Photo artist interview #94 - BETH FLADUNG

• In 1-2 words, what do you shoot?

Humanity

• What’s your weapon of choice?

Pentax 6X7, Mamyia 6X4.5, Canon 5DMII…
It’s not the weapon, it’s who’s on the trigger!

• Where is your favorite place on earth?

New York City

• What would be your replacement Hobby/Profession if photography was dead?

fighting for the underdog

• What do you favor:

• B&W or Color? I love both but lean toward color

• Film or Digital?

Both… prob the best way to go: Shoot film/scan film/process digital

• Studio or Location? Studio? What’s that?

• Night or Day? Lots of daylight please

• Portrait or Landscape?

Portraits unless the landscape shows an interesting human imprint

• Spike Lee or Spike Jonze?

Tough question, I adore them both, but I’d have to go with Lee because the message is most important to me.

• Dave Chappelle or David LaChapelle?

Equally important non-heroes of mine.

• What is your most treasured possession?

My dog –if he could be considered mine, and my camera

• Favorite photo book and/or Favorite movie?

Movie –City of Lost Children

Photo Book
Too tough…..current favorites…
Saul Leiter -Published by Steidl
Road to Freedom: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1956-1968

• Photographer/s that inspire you?

Helen Levitt
Walker Evans
Henri Cartier Bresson
Joel Sternfeld
Too many to name, I am inspired by so many!!

Hip-hop…. Glen E. Friedman, B+, Mike Schreiber, Clay Patrick McBride

• Advice for the younglings out there looking through their first viewfinder?

Look at lots of other work. Shoot!! Practice!! Don’t be afraid, show your work.
Move around within the photo industry, there are so many jobs that can teach you valuable things from how to expose and shoot to how to handle yourself. Top three in my book… assist other photographers, get a job at a high-end lab and see unedited shoots of all of top photographers, work for a magazine in the genre you aspire to be in.

• What’s the story behind the photo below?

I was in Florida photographing for my project about Motels and how they’ve become low-income housing when I found this motel and Angel, depicted here. Her situation was dire, she has no home and lives here in the motel. She couldn’t find work and her daughter was out working to support them. There was an air of unease about the place as it was filled with people doing what they could, some things illegal, just to scrape by. It’s very difficult to walk into a place like this and convince people to let you into their lives (I spent 20 minutes trying to convince the boy I photographed next that I am not police), but I feel that being able to bring their situation to light and tell their story is very important.

• Any future projects or travels?

One last blast for the motel project, traveling the Northern US route from East to West. Then pitching to book companies.

• Where can we see more of your work?

www.mosbef.com

recent feature in the current RESPECT magazine

Side hustle: www.elfoto.org (yep, weddings!)

• In 1 word, last thing you’d say if time stopped right NOW?

Peace!


Photo courtesy of the artist "Beth Fladung"

Thank you

T2