Wojtek Kutyla Interview

Wednesday, July 16th, 2008
by Greg

So I found this sublime photographer through our Flickr Group. His recent portraits of Sam Kellet wowed me. So I was very excited that he agreed to do an interview with us. Wojtek Kutyla shoots out of Sheffield, United Kingdom as a Fashion & Portrait photographer. He also decided to follow suit of Sarah Sitkin in doing an exclusive self-portrait for his interview with us; however instead of a self-portrait he had his friend Grzegorz Kozakiewicz take his picture. I’m very please to bring you this interview with photographer Wojtek Kutyla.

Photos

Exclusive Portrait of Wojtek Kutyla

This portrait of Kutyla was shot by his friend Grzegorz Kozakiewicz

People are your main focus of your photography why do you choose to shoot them?

I love photographing people mostly for the fact, that each one of us is different. Look on the landscape photography, architecture or macro photography – all has been photographed already, all has been done. Different variations of the same subject are only an effect of different angle and settings, but the approach is the same. With people it’s not like that; there is something unique in every person. It can be beautiful or ugly, but for sure it is always interesting. Photographer must trigger it, dig it out.

Another reason for this is that I love to talk (some people say that I can’t actually shut up and they’re right) – and tell me, how could I talk to the flowers in my garden or to the car passing me quickly on a motor rally?

People were always in the centre of my attention, since I started my photographic journey; I am the crappiest landscape photographer ever, for example. I am even worse with architecture (and most of all it’s not turning me on, completely. No excitement whatsoever). Even when I am going for holidays and pretending to just walk around with my camera and shooting monuments, somehow I am finding humans on my pictures. I just can’t resist. After coming back I have tons of photos of random people – but usually no single photo of myself… 

You’ve shot some nude photography; who brings up the subject of doing a nude set you or the model?

My photography sessions are always planned; therefore I am choosing my models with having nudity in mind, if I am actually looking for this type of shot. It happens rarely that from the clothed set we’re moving to the undressed one, but we’re always discussing that with model before we start – the possibility of it happening, I mean.

I am pretty spontaneous and I never plan everything totally precisely, so if we’re finding ourselves in the position to shoot good nude stuff, we’re doing it if model is ok with it. 

I have a few favourite models, passionate professionals who are not afraid of challenges coming from my (sometimes pretty crazy) ideas, so I scared of proposing anything which could look good on the photos later. But it’s not happening often, that I am photographing classic portrait and then saying “Ok babe, now please take off your clothes, we’re going nuts”. Naah. When I have a vision about new piece of work, it may contain nudity or not – but I know that pretty much from the beginning. 

How do you deal with camera shy models that want to relax but can’t?

Well, ideas which are important to me are never shot with the people I haven’t met before. It’s just safer to work with someone who can understand you and who’s communicating with you “wirelessly”.

But naturally, there’s a first time for everyone; and there are few things I do to help with relaxing… There’s always some music playing when I am shooting, and I am trying to keep it up to the model’s preferences (unless it’s a real radio shit, then we’re changing it for the jazz, lol). As I’ve said before, I talk a lot, but never about things which could be sexist or embarrassing for the model. That would be just unprofessional… A cup of tea and nice chat about some general subject before the shoot helps too. My models always have privacy; even if I know them for long, I am never watching them when they’re changing clothes or undressing; this is their time and it needs to be respected (unless they don’t mind me being around but this is always coming from them, not from me).

If someone’s really struggling with chilling out and calming down, I am just shooting for as long as it’s required to get respectable results. Eventually, models are getting tired of being grumpy or stressed and they’re switching on the way I want. Luckily, it’s not very common to find someone who has a broomstick up the ass and who can’t even blink without checking if there is camera around first, so I don’t have much problems with that… That’s great.

You shoot what looks to be a lot of bands; what are some of the problems with shooting a live event and how do you correct them?

Most of my work with the bands was carried under my photography assignments for various magazines (both Internet and printed). I don’t do that so often nowadays, choosing only the bands and shows I want to photograph – and that’s only a few times a year.

To me, the biggest problem while photographing a live show is a limited mobility and stupid timescale given by the promoter or the band. Mobility, as I can never be in the place I want – I guess I am just looking in too many directions and finding too many cool spots, but I can’t multiply myself, unfortunately. And stupid timescale, as on ninety percent of the shows I have seen in my life photographers are able to work only through the first few songs. I am finding that extremely, painfully annoying and limiting. When the band’s playing, musicians are not even warmed up properly when they’re starting… And the best photos I have in my music collection were almost exclusively taken much later during the gig, after the show has started. I think that respectful, good photographer will never harm an artistic performance and musicians should be looking forward to getting photographed; it’s all nothing but a free promotion to them. 

Of course, there’s a problem with camera equipment as well; my vision is bad (years of computer-related work have done their job) so I need to rely on camera’s auto-focus systems. Even with the current technology, these systems are sometimes too slow and not very precise. The solution – shooting at higher ISO settings – has proven to be good, but there are times, when I am finding noise to be a big issue. Oh, I can’t wait for Nikon D700 with it’s ISO 6400 and above… D3 is too expensive for me, so I’ll get the poor man’s full frame instead. Yeah!

You say your looking forward to the new Nikon D700; how does the equipment effect what you create?

The equipment is just the tool; it helps me in creating things I want to create. I am not fussed about any particular camera brand, if that’s what you are asking. If I am thinking about changing my camera, it’s not for the reason of the new model being just cool and trendy, but for the fact that I look forward to the captures of better quality. I believe that a good photo can be taken with anything, and I am only looking for a new camera or lens only if I’ll find that for some reason the old one cannot give me what I need for the particular assignment. Being tired with high ISO problems (I just looove nice, grainy, but smooth black and white), I am looking forward to Nikon D700 mentioned before. But I can live without it.

Still, my most favourite piece of camera equipment ever is the cheap-as-chips Minolta 35-70 f:4 lens. Perfect picture quality for less money that you need to pay for a bottle of good wine. Great! I’d wish modern lenses were so cheap, ha ha.

Is there a photograph you have yet to create do to lack of equipment or model or setting?

No, not really. I mean, I am sure there’s something cool I have not created yet, but it’s because of not having the right idea rather than of equipment problems. I’d say that the only things I am lacking are good locations. Here in Sheffield, where I live there’s not many interesting places to shoot in, but there are some nice people who are helping me with finding nice spots. When I came around, I haven’t been in contact with a great models either, but now that’s not a problem any more. Equipment-wise, I am all set. Yeah, I could have a ringflash or beauty dish, I could also have more lenses and backgrounds but, frankly, I don’t need them. Good idea plus skilled and interesting model, plus good music is all I need. And a coffee (I think I am a coffee addict).

Who are some of photographers that inspire you to create better photographs?

I think that my favourite photographer is Ellen von Unwerth. She’s incredible; technically speaking, she’s not so great, but her work is totally amazing, so full of emotions, it’s the sexiest imagery ever. Helmut Newton’s work is also great and I am a big fan of his photos. He was just ace, a visionary. There is also a bunch of new, relatively young photographers from Eastern Europe who I totally admire, to mention Janusz Miller, Aneta Kowalczyk or Jacek Pomykalski. But the person who really inspires me, and who opened my head for serious photography is my mentor, and a good friend – Waclaw Wantuch. He is someone, who has made me aware that I am fully capable of doing all of this and who said the most important thing I’ve heard: “Follow your heart – and always do it your way”. No matter how cheesy it sounds, it’s true. That’s what I am trying to do…

What impression do you hope to leave on the world with your photographs?

That’s a difficult question. I don’t think I am running after leaving any particular impression here… I just want to do what I love and I hope that people will like it. But if they won’t, I’ll be doing it anyway. I am doing it for myself, to feel good with the fact that I’ve created something, and the rest just follows, sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad.

I strongly believe that photo is only good if it’s remembered. It’s good when you will see it on Monday and then, after seeing it on a Monday year later you’ll say: “Yeah, I remember this stuff”. I hope that this is something I can achieve, but I cannot be bothered to keep photographing just for that. I will keep doing what I am doing as it’s one of the things I love.

Linkage

• Radiant Vision ( Wojtek’s Portfolio )
• Wojtek on Flickr

Thank you, Wojtek for allowing us into your world of imagery and thoughts.