John Baikie's Website - Captiv8 Captiv8 Blog Tell us a little about yourself... I have been doing photography for about 10 years, started in full time business almost 4 years ago though, and have never looked back.I am based in the far North Highlands, in a beautiful but very remote part of the country. I have tackled a wide range of subjects over the years, but the majority of my work is now weddings, although I do shoot portraits and fashion as often as I can. As I am based so far North, I travel a lot to find the right clients for me. I work extensively throughout Scotland as well as taking on work from outside the country. I will travel anywhere if I feel it's the right job for me! 
How do you keep yourself motivated & your photography fresh?
Motivation comes from within for me. I have a huge hunger to learn and improve, and always want to push myself that extra mile to be the best I can. I enter competitions regularly, not always with any success! This keeps me continuously looking for images that are a bit special. The qualification process is another motivator. I want to keep developing and getting better, and when I feel I can go no further I will probably look for a new challenge. That is a long, long way away yet though! I aim to shoot every wedding as a unique event, so this keeps a freshness in my work. What (or who) has inspired, & continues to inspire, your work?
Initially as a wedding photographer I was inspired by Keith Thompson, who at the time I started was really setting trends and pushing things in a totally different direction. His work encouraged me to get away from more traditional styles and be more creative. Nowadays I am inspired by, amongst others Yervant and some of the other Australian photographers like Jerry Ghionis and Martin Schembri. I tend to spend more time looking at the work of the great fashion photographers though, and try to add my own style to the inspiration gained from them. I have a strong fashion feel to my wedding images I think. I am inspired on a wedding day by the people I work for as well. There is nothing better than working with a couple who are really into what I am trying to do.
Show us your favorite image that you’ve shot so far this year & tell us what it is about this image that makes it special to you.
Very simple but worked out nicely. That tapestry is behind tables and stuff but I moved things around and it took just seconds to get the image I wanted. I've changed my style slightly, being more deliberate in what I shoot, getting the image right before I press the shutter, then move on. That's why I like this one.
How important is post-processing in your final images?
As you can see post processing is very important to my images. I feel if you can improve an image then you have to do so. I don't let any customer see the images until they are completed. A large part of what I do is just done using actions. Some I bought, some I created myself. I shoot JPEG and like to keep everything simple. Only on very special images would I spend more than a couple of minutes editing, preferring to keep it simple, but that's all it takes usually to make a good image better. What challenge have you faced during your career as a photographer and how have you overcome it?
The biggest challenge I have had in my time is being based where I am. I have attached a map to show just where I am! It's a beautiful but very remote area, with a small customer base and limited transport network. To have a busy wedding business locally I'd need to keep my prices rock bottom, but I have managed to get my prices where I want them to be without compromising on the number of weddings I do. This means travelling a lot. In 2007 I did 47,000 miles!! The other challenge, certainly up here, is just keeping doing something different from the others. This is what keeps me going though. 
At the beginning of this year, you were asked to be one of the judges at the print competition for the SWPP (Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers). As a judge, what do you personally feel sets winning images apart from the rest?
I was asked to judge at the SWPP print competition in London earlier this year and will do so again next year. It was ahuge honour to be asked and it was a bit nerve wracking to begin with, being up there with such big names. Personally when looking at entries, the thing that I like to see is originality. The image needs a 'wow' factor, but if it's fresh and new, and shows imagination, that means a lot to me.
If you were planning on having a photo-shoot, who would you want to photograph your portrait & why? This is a tough question!! My top choice would be David Facey as he is the funniest man I have ever met and would just love to be photographed by him purely for entertainment value. 
   
|
