MSW Interviews: Crossing Boundaries with Pro Photographer Steven Vigar

A note from Carrie Kellenberger: Taiwan is home to an incredible amount of talented and creative people, especially photographers. I have a tremendous amount of respect for individuals who get out there and cross boundaries, who aren’t afraid to dive in and explore the underbelly of the world, who persistently showcase the beauty and diversity that can be found in everyday life. Steven Vigar is one such individual. He holds one of the largest fan bases in Taiwan for commercial photography, and for good reason. His passion and joy for his chosen profession can’t really be expressed in words, although we are going to give it a good try here today. I hope you will be as captivated by his images as I am. Pictures really do speak a thousand words.

Most of the photographers and artists who have been featured here on MSW have sent me the images that they wish to appear with their interview. Steven unwittingly gave me the hardest task in the world to do. He asked me to choose for myself. I intended to post this interview last week, and found the task overwhelming. I was completely sucked into Steven’s world for quite some time. I sincerely hope that I have done his work justice with the images I have chosen and I strongly urge you to spend some time on his site at Steven Vigar Photography. For those of you wishing to connect with him on Facebook, his fan page can be found here.

Thanks Steven, for agreeing to be featured on MSW and for taking the time to answer my questions. You’re an inspiration!

MSW: Can you tell us a little about yourself? How and when did you become interested in photography?

SV: I’ve always envied photographers that explore the world, camera in hand, finding beauty in everyday life. Everything I shoot is deliberate. I’m a project-oriented person. I prefer to take on specific assignments and make them my own through interpretation. My glory days were back when I was studying photography at N.A.I.T. We had a weekly critique session that forced us to create an image out of a one-word title like ‘alley’, ‘night’, ‘crazy’ or whatever. I got a kick out of being the one in the class who pushed the boundaries to create an image no one else thought of, whether it was successfully visually pleasing or not. I once had my friend dress up in a full hazmat suit and we snuck through the gates and onto the grounds of the local Chemical plant to capture some “Pollution” themed shots. Luckily, through fast talking when happened upon by security,  police intervention was not necessary. Quite a few of my assignments were epic failures, ending with our guest industry critiquers saying stuff like, “Uhh, I don’t really get it,” or “What were you thinking here?” However, some of my other assignments turned out really well and I did enough head-turning in my three years at school to receive the honor of having the top student portfolio, which was very rewarding.

I had the most fun with photography when I didn’t know the rules. Today there are some pictures I don’t shoot because I know exactly what the result will be. Just like Pavlov’s dog, you become conditioned not to repeat mistakes. But in the beginning it was intensely satisfying, taking photos of coffee cups and flowers. haha

MSW: What was your first camera?

SV: I guess it would be my Father’s Olympus OM-1 with the 200mm lens. I was pretty lucky. My father definitely wasn’t into photography, but he was always into having the newest technology. We were the first in our neighborhood, for example, to get a state of the art Beta video player. I remember one day, my brother and I were feeding our new pet dog raspberries from our backward and laughing about it. We fed him a lot of raspberries. Later, the dog was sitting on my older brother’s chest as he was lying in the hammock. They were swinging back and forth and it threw up on his face. When I ran into the kitchen looking for something to use to clean up the mess I found myself faced with a dilemma. My father’s camera was sitting right on the counter near the paper towels. In hindsight, I totally made the right choice. My brother’s suffering only lasted a few minutes longer, but the photos have proved to be a timeless conversation starter during visits from old friends, distant family members and, of course, my brother’s new girlfriends. My father also passed on tthe camera to me soon after, realizing I was way more into it than he was.

MSW: How did you get started in the photography business?

SV: I wanted to make photography my full-time job straight out of school. I envisioned photography as a big baseball stadium. Ideally I wanted to be the guy up to bat with bases loaded. I wanted to own a commercial photography outfit, and pick my own assignments, but I realized I’d probably have to sit in the stands, way back in the nose-bleed section, and try to be happy processing film in a photo lab.

There’s what you want, and then there’s reality. There are tons of excellent photographers out there and it’s hard to make yourself stand out. I just want to be involved in the industry in some way. In the past I have done photography full-time and have found it exhausting. I’ve taken breaks from it entirely. I also need to strike a balance when it comes to pouring myself too much into anything.

MSW: Your photography covers several mediums: editorial, portraiture, travel and fine art. Which is your favorite? What gets the biggest response from your fans?

SV: I still have a tough time getting my head wrapped around the fact that I have fans.As they say, “the truest sign of an artist is the fear of failure”. I need constant feedback and criticism to feel like I’m improving. I like to rely on the opinions of my photographer friends to give me the thumbs up or point out aspects of my work that need improvement. Garret Clarke is great at that. He loves telling me what a shitty photographer I am. We take very different approaches to photography. I like to be all over the map visually. He likes to push me (and all my buttons). If I’m taking too many portraits, he’ll remind me that I have to fill the gaps with more cultural stuff – which Taiwan lends itself to well. If I were to choose the path of least resistance, I’d shoot nothing but portraits. There’s so much life in peoples’ faces. It’s rewarding to capture their strength and uniqueness. But sometimes I need somebody like Garret to light a fire under my ass to go out and do something more challenging.

MSW: You’ve been on several interesting assignments over the past two years, and you’ve got some great assignments coming up too. Can you tell us a little about the work you’re doing at the moment?

No, I can’t. Next question. Just kidding. I’m getting ready to shoot a pair of DJs from the UK called the Super Milkmen. I’m really excited about it. They’re actually a pretty big deal in the London club scene, but are relatively unknown on this side of the globe. I’ll be shooting them while they’re here on tour. It’s pretty exciting. We’re going to do six shows in Taiwan and a few more in Shanghai and Beijing. It’s going to be an epic documentary of the Taiwan club scene.

And I always have my own artsy projects floating around in my head. Here in the South of Taiwan single-gear style bicycles have been becoming very popular. The bikes are insanely cool, and the people that ride them are very unique. I’d like to do a series of the bikes and their riders. And as of last week I have been commissioned to do a series for our local watering hole here in Tainan, the Armory. Lots of possibilities there.

MSW: Your photography has really come into its own in the past two years. There are a lot of women that would love to work with you. I like how your images show a woman’s strength and power in such a soft, feminine (and sexy) way. How do you get them to be so comfortable in front of the camera?

SV: People (mostly young women) contact me regularly for personal photos. “I want to look like that girl,” they tell me. But it doesn’t work that way. Everyone is very different. I’d hate to use the same formula for everyone. I’d rather be seen as an illustrative photographer than just a portrait guy. I want to keep pushing the envelope that way. I‘ve worked with some outstanding personalities. The trick in making a model feel comfortable is just letting her be herself. Usually on a shoot with an inexperienced model, the first location and first one hundred photos are a write-off. They’re warm up shots. After that the model is getting used to being photographed. Also, you need to be aware of the person’s comfort zone. You can’t stand too close or too far away. If you stand too close you will invade her personal space. If you stand too far away you’ll make her feel isolated and awkward. Professional models can handle any circumstance. It’s their job. But many of the women I shoot are part-time models or average women who just want some nice pictures taken. I’ve found that for most people best distance seems to be a casual conversational distance, just one or two meters. Also, with inexperienced models its important to take your time and ease into the shoot. Let them get comfortable and, inevitably, you’ll both end up having fun.

MSW: What advice you would give to aspiring photographers?

SV: Play play play. A lot of photographers seem to be obsessed with their equipment. Of course it’s important to have the right equipment for the job, but I don’t really care for deep conversations about Nikon versus Canon, the benefits of full-frame cameras, etc. Do you think that during Picasso and Matisse’s legendary art conversations they discussed their favorite paintbrushes? Many people are shy to get to the point and discuss mood and depth of the photos, to discuss the real issues associated with capturing the world around us.

MSW: Which photographers inspire you? Do you have any favorite photography sites?

SV: I love Damon Winters’s work. In addition to his being kind enough to answer my fan email, he’s an outstanding photographer. He’s a living testament to the idea that you don’t have to specialize to be successful, being a jack-of-all-trades works too. His images are so tight. Portraits, travel and documentary, his pictures are all great. He doesn’t limit himself to one particular genre.

I always find myself checking his website to find out what he’s up to. Another photographer I love is Amy Senecal, my friend from college. Her style is very modern and breathtaking, feminine and strong.

MSW: If you could pick one photograph out of your collection that to represent you as a photographer, what would it be?

SV: That’s a tough one. One of my most unique images is a surreal red picture of a bridge and tree. The thing about this picture is that it’s only good because I made two very boneheaded mistakes. The bridge is of the confederation bridge that links the Canadian provinces of Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. I shot the bridge on my first roll of film using my new Holga medium format camera. I thought I was shooting Black and white (when I was actually shooting color). Then, I forgot to advance the frame, so I had double exposed the bridge picture with the picture of the tree. It was one of those unexpected successes that makes your heart jump when you see it the first time. That picture is a reminder that you never know what to expect, that you have to just keep shooting and playing.