Interview with Neal Pritchard from Perth, Western Australia
Q1 Give us a brief profile of who Neal Pritchard is?
I have lived pretty much all my life in Western Australia. While I have visited every state of Australia and travelled through a fair amount of the USA, I still call Perth home for now.
I am thinking of moving east in the next 12-18 months. I guess I just need a change of scenery for a while.
Life away from the camera really consists of just spending time with the family, my wife, dog and my 2 1/2 year old daughter who is just an amazing amount of fun to be around.
I also listen to a lot of hard rock music from the 70's. 80's and 90's and can be found every so often checking out a few of the nature and sports channels or cooking a feast for the family. Being a little older, time spent with the family or on stunning locations is where it is at for me…
Q2 What was your backgound before you started your landscape photography?
Before photography I worked as a chef for a number of years before heading to a 9-5 job as a manager of a transport company, so nothing to artistic or interesting there.
But I was always going on vacations to places like the Grand Canyon, Canada or far north Queensland and coming home with 100's of happy travel snaps of these places, so I guess it was just a matter of time before I took the photography side of the traveling more seriously.
Q3 What started your interest in landscape photography, what inspired you?
Again I think it was just visiting these stunning locations on vacations and coming home with 100's of pics. I remember I once was in the grand canyon and I photographed the south rim at sunset. I was so happy when I got the film back that I had one of the images enlarged and framed. I still have it to this day, some 20 years later.
Q4 What equipment do you use?
Currently I am using a Canon 5d Mk II with Zeiss glass. I recently just changed over from all Canon glass to Zeiss and now wonder why I had not done this years ago. The quality difference is amazing.
I prefer the 50mm f/2 lens but also carry the 100mm and 21 mm. I use a Really Right Stuff tripod ball head on a Gitzo tripod.
As for filters I use Lee ND Grads and a Heliopan Polarizer.
I have tried other bags in the past but since moving to a Lowepro Vertez 200, I feel my gear is in the best possible bag for my travels.
Q5 How would you describe your relationship to the landscape?
My relationship with the landscape may sound a little strange. When I visit a location I think to myself, I am just here for a very brief moment in time. The scene/landscape where I am, has been around for 1000's, if not millions of years and in some locations, like Karijini National Park, billions of years.
And here I am witnessing just one very so small slice of time, that this landscape has been around. It just blows my mind that I can actually photograph that very small slice of time and preserve it for others to see.
That is really the only reason I like to take landscape photographs.
To witness a moment in time and capture it for others to see.
Q6 Without giving away any "trade secrets" , what techniques do you use when capturing the image and in post processing?
While I am not a fan of HDR work, I am always looking to improve the dynamic range of an image Be it blending in a sky from a separate exposure, or blending in 2 or 3 images from light to dark areas on each image.
I try to shoot as clean as I can with minimal use of filters and staying within the camera and lenses optimal range, iso 100-200 and f/8 - f/13.
This can be a little limiting, creatively, but I do like the clarity I can achieve.
Q7 What software do you use for your image cataloguing and processing?
I currently use Capture One Pro 6 and CS5 for all post production and image cataloging.
Q8 How do you market your work?
Marketing of my landscape work is something I have so much still to learn. Most of my marketing right now has been word of mouth and the internet.
While I have a few pieces hanging in locations around town I find my sales come from avenues where my work has been seen via a previous sale.
As for the net marketing, well I have done a few interviews like this one, as well as running a Facebook page, blogs, photo sharing sites like 500px and flickR.
And of course my main website where one can follow my blog and/or preview and purchase my landscape images
Q9 What advice would you give to the budding landscape photographer out there?
Be prepared for time away from family, early mornings and lots of time waiting for the right light.
Be prepared at every shoot to always take full advantage of what the location has to offer. It may be a long time till you get back to that location.
Keep an open mind and let the scene and light unfold before you, then shoot.
Look at others work you admire, study what they have done with composition, light etc and add that to your photography. No one is ever going to learn everything on their own, so ask questions of those work you like, attend workshops etc.
I have been giving a few workshops of late and its a great way to teach and I also learn a lot myself.
Q10 What do you want to achieve out of your work?
What would I like to achieve from my work? That is a very easy question.
I started out just wanting to visit and photograph stunning vistas and locations and thats all I ever really want to do.
So I would really like to sell enough prints of my work to allow me to travel to more locations. To shoot those stunning moments in time for others to view. Thats really my end goal.
I am also working towards a book release in 2013 that will encompass my time up until then in photography, and showcase some 150 of my very best landscape images.
You can see more of Neal's amazing landscapes and find more information by following the links below.
