Jamie Mackrill 19/1/20 Jamie Mackrill 19/1/20

Australian drone photographer Ash Farman on beach/surf photography and creating a unique editing style

Ash Farman is a drone photographer from Melbourne, Australia. In his interview with us, he not only shares how he got into photography and why he is so passionate about the ocean, but he also discusses his unique editing style, drone photography, how he is able to monetise his hobby and—maybe best of all—the finest beaches around Melbourne. Ash is well established in the Australian photography scene on Instagram and has an evergrowing fanbase throughout the world.

Ash Farman, Australian drone photographer

“Don’t be afraid to send an email, pick up the phone, get your foot in the door and make yourself known. Presentation is half the battle, people want to work with people they get along with wherever possible. So, if your work is as good as the next person, but you connected with them in the right way, they are more likely to sign you up.”

Could you please give us a brief overview of your journey up to this point in your life? Your beautiful Instagram feed, I presume, expresses three of things that you love: the ocean, surfing and drone photography. How and when did you discover your fondness of them?

Having a father who worked in advertising, I have been around cameras my entire life. The passion for actually taking photos started at a very early age and since then, I have always had one by my side. I originally started with portrait photography, taking photos of family and friends etc. Urban/street photography was the next thing that I fell in love with, but now aerial photography is where my passion lies.

Having very active parents who had me in the water at only 8 weeks old, the ocean has played a huge part in my life, whether it was sailing, scuba diving, surfing or just swimming. Some summers as a kid, I would spend more time in the water than out of it. So, naturally, I gravitated towards the coastline when I bought my first drone about 3-4 years ago.

What's amazing to me, and I'm sure to a lot of others as well, is how you've managed to combine these three passions of yours and monetize doing what you love. Would you agree with the saying that one should "choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life"?

I completely agree with that saying and putting it into practice has been one of the most challenging yet rewarding things I have done with my life so far.

The learning curve has been steep – especially the video side of things, the hours on the road are long – sometimes getting up at 3 am to drive several hours to catch the sunrise. The weather plays nice only half of the time, so there is a massive rollercoaster of luck and frustration that comes along with it. But what makes it so rewarding is when you end up with amazing images that you can be proud of.

With regard to the more serious aspects of life, what advice would you give others: Is it important to diversify income sources or concentrate on one or two different methods? What are some of your favourite ways to make a bit of money from photography, and in which ways do you think you can expand and improve moving forward in regards to your portfolio and gaining more experience and income?

I think it’s a good idea in life to have a few irons in the fire and give yourself the best chance to be successful. I’ve worked full time in the automotive industry for the past 15 years, which helps pay all the bills. It allows me to concentrate on my artistic side and to do what I want to do, without having to do things I don’t want to do to survive, like aerial real estate photography, for example.

With regard to making money from my photos/videos, I sell a lot of prints locally and internationally and also do the occasional video work for corporate companies, which pays extremely well. To improve and expand on this position, all you really need to do is be present. Don’t be afraid to send an email, pick up the phone, get your foot in the door and make yourself known. Presentation is half the battle, people want to work with people they get along with wherever possible. So, if your work is as good as the next person, but you connected with them in the right way, they are more likely to sign you up.

Gunnamatta Ocean Beach, Victoria, Australia

In almost every single one of your images, you have a person in the shot. You also seem to love capturing movement, whether it is waves washing up on the shore, a surfer catching a wave or someone walking along the beach casting a shadow. Can you explain why you enjoy capturing these types of shots and what you're looking for when you're sending the drone to take some photos?

To put it simply, creating compositions with subjects is extremely satisfying. It adds to the story by adding in a human element that you can relate to. As much as I do go out with intent, I generally fill the card on each trip with a variety of different types of shots that just appeal to me in the moment. I do most of my shooting between first light and an hour or two after sunrise to catch the golden hour and that morning vibe.

Weather plays into a lot as well, and funnily enough, I never want to be shooting on a perfect day. I find that a bit of cloud diffuses the light and adds mood into your shots. I also like shooting between rain showers, when it’s blowing a gale. Some of my best shots have come from short breaks in almost cyclonic weather.

Swell is another factor that makes it challenging to get the timing right. A lot of the time during winter, the big stuff is breaking mid-week whilst I’m sitting in an office in the middle of the Melbourne CBD, and it absolutely kills me. Due to this, I keep a close eye on the swell charts up to two weeks out, so I can make sure I am available to go hit it when it comes on the weekend.

I touched on capturing shadows in some of your compositions a bit before. However, I think that you take things a few steps further than just playing with shadows. The level of contrast and details in your images are bold, very eye-catching and make your images stand out from the crowd. You also seem to make the most of contrasting complementary colours, such as teal and orange, in many of your images. Are these factors that you think about when looking for a composition and when editing your images or is it more of a natural progression of your editing style and thought process? Is there anything else that you are trying to achieve when editing your images and reaching a certain aesthetic?

Whilst out shooting, I think a lot of the thought process of what I need to do has become second nature to me, and if I’m honest, I don’t really think about it too much anymore—it just happens.

Editing, on the other hand, does require a lot of thought and planning. However, it’s kind of a similar process where I just let myself go and create something that I want to see from the heart. I usually put headphones on, open a beer and get myself into a good headspace so the creative juices flow. My particular style of editing has always had rich vibrant contrasting complementary colours in it, and it’s been a challenging road to refine that back from a very obvious overuse of it to a more tasteful look that is uniquely my style. When I first started out, I imitated my favourite photography to try and figure out the basics and how they did what they did, and once I learnt, I tried to put my own lick on it to create something different, which I think is very important. Always try new things, even if you think it won’t work—you never know what you will come up with.

What's your go-to drone? What was your experience when you were going through the process of becoming a certified drone pilot? (Was it challenging, a long process, expensive in Australia?) and have you ever crashed a drone or had any near misses?

My workhorse for surf photography is the DJI Phantom 4 Pro, it’s almost as good as my Inspire 2 quality-wise, but it’s a lot more discrete, which is important to remember when other people are out there trying to enjoy the serenity of the ocean.

Getting my RePL (Remote Pilot Licence) was very challenging, as I actually did it with a commercial pilot training school, so there was a lot of additional aeronautical training that came with it, which, in hindsight, I’m very glad that I did - having extra knowledge never hurt anyone!

Price-wise, when I did it a few years ago, it was very expensive, but I believe they have come down a bit since then. I would recommend the certification to anyone considering getting into the field commercially.

No. I have not crashed a drone yet – touch wood. I’ve had plenty of close calls but luckily, I’ve managed to fly my way out of danger every time. A couple of times that come to mind was almost losing my Phantom to a huge wave at Bells that I was strafing alongside at water level to emulate being inside a barrel. Another time, I almost put my Inspire 2 into a brick structure at 80km/h during a shoot for Mercedes at Sydney Motorsport Raceway. I certainly ‘buzzed the tower’ that day – haha!

For all the surf lovers, beachgoers and foodies out there, what are some of your favourite spots in and around Melbourne to get a great meal or to watch the waves roll in? And which beach is your favourite to photograph?

Beach wise, I have three, and they are all at least an hour away from Melbourne. Bells for the surf, Gunnamatta for incredible sunsets and Lorne for that tropical laid-back vibe. Closer to home, I love Half Moon Bay at Black Rock for traditional beach-going.

Food-wise, that’s a tough question. Don’t forget this is Melbourne, and we are so spoilt for food and entertainment. Just head to the city and you will find the flavours of the world and some of the best examples of it. If I had to choose just one area to eat for the rest of my life, it would be in Little Burke Street in the CBD. I absolutely love all types of Asian food.

Where can people find out more about you? And what social media platforms can we all follow you on?

Most of what I do is on Instagram under @highintheskyphotography. I also started to work on my YouTube game a bit more these holidays, so subscribe to my channel to stay tuned to all the soon-to-be-released video work I’ve been doing.

I’ve recently updated my website, adding a few new additions. I just released my first Lightroom preset pack and also a Cinematic LUT pack for videos: check those out whilst they are still at the introductory sale price.

https://www.instagram.com/highintheskyphotography/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2wP94EH2D1d8_1mlNO4MGg?

https://www.highinthesky.com.au/

An island off the coast of Victoria, Australia

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Jamie Mackrill 13/1/20 Jamie Mackrill 13/1/20

American photographer Brian Johns discusses quitting the 9-5, pursuing his passions, and Traveling North America

Brian Johns is an American photographer with a rather unique perspective on the American dream. In his interview, Brian discusses his transition from Officer in the US army, to nature photographer and social media influencer. Brian’s story is one of overcoming many challenges and setbacks, his journey to finding his passions and achieving varying levels of success, his current situation after three years on the road, and his plans for the future and advice for others thinking of doing something similar to him.

“But I wasn’t happy. Just because I was making about $6000 a month with full benefits as a captain in the army does not mean I sensed I was where I ought to be in life. I needed something more. The office wasn’t cutting it for me.

...Leaving the 9-5 hardly describes my whole journey, but it was a necessity to start a new life”

What's heartwarming about you, Brian is that you're a person living your dreams on the road and making a living doing what you love. You're popular on social media, you take some absolutely amazing photographs, but what is the most inspirational – at least for me – are the captions of your images: you come across as an extremely humble and honest man who's very open about some of the issues that you've had in the past, and how you have got to the point in your life now. This transparency is a breath of fresh air on a platform such as Instagram. Could you please elaborate on some of the big turning points in your life, personal issues that you've had to face and decisions that you've made that have lead you to the point you're at today, and why you think it's important to be honest and transparent with your followers?

I would be honoured to tell you a little more about my photography journey: I grew up with a family that certainly valued the outdoors, and for that I am fortunate. I was very involved in the Boy Scouts with my father as my scoutmaster, and he very much encouraged high-adventure outings often. So in that respect, I believe that from a young age, I always had an inkling for the outdoors. However, I was not pushed into taking pictures until I was 27 years old.

That sounds great. Can you maybe elaborate more on your photography journey? Have you always loved travelling or was this something that you discovered later in life?

I have been doing photography for a little over 3 years. I would say that I have been taking it very seriously for closer to 2.5 years though, and every year, I develop my craft further. I had actually started my Instagram page a few years prior with a focus on fitness and parkour. This was a means to show what I was doing at the time, which was daily training at a facility called @junglemovement. But jumping forward, I had left the army and started traveling. It was the traveling that inspired photography, not the other way around. I wanted to see cool things, and that inspired me much more. I decided that I wanted to make it a career probably about 4-6 months into traveling. My traveling had more to do with finding myself than it did finding nature, even if I wasn't making that abundantly clear while posting initial adventures to Instagram.

"Three years ago I quit the 9-5" is currently written in your Instagram bio. This would be the dream of a lot of people reading this right now. What made you decide to quit your job and pursue photography and travel as a new career path? What were the biggest challenges that you faced?

Yes, I was an officer in the US army: a steady paycheck, benefits, and retirement all lined up. For lack of better wording, according to the “popular” American Dream, I had it going on. Why would I say “popular” American dream? Because I see America steadily and consistently teaching, influencing and pushing us to pursue the path that makes the most dollars, the most comfortable for money and retirement etc. A career as a military officer fits that mould. I won't even say that is the biggest reason why I joined because it’s not - but that story would even require a completely different blog post. I fit the mould regardless, but I wasn't happy. Just because I was making about $6000 a month with full benefits as a captain in the army does not mean I sensed I was where I ought to be in life. I needed something more. The office wasn't cutting it for me. It actually reminded me of high school, a time in my life where I felt I did not fit in. The military officer path felt similar. I also was very much affected by the fact that I had failed a crucial stepping stone as an army infantry officer, which was a US army ranger school. Without the ranger tab, I was left in a very tough position at work. I was constantly reminded - every single day - by peers, superiors and even subordinates that I am not good enough because I am not ranger qualified. This lead to anxiety and depression, which created a space in my mind that was likely to explode - I had to run from it. Leaving the 9-5 hardly describes my whole journey, but it was a necessity to start a new life.

That sounds like a really rough but also an inspiring personal story, Brian. Can you explain to everyone what you believe are the most important things to consider and to focus on for those who decide to follow a similar path as yourself? Do you wish you'd done anything differently?

I had many challenges to face after leaving my 9-5. I have overdrafted my account more times than many people reading this realized. I had constant doubts about whether I should keep going because of financial struggles and later even debt collectors. This journey has been especially difficult, yet something inside me drives me to keep going.

What would you say are the biggest benefits of the lifestyle that you're currently living? What are some of the biggest drawbacks that should be considered by others who may be thinking of doing something similar?

I believe the most important things to focus on for those wanting to pursue a similar path are numerous, but I’ll break them down:

You should focus on being yourself above and beyond all. Don't try to be anyone else. I have really succeeded because of this.
Keep going even when others - and I mean so many others - try to distract you, point you back to your career, or your old financial comforts. Keep going. Like one of my favourite inspirational human and the founder of @spartanrace and @realjoedesena says, “Nothing in life that is comfortable is truly worth it”.
I wish that I had done more planning at the onset. I am a go-getter and very good at that, but planning is also important.

Your Instagram feed is filled with beautiful images of nature in animals from countless national parks around North America. What attracts you to them to explore and photograph them?

Biggest benefits: a sense of purpose and an escape from normal society for those like me who don't feel that society should dictate who we are or what we do and at what time. Also, seeing beautiful places, connecting with other artists and developing my artistic career on my own timeline.

Biggest drawbacks: finances are hard. Some months I don't get the deals I am looking for, and my bank account is still there, and things can get tough.

Could you tell us your top three favourite national parks in North America and why? Also is there one that you've always wanted to go to but haven't managed to get to yet?

Yellowstone and the Grand Teton, Yosemite, and Big Bend National Park. They all have breathtaking landscapes and beautiful animals. Big Bend is a hidden gem that only the daring will find time to explore.

Where have you wanted to go that you haven't gone? Denali!!! I want to make it to Denali so bad to find the wolves and other animals.

What are some ways that photographers, videographers, influencers, etc. can monetize their passions and start getting more recognition for their work? Are there any methods that you've tried but wouldn't recommend? What has worked for you and what could you recommend to people instead?

Great question, and one I am still learning about daily. Ways that I have been successful more than any has been to sell the right to post my images to a company. I have had particular success with my images of wolves and bears. Sponsored posts are also an avenue as well as sponsorship. In 2020, a big goal of mine is to get more paid sponsorships, workshops, sell things like presets, and also classes on Lightroom and Photoshop as well.

Do you read books or blogs or follow any YouTubers or listen to any podcasts that you can recommend to others?

I love reading fiction books to inspire my creativity. A few of my favourite are Vince Flynn (sadly deceased), who writes political thrillers, as well as James Patterson’s crime novels. I also love reading books from the self-help genre. Tim Feriss also has some wonderful books; I would like to include Tools of Titans, which is a personal favourite. I also enjoy the podcast Spartan Up hosted by @spartan CEO and founder @realjoedesena. This podcast is amazing for finding out ways to overcome mental barriers and obstacles in life.

If you could offer one final piece of advice for someone wanting to escape the 9-5, what would you tell them?

One final piece of advice: listen to your intuition, not society! Society will always pull you away from your real dream. Don't ever give up, and don't ever give in - no matter how hard it gets.

Where can people find out more about you and your story? And what social media platforms can we all follow you on?

I am most active on my Instagram @brianjohnsadventure, but also have a public Facebook, Brian M Johns, a Facebook page, Brian Johns adventure, and a TikTok account. All my social media is under Brian Johns adventure.

more interviews

New Interview uploaded every Sunday at 07:00 Eastern Standard Time

Australian drone photographer Ash Farman on beach/surf photography and creating a unique editing style

American photographer Brian Johns discusses quitting the 9-5, pursuing his passions, and Traveling North America

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