All Photographs: Jarrad Seng

Jarrad Seng is a creative based in Western Australia who now travels around the world with musicians and taking pictures. He has worked with UK bands and artists such as Passenger and Ed Sheeran and his client list includes Converse, Qantas and many tourism agencies around the world. Jarrad is not your traditional landscape photographer and it is his unique approach that has won him an online fanbase of over 300,000 people.

We asked Jarrad to share some words of wisdom with us on how he approaches photography, not the technical stuff but more on his attitude to photography. This is what he had to say.

“I’ll preface these words by conceding that I don’t consider myself a landscape photographer, at least not in the traditional sense.  In fact, you’ll be hard-pressed to find many images of mine which don’t feature some sort of human element or other subject of interest.  That said, I think all photography techniques and attitudes can (and should be) be applied across all genres.”

Ask yourself, what makes this photo interesting?
“Sounds obvious, but I sometimes question whether many photographers ask themselves this question while they’re shooting.  Often we can get into a routine when we’re working on autopilot, and not really thinking critically about the image we’re creating.  What’s the point of interest?  What is unique about this photo?  Should I add a human element to add scale or personality to the photograph?  Should I play with unconventional angles or shutter speeds to challenge the traditional view of the scene?  Let’s be honest, landscape photography can be amongst the boring images cluttering social media – don’t add to the noise!”

 
Wonky horizons are the devil
“Short and sweet.  Straighten those horizons.  Wonky lines are the first thing I’ll notice about a photograph, and it’ll taint the whole image.  So unless you have a deliberate reason for not doing so… get those horizons level!”
 
 
If it were easy, everybody would do it.  And has done it.
“It’s cliche, but it’s true.  If the image you’re capturing seems like a piece of cake, it probably means that thousands of other photographers have stood in the same spot and taken the same shot too.  I mean, anyone can walk a few metres from the carpark to a viewing point, or follow a herd of tourists to the ‘classic’ spot.  But how many are willing to hike up a mountain to gain a fresh angle?  Or drive into the wilderness at midnight for the clearest night skies?  Or hang out of an open plane window? The greater the risk and the greater the effort, the greater the reward.  Of course, you also run the chance of not getting a shot at all, if you don’t play it safe.  But that’s all part of the fun, isn’t it?
 
 

 

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You can keep up to date with Jarrad on
Facebook: /jarradsengphotography
Insta: @jarradseng
Web: www.jarradseng.com

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Image detail: Gary Ramage