The camera allows me to be an extrovert. It has opened doors for me to explore the rich stories, myth and beauty of places around the world.
How I think
My work as an art director informs my photography and film work more than anything else. I have poured through literally millions of images, have worked with many talented photographers in countless situations and have overcome many challenges. That background allows me to see when an image is unique and vital. It still must remain true—just like a great song sounds new, yet strangely familiar. This means that my sights are set on fulfilling the needs of the concept (and the desires of the end-viewer), as well as the needs of the creative team.
I’ve also enjoyed working with great people at some of Vancouver’s best agencies because I thrive on collaboration and the excitement of working with other creative people—both clients-side and my fellow designers.
That’s probably why I volunteer with the Graphic Designers of Canada; it allows me time to work with my colleagues on projects for the pure joy of creating.
With my still photography as well as my film work, I like to start with a story to help me develop images with a wider, more natural feel. What’s the underlying narrative? I want the viewer to think there’s a backstory outside the frame, with a plot that isn’t in your face but affects the image in unseen ways.
Photography is a great way to access people, places and situations. I love that! The camera allows me to be an extrovert. It has opened doors for me to explore the rich stories, myth and beauty of places around the world, including Australia, South East Asia, Western and Eastern Europe, Hawaii, and my homeland, Canada. Looking for both the obvious and the hidden beauty of nature and humanity—especially where they intersect.
There’s so much amazing stuff happening right now. I love the possibilities that new platforms open. Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram and the likes allow new avenues for interaction and sharing. I look forward to where they will lead, but even more so to what’s coming next. I am inspired by 'the new', it fuels me. Still, I am rooted in simple tradition and analogue mediums.
Some history
I had a normal childhood, growing up as the youngest of eight kids with a pet baboon. Like most creative people, art and design have always been central to my life. Before I can even remember, my mother gave me a Kodak 110 camera that allowed me to frame the world around me. Because money was tight, she used to salvage paper of all sizes and colours, which ended up all over the family dining room table filled with my drawings. I remember being fascinated with the inner workings of things so I'd make detailed cross-sections of things that illustrated every component part. I'd spend hundreds of hours assembling model planes and ships. I'd fill the edges of any and every book with flip-book animations. I had the largest Lego collection of any of my friends and was a master Meccano builder.
Before studying art and design at Kwantlen University, I had many odd jobs. I was an apprentice sous chef. I started working the morning shift until it was too much heat and I literally had to get out of the kitchen. I worked in construction, framing interiors. I dug ditches. That's real work.
At Kwantlen University, I discovered that my initial desire to become an illustrator meant a very solitary path so I changed gears to graphic design. After leaving school at the top of my class, I followed the route of design which eventually lead me to being an art director in advertising. All this time, photography was there as my personal passion. When the opportunity to shoot professionally presented itself a few years ago, I was skeptical. I believed the love I had for photography would certainly be ruined if I was forced to follow someone else's direction. It turns out that the opposite is true. I loved, and secretly desired, this type of collaboration.
I now have a pretty typical family of my own: two amazing kids, and a wonderful wife. No baboon...yet.