
Meet the Contributor: MASKOT.
“From a stock photo perspective, we can help push people’s perception of equality, gender roles, diversity etc in the right direction through breaking norms in our imagery.”
Describing photography as a ‘form of expression of the soul’, Alex Amorós’ documentary photography is not distorting reality for his viewers but capturing the true essence of the scene. Stating music as the driving force and influence in his life overall, his work brings his passion to life and he has utilized this pairing for good with his latest work “40 Venues”. Working on the influence that photography gives him the freedom to create, express and document, take a look through some of his works with us and read the full interview below.
Meet this Week’s Contributor.
Let’s kick off, how did you get started in photography and why?
I started in photography through a course at the Blank Paper School , Blank Paper was a “laboratory of experimentation” and the central success of the new wave of Spanish photographers (font: British Journal of Photography), at that time I was working in our production company for music and video and we were always missing a photographer. I decided to do the course, I have always liked taking photos and analyzing the images I think it was something that I simply had to develop and at that moment I decided to do it, once I delivered my first work as a student my teacher advise me that he thought that I had the potential to be able to dedicate myself professionally to this wonderful world. I have always felt very close to the United Kingdom, perhaps because I originally came from a place with many Britons Alicante, because of its music and because I had lived here before, for that reason I returned to London several years ago and decided to take the definitive step in my professional career.
What was your first experience with a camera?
My first experience with a camera was with a Werlisa that my father had, in one of my summers in Ireland I did not stop taking photos of the wonderful landscapes of that green island.
What five words describe your photographic style or captured message?
Spontaneous, real, fresh, natural and human.
What is the best element about being a photographer, and most challenging?
The best thing is the freedom to show through your projects how you see the world without depending on anyone or anything, the freedom that photography gives me is something that makes me feel alive, I like the humans and stories and I try to show with my images an idea that goes around my head. My projects always have a goal, it is a form of expression of the soul.
To you, what is the role photography has in the world?
Photography has to show in my opinion the reality of what happens at that moment or how you see that reality, capture the essence, show the emotions and the person / s, moment / s, for me the more real the better. I do not like to disrupt reality or people, that is how to distort the essence of the photo.
"The more real the better. I do not like to disrupt reality or people."
ALEX AMOROS
What one important lesson has your work taught you?
The lesson it has taught me is that if you follow your instincts, you will generally be right, sometimes we tend to go elsewhere, something that is logical, but on a personal level during these years I have learned that the background and the influences you have make you know better what you are photographing and it shows in the final result, in my case it is clear that music is an important factor in my life and that can be seen in my photos.
What is currently really getting you frustrated or annoyed?
There is nothing in particular that bothers me a lot but I do not like excessive retouching or distorting the images, that is distorting reality the less it is retouched the better.
If you could photograph any historical event, what would it be and why?
I would have liked to photograph the 60’s in London, that time everything was new, it was a cultural and musical revolution that I would have liked to experience.
What does success look like to you?
Success for me is enjoying every day of my life and profession and being happy and recognized for my work, I go always with the flow.
What’s your go to album to listen to when you’re working right now?
I can listen to many albums, right now I’m Listening Vigil by the Easybeats.
“From a stock photo perspective, we can help push people’s perception of equality, gender roles, diversity etc in the right direction through breaking norms in our imagery.”
With a life in photography spanning back to a trip around the world after finishing his studies at TU Munich, Peter Schatz of Action Pictures has an established archive today spanning sports, creative and portrait photography.
Meet this week’s Contributor, new IMAGO partner and hailing from Napoli, Antonio Balasco invites us to take a look at his best photojournalist shots from his home and tells of how his passion became a career after a redundancy in IT.