Modern Artist Profile - Brock Wunderlich
/In conversation with Brock Wunderlich.
What initially interested you in photography?
I always played music growing up. I started with piano, then bass guitar, trumpet, drums etc… but when I went into University, all of that stopped. I pretty much only focused on schoolwork and what would build my resume for the job I wanted. Going into my Master of International Business though, a component of the degree was to study abroad, and I knew that when I left I wanted to capture my time there somehow. I had lived in Germany for half a year before these studies and regretted not having taken photos or videos of it to look back on one day. What hooked me then wasn’t the fact I was able to just capture photos of locations I went to, but it was the actual artistry of it. How to compose a shot, colour grading techniques, photoshop, candid moments, it all started to really come together. In some sense I re-discovered my creativity that I had all my life with music. Music was always extremely hard for me though. I would have to spend countless hours practicing. I always felt I was behind my other friends who could pick things up way quicker than I could. Photography just came a lot easier. There was still tonnes of practice involved, but visually it just made more sense to me than listening.
You've said "That’s the whole game with street photography; make what you have look that much more interesting."
How do you consistently manage to portray that?
I always think about a morning commute. Commutes are the absolute worst, especially if you have to take the subway… in my opinion anyway. Commutes to me display such a routine, with the same people getting on at the same stops, going to work at the same time. It’s easy to just take it all for granted and just say “Well this is the way things are, or the way things will always look”. But let’s say you get on a subway and someone is leaning on a wall or a post reading a newspaper. You could think of it as just some person standing there, and carry on with your day all miserable that you’re stuck on the same old subway car, on the same subway line, with the same walk to work etc… or, you can think about it as a new perspective. Maybe this person is wearing an interesting hat, with glasses, what are they reading in the newspaper? Why are they even on the subway? I think we have to remember that life is a story. What’s this person’s story, and what’s interesting about it? If we think like that it would help all of us be a little bit happier. It helped me to think like that during tough times in my own life, and I want to help other people think a little more creatively as well.
When I take a photo then, it’s not about the person crossing the street, or the food on the table, or the coffee cup on the ground. It’s about everything going on around that person, the way the person is walking, what the person is doing, the weather. That’s what interests me. I never want my photo to necessarily be about the subject. I always tell my friends I want people to catch a mood when they look at my photo. That’s how I try to portray it. Create the story in my head of what’s going on, and somehow find the aspect of the photo that tells that story whether it’s colour, composure, etc…
Your TTC pictures are impressive - what's attracted you to photograph streetcars?
I really love scale. Some of my favourite shots are seeing a street car, and then having the buildings just wrap around them.
What appeals to you the most about urban and street photography?
Do you have a preference?
I prefer urban over street. I’m not one to be fascinated by the stories on people’s faces, or their wrinkles in black and white like traditional street work. I’m more interested in the environment that the person is in. How we interact with that environment. Rooftop photos with people on ledges, or cityscape shots with someone in frame to me are just incredible.
Your automotive photography is terrific - what is it about cars that appeals to you?
It’s kind of funny for me, but I’ve always just liked the design of the car. I’ve never been interested in the performance or how fast it goes. I would say to my car buddies that I would take a Mclaren’s look with a Fiat’s engine. I literally could just stare at a nice car for hours and drive it around the city like a normal car. For me it’s just the visual appeal of certain features of the car. My favourite are Audi R8s for instance. The front lights, and how the car tilts low to the ground from back to front with the accented side panels are just awesome. One that I feature a lot on my Instagram are Porsche 911s. Partially because they are extremely popular, but also because of the front round headlights. They’re extremely unique, and with how circular they are they just look really great under the right light.
Your tip of the day series on Instagram and Tik Tok are my favorites because you take the time to succinctly explain what you're doing.
How has the reaction been to this from your audience?
It’s been extremely surprising. Initially I had just wanted to post fun videos on Tik Tok about how anything normal can be special. You know, putting a coffee cup on a railing and doing a photo shoot, or garbage on the ground with the right lighting. Then it kind of morphed into me trying to explain composure of street photos. I think it’s incredibly hard for all of us starting out to make real the photos we all have in our heads. Being able to show my thought process has been really fun. I’ve gotten a lot of DMs since I started uploading them of people saying thank you. I never expected other people to actually like them all that much or find them useful. I think that’s been the biggest reward. I’m really looking to level them up though in the coming month!
To you, what makes a spectacular photograph?
Hands down, it’s colour. Tones for me are just so important to be edited well. Gymshark has some fantastic photographers do their athletic work for them, and simple shots in the gym just come to life in the post production process.
What's been one of your favourite photographs you've taken?
What advice do you have for aspiring photographers?
I think I’m still aspiring myself, but it’s to get out and shoot as much as you can. When I lived abroad I got out for an hour four times a week to shoot street at minimum. It allowed me to experiment quickly. One day I would shoot street, another day I would learn a lighting technique, then I would try long exposures or product photography. If you’re able to consistently create as much as possible then you’re able to reflect back on your work a lot more. You spend more time in lightroom and photoshop and the process of improvement quickly speeds up. You also find what you want to create a lot sooner. Instead of wondering what kind of photographer you want to be the best way to figure it out is to shoot everything and then decide once you have tasted all of it.
What does 2020 look like for you?
I recently quit my job as a Sales Account Manager. There are a whole host of reasons as to why. In terms of next steps, I want to act on my ambition. So I accepted a role as a Digital Media Specialist and Content Creator to be able to leverage my creativity on the job and learn media distribution and communication. The job intersects my passion for creativity and my skillset around the camera and editing. I could not be more excited. For me 2020 is the year I see if I can pursue my passion to create as a full-time profession. Even if I can’t make something from it in 2020, then it will be my goal for 2021. This is a time in my life that I’ll look back in in twenty years and say yeah, this was some sort of milestone time period for me.
You have a Tips and Tricks section in your Highlights on Instagram.
Prior to posting, were you worried that others may capitalize on your knowledge and experience, or was your mindset to share information to help others grow?
My belief is that we’re all just in this together. Everyone is out just sharing what they know, and the only race I have is with myself. If I know something that other people don’t, I want them to know about it, because if someone else knows something that I don’t I would want them to share it as well. If we all adopted this mindset I think we all could learn a lot quicker and be in a much more supportive environment.
What gear do you use?
For my street photography I have a Nikon Z6 with a 24 – 70mm F 2.8. For product photography and video, I’ll rent what I need beyond that, but I have a whole set of old Nikon lenses I attach to my adapter when required.
How important on a scale of 1 to 10 is framing your subject and why?
Definitely 10. I think framing is the whole point of photography. If you have a person in an empty field, you still have to frame them. Framing them correctly though, based on what the story is you want to be told with the image is what turns the photo from simply a person in a field, to a photo that is about isolationism, or how beautiful the sky looks, or how the person is enjoying their time in the field. Framing is what tells the story in any visual medium.
Who and what inspires you?
Evan Ranft has been my biggest inspiration with Street Photography. I watch his vlogs religiously, and typically don’t want all that much TV/Youtube so it’s a huge deal. In terms of how he explains his creative process and running a photography business it’s really aspirational for me.
Creatively, I’m ridiculously inspired by shows like Chef’s Table. It really sparked a visual passion for me, and lit a fire around food. I studied sustainable development in my undergraduate and am also unbelievably passionate about health and nutrition. My goal is find a way to merge my creative passion with helping the planet and people become healthier.
What motivates me to keep creating is this idea of “Proud but never satisfied”. Christian Guzman, the founder of Alphalete, was a massive figure for me coming out of University, and I think about that slogan a lot. Like I said the race for me is with myself. If I look at some of my photos, they are absolute garbage compared to other photographers. But if I look at my own photos when I first started, and what my photos are now, they are something to be marvelled at. I take every day with the attitude of “good for me I improved myself today”, but tomorrow I have to be prepared to do it all over again. That’s what pushes me the most, is just the drive to see where I can take my own skill set and see what good I can eventually do with it.
