Max Flatow, originally from Brooklyn, has had an extremely interesting climb to success. Coming from a high school with a great photography program, he indulged in this art. However, college was a completely different experience. According to him, while the Southern Vermont College (a small private school of 450 students) had a darkroom, it was barely used, and there were not many classes pertaining to this area either. However, he was able to make the most out of what the school had to offer and spent countless hours in the college’s darkroom, teaching himself and experimenting with different techniques. He also studied abroad in Spain to expand his knowledge.
Max Flatow is an epitome of the modern photographer. He appreciates Instagram and uses social networking to advertise himself. He calls Photoshop a “digital darkroom” and prefers digital cameras to film because they let him take a thousand shots instead of twenty five, and goes on to describe the growing importance of technology, referring to the fact that the famous Captain Sully plane shot was taken on an iPhone. Ever since he sold his works for the first time at a café, he knew he wanted to be a photographer. As an entrepreneur, Max Flatow appreciates the importance of networking. In high school and college, he worked under the supervision of Mary Howard, who taught him how to run a business and how essential face to face networking is.
“People are gonna get married no matter what.” This is the explanation Mr. Flatow gives for why he started his career mainly as a wedding photographer. However, he has expanded into many other fields, including food. All of his photographed food is natural, and he always tries to include photographs of the chefs, as they are integral in the production of this food. Flatow has been involved in many famous shoots, such as those of Brady Lowe’s pigs.
One thing that could be seen right off the bat was Max Flatow’s appreciation of technique in photography. As he went through the slideshow of his various pictures, he described his mindset and the technique he was trying to use in each photograph. He began by talking about “depth of field,” in which everything but the subject is a blur. With lighting techniques, there are endless possibilities according to him. He described the silhouette shot he took of a couple, and how, the right shutter speed combined with the proper amount of light gave him the perfect shot. There is also the rule of thirds, in which the subject is not in the center of photograph, but towards one side. However, the one thing that must be kept in mind and he made this very clear, was that “even though a lot of techniques are cool, do not overuse them”. One technique that stood out to me was the tilt. I had no idea simply tilting the camera could have such a large impact on the dynamics of the picture.
Efficient, modern, and elegant: three words that describe Max Flatow’s photographic career and style. His ability to appreciate the natural is what makes his work that much more appreciable.
Here is a link to one of my personal favorite photographs groups by Mr. Flatow:
http://www.maxflatow.com/blog/index.php/2012/07/03/sneak-peak-kasey-joes-vermont-wedding/
