Ask the Artist - 20 Questions with Paul Cooklin

1. Tell us something about yourself?

I will be 40 in May. How life seems to tick along even when you're watching it closely through a camera. Im very fortunate to have a lovely wife, Ali' and two great kids, Rafe (4) and Aisha (2). We live in the sticks in sleepy Suffolk, UK.

2. What does your partner/friends/family think of your photography?

I think Ali is pleased Im a photographer, or more importantly she's glad I have a passion which Im pursuing and able to earn a living from. Being a fine art photographer means Im always open to visiting new places and exploring new countries which Ali is happy to do as well. We enjoy the relative freedom Ive found with art photography.

3. How would you describe you work?

My portfolio is quite diverse. I try to find 'a shot' in as many things/places as possible whether that be on a macro level or wide angled landscapes.
I would describe my black and white photography broadly as having a 'classic' and 'vintage' look. Im attracted to the 'look and feel' which the combination of classic film emulsions and old lenses offer that is very different to the look of digital photography.

4. What's it like to be a photographer?

Generally, good. I love what I do. Im very fortunate to be able to earn a living from creating pictures which are used as commercial stock, art prints and merchandise. There are so many photographic categories from wedding to portraits to architecture, all of which have their own skill sets and challenges.
I think being successful as a fine art photographer is probably one of the harder categories because unlike wedding or commercial photographers, art is more of a luxury item, and very subjective. My own path is familiar to a lot of photographers who chose or found themselves not going down the academic or established route of photography, or perhaps turned a hobby in to a career later on in life.
It's quite easy taking photographs, the hard part is finding an audience that sees in those pictures what I do, or perhaps more importantly sees 'something' which they find as beautiful/interesting enough to want to own.
If I look back over the relatively short time Ive been creating pictures I can see that my work has changed and continues to change. I am excited at the prospect of visiting new places and where my photography will take me in the future.

5. What was your first ever photo of , do you still have it if not where is it?

I don't have my first ever shot as it was probably taken when I was a young boy.

6. What's your favourite colour?

Are black and white colours? I do love the tones of black and white. I like all colours and Im not sure I have a favourite. I really enjoy all the different colour palettes which different colour film emulsions offer.

7. Where do you get your ideas/inspiration from?

It's a cliché to say 'life' but its true of any artist. I could not fail to be affected by my life, my experiences and my surroundings. What I find interesting is the different ways to record those moments.

8. What was your first commission?

My first commission was by the then-editor of TIME magazine to Cuba.
This came about because one of my images was licensed to be used in November 2009 issue of TIME magazine. (http://paulcooklin.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/War-of-the-Worlds/G00002n8idmhVtQY/I0000cQa_Wew4dXE/P0000NDgZIk1Nkgs).
I was also asked if I had any images of Latin America, which I didn't, but offered to fly to Cuba to shoot some. Naturally I was quite surprised when they agreed to commission the trip for another magazine.

9. What's your favourite subject to photograph?

Looking through my portfolio, there's an equal proportion of subjects. Recently Ive been studying macro photography with its own little microcosm of interest and new perspectives. I like trees and their impressive size, shapes and textures. Im interested in the way light and shadows interact with buildings and structures. Nature generally has an infinite portfolio of subjects which any photographer could devote their life to, without ever shooting the exact same thing twice.
I've been watching space programs on TV recently which has inspired me to look up more. It would be great to be able to get the right gear to photograph and record the stars, planets and solar systems - the colours and unique patterns are sublime. As a kid I liked the idea of living in space (with the possibility or being able to return to earth at any time).
I would like to start photographing more people in the future, but not portraits, more reportage/street photography. This would justify my 'want' for a Leica M camera which is ideally suited to the job as it's discreet and light.

10. What is it about where you live that inspires you?

We're fortunate to be surrounded by open fields. I enjoy the peace and quiet of country living which up until my 30's I had spent most of my adult life in fast-paced cities such as Hong Kong and London.

11. What is your most favourite photo that you have taken?

I don't have one. I might be really pleased with a photo for a day or two but after that Im on to the next shot. I created 'The Cooklin Collection's' in monochrome and colour which include my personal favourite 99 images of each. I change/add/delete and move around images within these collections quite frequently, to always show images which 'I' like at the moment.

12. What's you favourite tool of the trade and what do you use if for?

I suppose that has to be my Hasselblad 500cm medium format camera.
Not only is it a joy to use, when I look through my portfolio, most of the shots have been taken with this camera, not because I use this system the most, but because I generally find more 'keeper's than any other system.
There's two schools of thought on 'tools'. One is that a camera is just a tool and it's how you use it which counts and that we should be able to make the best of any camera system, which I agree with. But equally, there are the right tools for specific jobs. For example, if I were to shoot fast sports, I would want a much faster system with telephoto lenses and all the tools which would help capture the fast paced action of the sport. Arguably, a manual focus medium format film camera is not the tool for the job, or at least it would force a very different shooting approach.

13. What are you working on at present, what's next?

The past, present and future.
At the end of last year I was working with an art Charity called Art Platform, set up by Nichole Herbert (artplatform.org). I like the idea of my art, and that of others, helping charities.

Currently Im working on my darkroom. I will be printing my own original fibre and resin coated silver and colour prints this summer.

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One of the things about working for yourself is that you need to don lots of different hats. I actually spend the least amount of time with a camera in my hand, taking photographs. Most of my time is spent marketing and promoting my work, viewing and re-viewing my images to see ways of improvement and looking for different projects. I regularly get in touch with new publishers and continually try to push my work further afield. I have found this to be very important because you never know which publisher will have the right audience for your work and create sales. As much as I would love to just get lost in photographic art, it's crucial that it pays for itself and supports my family and lifestyle in order to continue.
Ive recently realised the importance of competitions.I have mixed views about competitions. On one hand, a lot of photographers use them to increase their exposure, gain recognition and generally promote their skills and craft, all of which I can see being valid and a good reason to enter in to them. Not to mention the possibility of winning 'something'! But, on the other hand, competitions are subjective, art is subjective, so who's to say one viewers eyes are better than another at 'seeing' and why should we listen to anyone else's praise or criticism anyway. We should be following our own photographic path, surely? If I create a photo which Im pleased with but no one else seems to think much of it, does this decrease it's value. Equally, if an editor or critique is favourable and the same image is featured in prestigious publications and gains great exposure, does this now make the same image better, just because so-and-so says it is? I had a series of images appear in a national newspaper a while ago and the editor decided they would try and interpret what I was trying to capture and therefore judge how well they thought Id managed to achieve this even though I was not asked my thought process or any salient information. Unfortunately their online website wasn't set up to allow the photographer to comment on the editors critique which seemed a little pointless and one-sided, so I asked them to remove the images unless I could comment on what my actual intentions were, rather than their guesswork. The images were removed.
This made me start to think about the whole process of marketing and competitions. If Im not going to listen to, or take on board 'negative' views of my work then I should also do the same for positive comments too because they, after all, are in the same vein - someone else's opinion. Instead of acknowledging all praise and turning a blind eye to criticism I have decided to tread my own path. However, rightly or wrongly, in order to sell your photographic art there is a need for marketing and exposure to increase your profile, and if that takes on the form of competitions I will see where this leads
me in the future.
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There's a book of my Cuban images coming out soon too which will be published by CityPulse. Im looking forward to seeing the images from Cuba in print.

14. When you are not taking photographs what do you like to do?

Take photographs. When Im not taking pictures for work or of my family I just like to spend time with my family.
I also spend a lot of my time on the net doing research or just for fun. My life is quite insular, which is by design. I enjoy online gaming and have done since the days of the BBC micro computer.
I also like riding around the countryside on my motorbike with a camera and although I wouldn't say I 'like' going to the gym, I like the results and the energised feeling I get after.

15. What's your favourite film?

Ilford PanF+
Star Wars

16. What are you reading at the moment?

Money and the Law of Attraction.

17. What's the best piece of advice you have been given?

Do what 'feels' right.

18. If writers get writers block, what do photographers get?

Photographic blocks? I do get moments of not knowing what I want to photograph or where to go from here, but it generally only lasts a little while and then Im back on it again.

19. If you could be anyone in the world who would it be and why?

Me. No point doing someone else's journey.

20. Do you have any tips for budding photographers?

My first response was going to be 'No.'. Only because photography as an art is so personal, so subjective, I couldn't tell anyone 'the right way' of doing something, only the way it works for me, or doesn't for that matter. But, as a fine art photographic business there's a few things I could suggest:
Unless you're fortunate enough to make it in the art world financially without having to worry about marketing, self promotion, search engine optimisation and a whole host of other important aspects of running your business, I would spend time on each, in detail.
As an online friend of mine said 'Eat first, art later'.
I find it's important to create photographic art with a good frame of mind. It's not something that can be rushed in the hope of paying your bills. However, if you're planning on doing this for a living it can be stressful not knowing when you're next going to be paid unless there's a regular income from your work. If you can shoot for stock and get a residual income so that can take care of your bills, it will help relieve some of the pressure which will allow you to explore your creativity freely.

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