December 2008

Born and raised in Missouri, Sarah Wilmer lives and works in New York where she shoots for Surface, Rolling Stone, and Spin, amongst other high profile clients. Of her work, she says: ‘I am inspired by Edward Gorey, Joanna Newsom, 17th century Dutch and Flemish paintings, my cat Tubs, my friends and the surrealists’.

Your photos have a cinematic quality to them. What films (or other medium) would you consider to be influences?
‘I love the work of Dario Argento, Roman Polanski, David Lynch and Alejandro Jodorowsky. Their films are so beautiful and interesting, I would say all of them have influenced me in one way or another’.

What is the most elaborate shoot you can recall and what did it entail?
‘There isn’t one shoot that stands out as being particularly elaborate. It’s like you have an idea, and you make it happen. It’s work and challenging and sure there are a lot of details to manage, but when you are excited and passionate. it’s all just part of the process’.

Where do most of your shoots take place?
‘In and around New York City’.

If you could photograph anyone, who would it be? And where?
‘I’d like to do a series of photos with Joanna Newsom in Iceland with local animals and children’.

Where has your work been seen?
‘I have had solo shows in New York City, Washington D.C. and Portland Oregon. I have been in group shows in New York City, Los Angeles, Portland Oregon, Tokyo, St.Louis and Washington D.C. My work has been published in V Magazine, Korean Vogue, Vision, Surface, Rolling Stone, Spin, PDN, Billboard, Marie Claire, XLR8R, Tennis, Spex, and Nomenus Quarterly, among others’.

Kate Kunath earned a BFA in photography from the University of Washington in Seattle. In her practice, she has sought to discover and illuminate the consequences of modern life, confront cultural mythologies, and challenge what we think we know. Provoked by themes of reproduction, modernization, and globalization. She has produced one series per year since arriving in New York in 2004. By focusing in depth on one topic at a time, Kate develops a personal and artistic investment in illuminating what naturally emerges from this investigation. With humor and tenderness, narratives develop organically, and the symmetry in nature and the human experience is explored.

Do you have a favorite rabbit in the series?
‘There are 45-50 breeds in total and it’s very hard to choose a favorite. Most of the breeders don’t have names for their champs because they don’t keep them as pets, so it’s hard to keep track of their names. I’m a sucker for the Angora rabbits, as in the angora sweater. One of my favorite moments was visiting the hall where they blow dry and comb out the angora hair. It was like a big tranny parlor. The biggest hair you have ever seen on any animal. It was fantastic. One of my favorite jobs at the show is the Breeding Chairman. He or she must be present when any of the breeders are planning to mate their rabbits. Sometimes the service is free, but other times they have to pay for the sex if the genetic material is valuable enough’.

How did you get into shooting bunnies with their owners and where and how were these photos captured?
‘Well, it’s always been a dream of mine to photograph rabbit breeders. I got my big break in 2004 at the American Rabbit Breeders Convention. I’m kidding, but there really is a Best in Show for bunnies every year, similar to the Westminster for dogs, without the high brow. The first time I went to a show, I was really impressed by the rabbit breeders, so I returned the following year with a photo studio. The rabbit Standard of Perfection is attained through a regimen of breeding and selecting, much more rapidly than a dog breeder, for example. Which means that they are culling, a process of removing the undesirable genes from the pool, by way of killing the rabbits for food or fur, or giving them to pet stores to sell. It doesn’t sound very pleasant coming from me but the rabbit breeders have a very eloquent way of stating things when it comes to the cycle of life. They are also very professional, as one can see from their expressions. Even proud. Their rabbits as subjects took away some of the anxiety of having their own portraits done. The portrait studio I set up at the show was well attended. I did over 100 portraits in a weeks time’.

The expressions of the owners holding the rabbits are almost as memorable as the rabbits themselves. Were their reactions spontaneous, or was it more the result of prompting on your behalf?
‘As a general rule in my photography, I am always letting my subjects know that they don’t have to smile. You’d be surprised, if people don’t have to smile, they generally don’t. And then there are others who just can’t help themselves. I found that if I asked them to relax and not smile they understood that I was attempting to take them seriously. Most of the time, no matter their expression, I was behind the camera thinking to myself, ‘Oh my god, can this be real?’ There was one instance where the rabbit breeder was in a very good mood, and we were both laughing, so I went to press the shutter and just as I did his angora rabbit let out a big yawn. It happened so quickly that I wasn’t sure I had it, but when I got the film back I could see that I had captured a full set of yawning teeth- the only visible feature of the rabbit other than the fur. So there is room for spontaneity within this model. However, because taking humorous or ironic pictures in this situation was like shooting fish in a barrel, I thought it was a more just representation of the rabbit breeders if I tried to convey them as they saw themselves: as dignified, specialized professionals’.

Can you tell us about the equipment that you used for this shoot?
‘I shot this project with film using a Fugi 680, a medium format camera that has swings and tilts like a 4×5. I liked it because it gave me a little extra length in the torso and allowed me to keep both the rabbits and the people in focus’.

Shannon Taggart is a freelance photographer based in Brooklyn, New York. She received her BFA in Applied Photography from the Rochester Institute of Technology. Her work has appeared in numerous publications including Blind Spot, TIME and Newsweek. She has shown at Photoworks in Brighton, England, The Photographic Resource Center in Boston, Redux Pictures in New York and the Stephen Cohen Gallery in Los Angeles. Her work has been recognized by the Inge Morath Foundation, American Photography and the Alexia Foundation for World Peace, among others.

There seems to be a lot more women than men in your photographs. Is this true of the spiritualist community in general or have you simply chosen to focus more on women in your photographs?
‘In my latest series of portraits, the focus on women was very intentional. I chose to shoot only women for a period of time. Volume two and three of the series will focus on men, couples and small groupings of people. Otherwise in my work, any focus on women in particular was unintentional. It just so happened a majority of the spiritualists and mediums I met and photographed were women, but there could be something to that I suppose’.

How did you come up with the title “Edwina” for your series on snake handlers?
‘Edwina is short for Jimmy and Pam Morrow’s Edwina Church of God in Jesus Name, located in Newport, TN’.

You’ve been photographing the spiritualist community for a while now, along with snake handlers and exorcisms. What keeps you coming back to this subject matter?
‘I am completely fascinated by how the individual experiences the spiritual uniquely. And that such experiences can be so profoundly different, deeply interior, and utterly mysterious. I seek to make visible via the camera a metaphor for what is happening within the psychological space surrounding the person, the ritual or the actuality of the event. Also, there is just something totally hypnotic about witnessing the attempt to bring something abstract, like belief or faith, into the physical’.

What is the strangest thing that has happened to you while photographing paranormal activities?
‘Honestly, there are many strange things that happened. Most sound silly when I attempt to describe them in words. The main reason I began the spiritualism project was because of a dramatic message my cousin received from my grandfather via a medium. Whatever their explanation, the experiences I had while making the photographs are all special to me’.

You have photographed spiritualists in both the U.S. and England. Were there any major differences in attitude between the subjects in these respective countries?
‘I spent very little time in England comparatively so it’s hard to be certain. The main thing that stuck out was that the British style was generally more formal and theatrical. Also, I think people are willing to pay more money to mediums for readings in the United States’.

Do you shoot film or digital?
‘My latest portrait series is the first project I have shot digitally. All of my other images are scanned 645 or 35mm color negative. I am truly excited by my new digital camera. It has allowed me to explore and experiment with motion and chance elements in amazing ways’.

Sarah Stolfa earned her BS in photography from Drexel University, Philadelphia, in 2005 and her MFA in Photography from Yale University in 2008. The work for which she has garnered the most recognition is a portrait series of the regular patrons at McGlinchey’s Bar, where she has worked as a bartender for several years. With this series, Stolfa won The New York Times Photography Contest for College Students in 2004 and several of her photographs were reproduced in The New York Times Magazine. In addition to the Times award, Stolfa has also won the Noah Addis Photojournalism Award, an award for Artistic Excellence in the Perkins Center Photography Competition and the Alice Kimball Traveling Fellowship. Stolfa’s work, The Regulars will be published by Artisan books in June 2009.

What kind of place is McGlinchey’s, and what made you start taking photographs from behind the bar?
‘McGlinchey’s is a kind of hole in the wall bar in the middle of Center City Philadelphia surrounded by office buildings, large theaters, and recently opened chain restaurants. It has seen the neighborhood change with time since the end of Prohibition and for three generations the bar has sold cheap booze. It is dark and smoky with a circular bar. Since it is downtown, it gets all sorts of people; from the 10:00 am Bankers Club gin drinker, to the construction worker drinking Bud for lunch, to the lawyer who sips Jameson at 5:05 pm, to the Jersey suburbanite weekend warrior slugging back Miller Lites and the art student chugging a Lager after class’.

What were you looking for when deciding to photograph a patron?
‘I was not looking for anything particular except I would mostly only photograph people who were alone in the bar. I was drawn to people for different reasons: their clothes, their hair, their mannerisms, their face, or their mood. I was drawn to each person for a different reason’.

Do you have favorites from this series, and does this ever change over time?
‘I do have favorites, but in almost all there will be a small detail that excites me, like Joanna’s chewed black nail polish or the gold leaf in Georgia’s hair’.

How many portraits would you make each night and how many shots would you take of one subject?
‘Each subject I would shoot a roll of, 12 shots. Some nights I would photograph two or three people, some nights none. I had no control over who would walk through the door so there was no rhyme or pattern to when I would photograph’.

What camera are you using?
‘I was using a Hasselblad for that body of work’.

Growing up in a military family and being the new kid in a classroom at least sixteen times has given Michelle Pedone a unique perspective on the world. Experiencing the subculture evident in each new place nourished the love of pop culture, so evident in her work today. Michelle enjoys shooting all ages and walks of life bringing her sparkle and zest. Her recent portraiture project, “All Eyes On U!” was awarded in American Photography 24. Michelle received her BFA from The Corcoran School of Art, in Washington, DC. She lives in New York City with her husband James, Affenpinscher Pepito, and kitty Baby Olive. In her spare time, Michelle likes to sing karaoke.

When planning a shoot do you usually start out with an idea or a strict visual of what you want to accomplish?
‘I like to sketch out ideas, taking into consideration the theme and setting of the shoot, which then inspires the color palette and helps to shape the over all mood of the images I want to create. Casting is also a huge factor in bringing my vision to life. It doesn’t matter to me if I am working with a professional model or an average joe, I am inspired by interesting looking people that can bring a genuine spontaneity to my set’.

How did the idea of the frames come about?
‘My All Eyes On U! series was inspired by the “Big Eyed” painting movement of the late sixties. I wanted to pay homage to these paintings by reinterpreting them through the medium of photography. Some of my favorite “Big Eyed” painters are Eden, Keane, Eve, and Lee. I have been collecting their work for a while, and actually photographed a few of the vintage frames to use in my interpretation’.

Your work is very fashionable in a cool zany kind of way. Do you work with a stylist?
‘The look of the image is very important to me. I pay great attention to the color and texture of clothing, accessories, and props to make sure it’s all working. Often times with my personal work I do my own styling. I always work with a stylist on my commercial jobs. I enjoy the collaborative process of discussing my color palette ideas and brainstorming for inspirations’.

What is the one rule of photography that you break most often?
‘I’m not sure if I would call this a rule but there always seems to be certain “guidelines” as to what’s marketable at any given time. I try to follow my own vision without being corrupted with what style of imagery is hot at the moment. Staying away from trends and sticking with my own style and aesthetic has allowed me to focus and grow as a photographer’.

How do you go about finding props?
‘I am always on the look out for unusual props. I’ll buy things just because I like the way they look. They can end up as a prop in one of my shoots, or once in a while inspire the whole theme of an image. I love anything with Twinkie the kid the best, his boots rock! I’m still trying to figure out a way to incorporate him into a shoot. I seek out items on Ebay, thrift stores, and sometimes rent from prop houses. Working with a prop stylist is the best because they can often find hidden gems faster than I can’.

Amy Stein is a photographer and teacher based in New York City. Her work explores our evolving isolation from community, culture and the environment. She has been exhibited nationally and internationally and her work is featured in many private and public collections such as the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Photography, the Nevada Museum of Art, SMoCA and the West Collection. In 2006, Stein was a winner of the Saatchi Gallery-Guardian Prize for her Domesticated series. In 2007, she was named one of the top fifteen emerging photographers in the world by American Photo magazine and she won the Critical Mass Book Award. A monograph of Domesticated will be published in fall 2008. This forthcoming book won the best book award at the 2008 New York Photo Festival. Amy is represented by Robert Koch Gallery in San Francisco and Pool Gallery in Berlin.

Were you shooting the series, Domesticated, with the publication of a book in mind?
‘When I began Domesticated I was in grad school so I wasn’t so far along that I was thinking about a book or even an exhibition. I was simply trying to make compelling images that wouldn’t get eviscerated in critique. As the series progressed I began to become interested in exhibiting the work and have had many opportunities to do so this year. The Critical Mass book is the icing on the cake’.

Is this work completely finished or do you still find yourself searching for photos or situations that will fit into this series?
‘The series is not finished. I find myself still returning to Matamoras to visit with my taxidermist, meet with folks I’ve photographed and gather new animal sighting stories’.

Aside from your Halloween in Harlem series, do you shoot much in New York City?
‘In the past almost never, It just hasn’t held much appeal for me. But I am shooting my latest project here in Queens’.

How much time did you spend scouting locations for this series?
‘I lived in the neighborhood for two years so I know the best street corners and shop windows in Spanish Harlem’.

Do you have any pets?
‘My husband John and I have two massive cats named Fatty and Gilbert. They are alternately the joy and bane of our existence’.

James Rajotte is a photographer living in Rochester, New York. After growing up in rural Pennsylvania, James studied Earth Sciences at Penn State University. He then worked as a photojournalist for several publications during and after his undergraduate education. Rajotte completed an MFA at the Visual Studies Workshop and is currently an Adjunct Professor of Photography at Rochester Institute of Technology and contributes regularly to publications such as the New York Times.

What made you start photographing East High School in Rochester, NY and how did you gain access?
‘My interest in photographing East came about as I was volunteering in a mentoring program in which students made short video productions with an anti-violent message. When I decided to photograph, I wrote a formal letter to the Superintendent and the Principal. After a bit of humming and hawing they made me East High School’s “official” photographer. They gave me a make-shift laminated pass and I became friendly with the security guards’.

What camera are you using?
‘Mamiya C220 is the camera that I used for this project. I borrowed it from an acquaintance’.

The photos in this series are devoid of people for the most part. Were you allowed to shoot the kids or was this a conscious decision?
‘At first, I was photographing students candidly and making portraits in 4×5. These were nice, but it was difficult to photograph students without commenting directly on socioeconomic status of East High School’s student body, and this is not what I wanted to do. I was however, interested in the dilapidated state of the school and the eerie familiarity that I felt. When I started looking at my pictures as symbols of a high school experience and not as documents about a particular school, something changed for me. I realized that people of a certain age and culture see themselves in these pictures, and that certain familiar objects and places contain or at least call to mind emotions that have not been felt in some time. The locker room for instance, is a place where traumatic things often occur. Just as important as the places, the objects that make up education – plastic chairs, fluorescent lights, miniature bags of Doritos, clocks and overhead projectors – all carry emotional weight’.

What is the most important thing you teach your students about photography?
‘I try to have my students to consider photography as asking questions about the world. I also teach them to find a healthy balance between craft and concept’.

With a degree in Geographic Information Science, why did you make the leap to photography and do you find your degree has had an impact on your work?
‘G.I.S. deals with communication, spatial relationships, semiotics and cognition; all things that have relevance in photography. The concepts that I studied as an undergraduate are starting to intersect more with my photographs. My most recent work is about a small town called Frenchville, PA, in which, the towns geography has played a vital role in its existence, identity and inevitable demise’.