.</p>

<p>Terry - On a wedding day, I'm very confident and completely focused behind the camera, so I don't think about status or opinions or anything else. All that I think about is finding images.<br>

If I'm completely honest I find all this 'best in the world' stuff a little embarassing sometimes. Obviously it's nice to be called that, and for people to appreciate what I do, and obviously the PR is good; but at the end of the day my clients just want good pictures and that is always my primary objective.</p>

<p>Francesco - I spend a minimum of 1 hour with the bride before the wedding. I'm not sure what you are asking about video, but I have clauses in my contract that give me priority over video when it comes to position and authority.<br>

Number of pictures varies depending on the coverage, but on average an eight hour wedding would result in around 150 images with approx 60-70% being b/w.</p>

<p>Rick - Business/marketing isn't something I'm happy to discuss on an open forum, except to say everything I do in my business is based on the images that I produce. They are the most important thing to me, and I make sure clients are aware that they are getting something special in terms of photography when they look at me.</p>

<p>Hi Jeff,</p>

<p>Very interesting reading your comments here. I occasionally browse your website and blog for inspiration - which is always a pleasure.<br>

Something I have been trying to get my head around is when does photography become art, if at all. So many photographers talk about their "art" when very often it is just middle of the road stuff, and sometimes even less. I have no issue with top photographers - whose work clearly stands out as being amazing - possibly calling their photgraphy art. I think it is a term often thrown about in the spirit of sounding posh and for marketing purposes, more so, in my opinion, by our friends across the pond. I guess some day I will put to bed my opinion on this, but any thoughts from you would be much appreciated. Thanks.</p>

 

<p>Hi Jeff. Are you big on images being absolutely crisp sharp, especially when taken at low light situations? Or are you a bit more lenient in that regard? I find that if I look at my images that are taken in low light at say f/1.4 that they seem softer than I would expect, but I don't see anything else in the picture being sharper, so I assume that my focusing was correct. Is this just a common "problem" with wider apertures, or has it got to do with the fact that my lenses are not calibrated to my camera? </p>

<p>Hi Jeff,<br>

Thanks for sharing your insights here.<br>

I'm wondering where you see stills and video convergence fitting into your future as a wedding photographer and wedding photography in general. Will you remain a stills photographer, or can you see yourself shooting video footage too for couples?</p>

<p>Jeff:</p>

<p>When you use the 135/2 during the service, do you use a tripod at all, or do you only brace the camera yourself?</p>

<p>You mention shooting at 1/15 and 1/8th. Which focal lengths? How did you learn your technique? I'm always looking for ways to increase the number of keepers at slow shutter speeds. :)</p>

<p>Eric</p>

<p>Hi Jeff,<br>

I was wondering if you could take us through your thought process when you enter a space for the first time - particularly if you're unfamiliar with the space...What do you look for in terms of analyzing the light sources? How does that analysis influence your decision(s) to create a desired image during the wedding? I'm especially curious to know how it might influence how/if you plan to be in specific places during specific parts of the wedding/reception.<br>

Add me to the chorus of accolades here, I very much enjoy looking at your work and appreciate the time you're putting into this forum. Cheers.</p>

<p>I have been a big fan of your work and your blog since I watched "Masters of Wedding Photography". Your images are stunning. It's great that you kindly spend your time sharing and educating us.<br>

Just a few questions here.<br>

1. Do you usually shoot in continuous shooting mode with 2-3 exposures at a time?<br>

2. What are you looking for in an image when you are choosing it for an album?<br>

3. I have been photographing for a few years. Shooting wedding in a photojournalistic style is my dream. According to your experience, what do you think it is crucial for a rookie to be succeeded in this field? <br>

Thanks for sharing. Really appreciate that.<br>

Best Regards,<br>

Piyavudh</p>

<p>Please read the instructions above before posting. No more questions now until Jeff returns... ;-) Thanks.</p>

<p>David - I think if we apply a creative process to anything then that could be construed as art, and certainly photography falls into that category. Is describing yourself as an 'artist' when you basically shoot documentary wedding pictures a little pretentious? Maybe. But then again maybe it depends on the calibre of the photographer. I don't know.</p>

<p>Ben - My following comments are a generalisation, and not directed at you personally. This is one of my pet rants, so be warned!!<br>

I'm afraid one of the problems with digital photography is that people have become so anal about sharpness, to the point of it dominating everything else. Seeing an image at 100% on a 30" monitor is not living in the real world. The amount of wasted hours of rubbish spoken about sharpness across the internet is bizarre. Maybe if people got out from behind their keyboards, and took pictures instead of whining about them, they would understand that sharpness is not just about a lens.<br>

Admittedly, the current crop of sensors have immense resolving power, which will show up flaws in lens design especially at wide apertures. However, in the real world of prints and correct viewing distances, I doubt if anyone would argue that today's cameras and lenses are just incredible tools, capable of producing amazing results.<br>

Compare what we use now to what Cartier-Bresson had throughout his career. Or Capa, Winogrand, Brassai, Eve Arnold etc. We have never had it so good, and yet all we seem to do is moan about sharpness. Why?<br>

I was at a Don McCullin exhibition yesterday with my good friend George Weir. A lot of DM's images were 'soft' compared to what we try and strive for now. Did this softness make any difference to the power of the image? Not at all. Look at Capa's work; camera shake, out of focus images etc. and yet he is one if the most important war photographers of the 20th century. A lot of Cartier-Bresson's work is 'soft' but again who cares?? I don't. It's irrelevent unless you are simply looking at sharpness as a way of adding perceived visual value to your images. If as a wedding photographer you must have critical sharpness, and critical exposure, and critical flash exposure, etc then maybe you are missing the point of photography? Maybe you are missing the whole concept of what makes a picture? In my mind all that stuff simply distracts from finding images.<br>

In the real world of prints, an image that looked soft on a screen at 100% will look beautifully crisp and sharp at 10x7, so what is the issue?</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Amen, that's exactly what I was hoping to hear...I'm a happy man now :)</p>

<p>Roger - video. Seen it. Tried it. Didn't like it.<br>

It's a distraction. To do it correctly, you need a tripod which draws attention. Pointing a camera in someones face for several seconds is intruding; that's why a lot of my clients don't have video at the wedding. The clients that do want video will hire a videographer that can do it properly. The amount of time you need to spend editing video is prohibitive, and not cost effective.<br>

I think in terms of wedding photography, it is a passing fad that will probably die it's death in the mainstream in a year or so. It's largely unworkable for the majority of people. Furthermore, videographers have access to the same cameras as we do, and that is more of a problem. They can now take stills as easily as we do, and they have seen a potential gap in the market. I personally think that as photographers we would be better off spending our time working on our skills so that we can always create a demand for our stills work, which will always be ahead of anything that a videographer can do.<br>

Great photography will always have more power and presence than video, so why water down what we are doing just because we have the tools to do video?? You have to remember that adding vid to a DSLR was a result of news agencies wanting that facility. It didn't come from the wedding industry.</p>

<p>Hi Jeff,<br>

big thanks for answering our questions!!!<br>

I was wondering if you use the full res of the 5DII? Do you downsize the files for editing or do you use the whole 21MP over the entire workflow?</p>

<p>Hey Jeff,<br>

What are your favorite lenses that you have used. You mentioned that for your wedding shoots that you usually carry the 50mm and 24mm but I am thinking of those lenses in the past that you just loved...</p>

<p >Hi Jeff,</p>

<p >I am a big fan of your work which I came across after reading a blog on The Online Photographer site titled “Weddings with a telephoto”. I really like your style and can really connect with your photos, your subject’s reaction seem so natural. I am fascinated to know how you manage to stay so unobtrusive when shooting most of your weddings on 24mm or 50mm.</p>

<p >I also wanted to pick up on something you mentioned earlier “I never tell my clients to do anything on the wedding day. I prefer to document what actually happens rather than what I think should happen.” Does this go as far as not to ask them to “hold a pose” or “look to the right a little bit” when you are composing a shot? Also you must come across some couples that can’t cope without direction – what do you do to handle them and how do you manage clients expectations before a wedding i.e. telling that you will be only their taking pictures, not offering any direction and only allow 10 minutes for group photos?</p>

<p >Finally, I promise, have you ever had a CF card (or in the days of film) fail on you? If so what did you do?</p>

<p>Eric - I don't use a tripod at all, so everything is hand held. I tend to use 24 at 1/8th sec, and I'm happy to use a 50mm at 1/15th sec. The trick is to make your body as compact and stable as possible. So arms and elbows in, and press the camera hard against your face. Then watch your breathing so that you don't jerk the camera. I don't actually breath at all when I'm about to shoot around those shutter speeds.</p>

<p>Kieran - I normally go into an environment and look for the dominant light source first. That will dictate a lot of what I do. If that environment has a lot of structure in terms of lines and shapes, then my second thing will be to position myself so that I can utilise both the structure and the light. That will give me a framework to shoot in. If the environment doesn't have a lot of structure, then I will concentrate on the light primarily as this can give structure to an image all by itself.<br>

This all happens very quickly, maybe one or two seconds and I'm good to go. I can normally way up where I want to be just by looking around a room.</p>

<p>Piyavudh - I shoot in single shot and each press of the shutter is deliberate. I don't burst shoot. It may take three or four presses of the shutter to get the image that I want.<br>

I don't look for anything specific regarding album pictures, but I always look for three things when it comes to my images. Good lighting, good composition and good storytelling. To my mind, a good image will contain two of these elements, and outstanding image will contain all three.<br>

Shooting journalistically is the hardest style of wedding photography. Many people think it is just a case of pointing and shooting. It isn't. It takes years of experience, and an eye for a picture. If you are starting up, you need to practice and study. Learn about light direction - don't just go for the flash gun as you won't learn anything with that thing. Look how light direction affects the mood of an image; learn about quality of light and how that can enhance your pictures. Go out and shoot pictures; analyze them and see why they work or don't work. Decide what you could have done better. Stick to one or two lenses and get used to them, so that you don't have to even think about which lens you will use to take the image that you have in your mind's eye.<br>

I am still learning now, all the time. My head is constantly in books, exhibitions, stuff on TV anything to with photography I'm absorbing. I practice all the time. Practice, practice, practice. If I come back from a wedding and decide that something could have been done better in terms of the actual picture taking process, I'm like a dog with a bone until I have worked it out and practiced it so that it is second nature the next time I go to shoot.<br>

Above all you should develop your own style. Don't go with the latest fad or fashion because that's what everyone else does. You need to stand out from the crowd. The only way you can do this is to have a look to your pictures that defines what you do. That is so important, and you should be working your way to that point.</p>

<p>Ben - Full resolution files for all my workflow.</p>