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Catherine Hall - Interview by Leah Tepper-Byrne Photographer Catherine Hall discusses weddings, travel, photojournalism, editorial work, and more... Article rating: 10.00

>>Click here to read Catherine Hall's Ten Tips on Fear and Photography...

TGP: What is it that you love about photographing people?

CH: There are several things. For one, my camera gives me license to experience places and cultures that I would probably be too scared to otherwise. Photographing people in particular, versus photographing architecture or landscape, has allowed me to have a much deeper experience of the places I travel to, and my personality has been greatly influenced by my travels.

When I was first starting out, I didn't really know what type of photography I wanted to do. At first I thought I wanted to do architecture. Then I started trying to photograph landscapes, but quickly realized that I don't like landscape photography because if anything, it takes away from my experience of the world. If I'm in an area with amazing surroundings, I get more from just being there and absorbing it than I do by
photographing. What I've found with people is the opposite. Instead of taking away from my experience, it gives me experiences. I also feel that I can create something more unique with a portrait than I can with a landscape. I guess I just gravitate towards something that allows me to have my signature style.

TGP: What initially motivated you to pursue photojournalism, and how did you transition from that to wedding photography?

CH: It wasn’t really a “something” per se. I was just naturally attracted to photojournalism. There's a huge part of me that has always wanted to give back - to educate, to expose people to different things. Photography offered a vehicle and a way that I could be a positive part of this whole universe. But I was never a purist in the documentary sense. I like to be involved. When I work with people and when I shoot portraits I like to talk to them, to get to know them, to spend time with them. Part of what I love about photography is this interaction. Discovering that pulled me away from photojournalism.

More consciously, it was meeting a lot of very successful photojournalists and finding out that many of them weren't very happy. It was also really hard for me to grasp the concept of being a photojournalist and eventually having a family, a home and a support base. I love to travel, but not more than 30 or 40% of the time. The 80 or 90% that's required of the job was just too much. That was a breaker for me, the conscious awareness of what it really takes to be successful in the field.

TGP: These days, how do you divide your time between shooting and teaching?

CH: I'd say teaching is about 20%. I'm shooting most of the time, and I like it that way. Often when people get in to the speaking world it becomes their primary focus and they end up shooting "on the side." I prefer to keep it more about photography.

The other thing which I continue to do, which I love and would like to do more of, is inspirational speaking at universities. I remember how I felt when I was about to graduate - not really knowing where to go, what to do, or how to get to that next step. I think it can be really helpful to have somebody come in and say 'Look, its OK, I'm a person too and this is how I did it. Its not necessarily how you should do it, but it can be done.' And it is wonderful to receive emails from students saying I've had an impact on their life and been a positive influence for them.

TGP: What is it particularly that you love about weddings?

CH: I have been fortunate enough to position myself in a way that I only shoot 15 weddings a year. My clients all hire me because they see me as an artist. They appreciate my style and my vision, and they give me creative license to illustrate that vision. I treat a wedding like I would treat a personal project. I do it exactly the way that I see fit, and my clients are receptive to that because they hired me for that vision in the first place. 

In essence, it’s not that different from going to another country and playing with my camera. But it’s more satisfying in a way because I'm directly impacting the people's lives that I'm photographing. I'm creating joy in someone's life and getting immediate feedback. They are going to cherish those photographs for the rest of their lives. Their grandkids will cherish them. That's special.

TGP: Can you articulate your personal vision when it comes to shooting weddings?

CH: I think my job as a wedding photographer is to capture that certain special glow a bride has when she’s about to get married, in a way that's dramatic and exciting and timeless. Then there are two things I try to accomplish on the wedding day: the first is to capture the essence of the couple, who they are as human beings at that particular time and place in their lives. The second is to capture the relationships and the emotions of the day. It’s a wonderful combination and that's why I love wedding photography so much. It allows me to be a photojournalist and a portrait artist. So I do get involved and direct when I’m doing a portrait session, but there’s so much other amazing stuff happening at a wedding that I can step back and be more of a purist and a fly-on-the-wall, and the two approaches compliment each other.

TGP: Do you shoot weddings exclusively?

CH: This is actually a really important question because part of the reason why I love weddings so much is the fact that I'm not doing 40 or 50 a year. If I shot more than 15 to 20 weddings a year I think I would start to lose my passion for it. I’m always really excited and inspired and looking forward to a day of creating amazing images. But, because of that, I obviously have to do other things with my time.

TGP: Do you continue to do editorial or commercial work? How often do you still manage to travel and shoot?

CH: Yes, I continue to do a lot of editorial and travel work, which keeps me inspired and excited as well. It varies, but I'm usually working on at least two personal projects at a time, and making at least two trips a year. The weddings are my bread and butter, but my editorial work helps my business a lot. I enter those images into contests, and they get published, which is good exposure. My clients are impressed by that. They like that I don't just do weddings and appreciate the fact that I’ve traveled the world. I also do commercial work. John Deere is a huge client of mine. Just to give you an example of one job, they recently sent me to Hagerstown, MD to do lifestyle portraits of people using John Deere products. Nothing was scripted or planned, so I was actually able to art-direct the shoot as well. They had a couple of locations picked out but some of the best shots came from us seeing John Deere equipment at farms and literally stopping on the side of the road and asking these people if we could shoot them in their everyday lives.

TGP: Any final thoughts?

CH: I guess the thing that all my work has in common - weddings, editorial, and commercial - is that they all root from that same personal, creatively free place, where I'm not being directed by an art director, and my clients give me enough respect and admire my work enough that they don’t try to direct me either. And it’s just really nice to have the speaking, the editorial work, and the weddings. It’s a nice balance. It’s a really nice place to be.

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