Down the road with Robert Jones
Photography: Robert Jones
Arts-y: Robert Jones is a commercial photographer based in Boulder Colorado. His work covers everything from cycling to architectural work. He works in the digital and the film realms. He fell in love with photography during a college year abroad in Italy. He has gone on to make a successful commercial career doing something he loves.
What drew you to photography?
“I always enjoyed art and photography but it wasn’t until I went to college and started taking some Photo Design and Photojournalism classes at the University of Georgia that my interest in photography truly began to grow. I was fortunate enough to spend a summer in Cortona, Italy, with UGA’s Studies Abroad program and that’s when I fell in love with photography. The program was very focused on the arts and we traveled all over Italy on several field trips. To this day I still love Italian culture, from the arts and architecture to the food, the landscapes and the people and their passion for cycling and cars, both of which are two of my favorite things. And the Italians’ passion for life! I also like the mechanical interface with the camera. I’ve always been fascinated with mechanical things and I love making art with these magnificent machines.”
Can you talk about the artists or photographers who have inspired you?
“I take inspiration from every artist and every photographer’s work that I see. Since I’m a visually creative person I’m always looking … looking for the light, looking at composition, looking at the subject matter and looking for inspiration. Some of my favorite artists are Pablo Picasso, Matisse, Andy Warhol, Georgia O’Keeffe, Keith Haring, Alexander Calder, Joan Miro, Marcel Duchamp, Salvador Dali, Frida Kahlo, Man Ray, Marc Chagall, Claude Monet and the list could go on. … Some of my favorite photographers are all of the photographers who worked for the FSA during the Depression, Ansel Adams, Annie Leibovitz, Steve McCurry, Richard Avedon, Diane Arbus, Cindy Sherman, Irving Penn, Martin Schoeller, David LaChapelle, Vivian Maier, Robert Mapplethorpe, Joe McNally, Brandon Stanton, Dave Black, Alec Soth, Edward S. Curtis, Tom Kumpf, Allen Birnbach, Joe Swift, Larry Chen, all of the guys who are associated with Speedhunters and many, many more.”
Can you talk about your process? How do you approach a subject? What are the things that you are looking for, the things you keep in mind, when you do a shoot?
“One of my favorite quotes about photography is by Dorothea Lange who was an FSA photographer: “The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.’
“When I have a camera in my hands I’m always looking … looking for the light, looking for composition, looking for a feeling or emotion that I can share via the final photo. It’s all very subjective because every person “sees” differently. I photograph what I find interesting and that’s probably why I have such broad interests in different types of photography like nature and landscapes, cars, cycling, people and portraiture, street photography, architecture and studio and product photography. I’ve often heard that as a photographer you should be very niche specific, but my varied interests in life are reflected in the wide variety of things I like to photograph. I like my photos to be representative of what the subject looks like and also what it feels like. To convey this visually and emotionally at the same time.”
What is a subject that you would like to explore photographically but have not had the opportunity to work on, and why?
“My interest in street photography has been growing and I’d like to go on more photo walks in urban environments and photograph more people on the street. I’m fascinated by street photography because of the wide variety of subjects that are present. And I greatly admire the best street photographers’ ability to capture fleeting moments that are beautifully composed and filled with gorgeous light.
“I also want to do more automotive work on a commercial and editorial level. In the past I’ve just photographed cars and car culture for myself, but I want to see where I can take it because I love cars so much.”
I can see that you are doing work with film and digital cameras. Do you have an affinity for one or the other or are they just tools to be used where appropriate to the subject?
“When I started as a photographer there was no digital option so film was the medium I used. Since digital photography has become so viable and powerful, all of my commercial advertising and editorial work has been done with digital cameras. These days I use film in plastic cameras as a way to be creative without having to carry all of the gear I normally do for big projects. I use these very unsophisticated cameras for a number of reasons. There's no worrying about white point, exposure compensation or even focusing. It's really quite liberating to just make pictures. I have an idea of what's on the film, but it's only confirmed when I get the prints back from the lab. I call the undeveloped film canisters ‘little canisters of hope.’”
