Being a professional doesn’t necessary equate to a formal education in school. For Max Flatow, his professionalism in photography is essentially self-taught. It is the result of practice and experience. One would expect a well-established photographer who was self-taught and had built his own career to be somewhat haughty; Mr. Flatow, however, was very friendly and appeared to be easygoing during his class visit to Baruch College on November 6th.
Mr. Flatow’s interest in photography began in 7th grade and persisted to his college in Vermont, where he took advantage of a fallow darkroom. Because no one was using it, he had full control over the room, experimenting with lighting and chemicals, and eventually compiling a photo journal. He lightheartedly said, “You have got to start somewhere.” Although advancement in camera technology has nullified the effectiveness of a darkroom with Photoshop (Mr. Flatow playfully called it “digital darkroom,” or otherwise the “light room”), he quickly adapted to digital cameras. Reflecting upon his own decisions as he told us his story, he was very cheerful and seemed to smile quite often. He was never sure whether or not he wanted to become a professional photographer as he was discouraged by the people he knew, saying that it “isn’t tangible” because of very portable cameras and iPhones. It wasn’t until his study abroad in Spain where he sold some of his travel photographs in his first gallery showing at a local café that inspired him to become a full-time photographer.
Working with Mary Howard, Mr. Flatow’s career took off at a great start. He was able to get exposure to how professionals work. He eventually quit the job and started his own business. Although he is an optimistic person, in both speech and the work that he does, he never expected to be immediately successful. Instead, he offered to do much of his work for free knowing that he wouldn’t get customers right away. He explained quite frankly that it was an effective way to build relationships, networking, and even to learn how to run a business. One of the many other ways to get publicized was, of course, through web services. And I think many of us would agree with him when he said, “Facebook works wonders!”
Mr. Flatow takes photos of a variety of subjects, of weddings, food, celebrities, travel, buildings, and corporate portraits. In particular, there were two fields that Mr. Flatow was really interested in; they were weddings and food. From the slideshow of photographs he showed us, I could tell that he especially liked to play with light, depth of field and angles. The first photo of a newly married couple standing on the meadows was incredible. The couple was set toward the right side of the image while the bride’s veil stretched across to the left. The positioning of the subjects forced the viewers to not only look at the beautiful couple but also at the amazing scenery.
Credits to Max Flatow
In another wedding photo, set in a church, Mr. Flatow used the light effectively to capture a gorgeous silhouette image of the couple. His silhouette photo of two children dancing had a similar effect, differing only because the silhouette shot of the two children used a staged light. He, however, told us that he never used camera flash.
Silhouette Shot of the Couple – Credits to Max Flatow
Silhouette Shot of Kids Dancing – Credits to Max Flatow
His food photos were so clean and sharp that it almost appeared to have been edited using Photoshop! Particularly, he took photos of almost all his subjects, including food, at a slightly tilted angle. One could tell that he loved his work when he added, the tilted angle in his shots “creates a little bit more excitement.”
Credits to Max Flatow
Why does he love his work so much? It is because, as he puts it, “I’m my own boss.” He is able to do what he enjoys. He travels, gets in touch with chiefs, eats wonderful food, and encounters many cultures. Max Flatow is certainly a talented photographer with a sense of fulfillment and playfulness.
