It is time to meet our August 18th - August 24th, 2019, Weekly Feature Creative, Alex!
Creative's Name: Alex Inglis
Type of Creative: Photographer
Genres: Swim, Lingerie/Boudoir/Nude, Lifestyle/Candid, Fashion, Portrait, Architectural/Street, Landscape/Nature/Wildlife, Weddings, Food, Sports & Event.
Tell us about you! What is your story? Married, kids, fur babies? What things do you do besides your craft? My schooling was pvt school combined with all sorts of art classes in school, as well as out. I graduated high school in '76 with the University of Hartford Art School Award. I have a background in Pvt Security & the Fire Department. I'm originally from Connecticut, where I started the Fire Department 30+ years ago shooting shots mostly all 911 scene, including LIFESTAR and HAZMAT. 3-4 years later, I escaped the cold of Connecticut moving to South Florida, where I almost immediately landed a 1-year apprentice position out of a photography studio in Boca Raton, Florida (film days), where I learned the in's and out's of the actual studio business dealing with it's customers on down to the equipment plus being assigned daily photo projects. Back then, my favorite time of day was the end of the day when all of the photographers that shot for the studio would gather for the next day's assignments and to do the end of the day photo critique on each other's shots. I do believe shooting for the Fire Department combined with the year of shooting as an apprentice photographer is what defined my photography to what it is today.
My personal life is very quiet, I choose to keep it as such. I'm currently on my 12th year of marriage, 2nd marriage to a girl from the Philippines. I have 1 daughter from my first, who I raised myself who's now 23 and fully self-supported. I'm currently taking care of my soon-to-be 95-year-old mother, which is taking up lots of time these days.
The last several years, I have been the resident photographer to Skydive Sebastian and the Sebastian Municipal Airport. I have been photographing exclusively for a 5-time World Champion Skydiver and his team along with other select professional athletes. I consider myself to be one of the lucky ones, for I live-eat-sleep-breathe photography 24/7/365. It's all I know and do is photography and Adobe. In my free time, I can be found usually at my desk editing shots or out in the field shooting shots. My life is the photos.
PHOTOGRAPHERS... be straight with us... what brand do you use? What is your favorite piece of gear - lens, camera body, etc? There's much too much great to mention so, I'll go with the basics - Nikon bodies, personal favorites I do favor an older Nikon D2H, the 7100 and lastly, the D500. I find each has their unique characteristic about them is why I like them and continue shooting them. The lens, Nikon / Tamron / Sigma - My favorite lens has to be the industries standard - the 70-200mm f/2.8 (Tamron), then the 150-600mm f/5-6.3 (Sigma).
PHOTOGRAPHERS... when you go on one of your travels, where do you go & what gear do you bring with you? My favorite location is Florida, I can never get enough of our state. It's super easy to put on over 120,000 miles on a car in less than a years time. I can't help it, I live in a location that one cannot really choose a bad location to photography. I have photographed in many different locations, I'd have to say my favorite is here at home in Florida. Usually it's with one my Nikon's and the standard 70-200 f/2.8.
PHOTOGRAPHERS/VIDEOGRAPHERS... What editing programs do you use? I use several. A photo starts in Adobe Lightroom, then gets a quick adjustment, the being migrated usually into one of the Skylum programs, then back to Lightroom, then usually into Topaz, then back to Lightroom. It depends upon my mood and the desired outcome of the actual image I am looking to create.
What has been the hardest part of being a photographer? How long have you been a photographer? I do this full-time; I started a long time ago. It was 1976 when the first Nikon was put into my hands. A few years later, I find myself knowing nothing yet, shooting full-time for the Fire Department, so I had to learn fast or as fast as I could. The hardest part of being a full-time photographer/artist is my down time between shoots. The lack of money yet, I wouldn't do anything else. It's a lifelong journey for me.
What makes your passion shine and what are you most passionate about when you see your finished work? My 1st responsibility is to the image. To create the best most accurate image possible. It is only then that I can move onto my own interpretation to said image. I love seeing such an accurate reproduction of an image, especially when it's been processed properly. If I can make an image pop, I will.
Would you change anything you have learned? What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind with your work? I wouldn't change a thing. It's what defined who I am today. I just want to be the best that I can possibly be. I wish to inspire through the images.
Among your works, which is your favorite & why? I don't really have favorites. I shoot thousands of shots. The one's I do have matted and framed here at home on my walls would be a photo titled "Sitar" - A white bengal tiger I photographed many years ago at Palm Beach Zoo & Conservation Society. He's now out at the San Diego Zoo on the TV show "Zoo Adventure."
What inspires you? Who's work has influenced you most? What is the most rewarding part for you? Ansel of course! My teacher Larry Horowitz. At present, I have no favorites for there's far too many talented artist's producing work today. Most rewarding is just seeing someone be totally blown away and happy by my product I've produced.
Tell us something we wouldn't know about you, from looking at your portfolio. I'm disabled.
What advice do you have for people just starting out? Photographers...know your camera and it's settings, be patient, don't rush, take your time on each shot not rushing, most of all enjoy this journey you are on.
Thank you Alex for sharing your creative journey with us! We love having you as part of the Artistic Alliance Community!