What inspires your work?
At the risk of sounding cliché, when you truly LOOK and SEE the world as an artist, you find inspiration everywhere. As for myself, my pieces are records of the dreamscape places and visions of my imagination that I finally discover existing in plain view and simply record with my camera.
Grand Castles by © Greg Essayan / Available at Jeff Mitchum Galleries
How does your educational artistic background impact your style?
I graduated from Yale University with a double major in History of Art and Art. At Yale, I had the extraordinary opportunity to learn from among the best creatives of the 20th Century including William Bailey, Alvin Eisenman, Walker Evans, Irving Penn, William Eggleston, Paul Caponigro and Ansel Adams. Painters like Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Moran, Frederic Remington, and the Flemish Renaissance also greatly influence my work.
How much preparation do you put into taking a photograph or series of photographs?
My preparation ranges from none at all, that is just wandering, to months of careful detailed study. Most important is understanding and determining the best time of year, day or night, for the quality of the light that I desire.
Kootenay Sunset by © Greg Essayan / Available at Jeff Mitchum Galleries
What gear do you love to shoot with most?
My PhaseOne IQ3 100 megapixel Trichromatic with 35mm and 80mm Schneider lenses, and I always use a tripod with ball head in order to achieve the image quality that I require.
What are some of the challenges your face and how do you overcome them?
Because my work is often printed over 2 metres (6+ feet) wide the technical quality of the image needs to be impeccable. Many of my pieces require long capture times so vibration from wind during the exposure can be a huge problem. Also, I love the quality of light during really bad weather so rain, mist and condensation on the lens is often a concern. But by far, the greatest challenge facing landscape and cityscape photographers today is to bring a unique and fresh artistic vision to iconic locations that have been shot extensively due to smartphones and have accordingly been seen by millions due to social media.
Opal Ocean by © Greg Essayan / Available at Jeff Mitchum Galleries
Do you have a favourite photo location?
My favourite place to make photographs is a difficult question to answer. North America, Hawaii, and Europe, especially Italy. Mostly any place with water, forests, sky, clouds and stars of which I’ve dreamt but not yet been.
Do you have a favourite post-processing technique?
All my images are of course captured in RAW and are then digitally developed in Capture One or as converted .dng files in Adobe Camera Raw and then finished off in Adobe Photoshop, primarily using Curves.
Time and Tide by © Greg Essayan / Available at Jeff Mitchum Galleries
What are you currently working on and do you have any projects planned for the future?
A limited edition monograph that will include images made over the last 40 years and the selection and printing of pieces for gallery representation of my work in Europe and Asia. Because of the growing demand for my pieces in Europe, a gallery exclusively representing my work will be opening in Italy in early 2019. Stay tuned…
What do you do besides photography?
Other than private time with family and friends, it’s fair to say that these days nearly 100 per cent of my time is devoted to activities associated with my photography and related business matters. My greatest challenge today, particularly due to my background as an attorney and businessman, is avoiding getting pulled too far into the business side of my art as the demand for my work accelerates.
Do you want to exhibit your own work?
Outdoorphoto’s printing department, Art of Print, specialises in quality fine art and photo printing, framing and mounting that will exceed your expectations from the very beginning. Our vision is to inspire your creative needs and provide new decor opportunities for your images to become showpieces at home, the office and event exhibitions.
Leave A Comment