Egon, please tell us a little bit about yourself to begin with. (How old are you, Where were you born and where do you live now, What is your profession and do you have other besides photography?
Hi, I´m Egon Hye, 53 years old from Sdr. Felding in Denmark. Working as IT Support Specialist in VELUX. I use all my free time on Photography or editing in Photoshop.

Have you been involved in the arts in some form other than photography?
No

Seeing your remarkable work, I am curious where your creativity comes from?
When I go around I always watching how the light falls, how the lines and angles goes, how the background and colors can be used. I have only made model photography for about 1½ year. My most inspiration comes from model sites on Facebook, 500px, Pinterest and Youtube. I love on location shoots especially working in backlight.

Could you share with us how you first became interested in photography?
My Photo interest started in the mid 70s, my first SLR was a Russian ZENITH EM, which quickly was replaced with a Pentax ME. The rest of my youth was spent on development of films and pictures. First, in 2003, I went digital and started editing in Photoshop.
For many years I loved to photograph nature, sunsets and insects and won many Danish and international photo contests, but a serious knee injury made me for a period bad going and there my interest in model photography starts. Today I am only working with model, fashion/Beauty and street photography.

What equipment are you using now and with what did you get started? what is your favorite lens?
I just bought a new Nikon D810 J  otherwise; I am working with two Nikon D800.
My favorite lens for model shooting is the Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR II and Nikon 24-70 mm /f2.8
As Light source I am using 2 Nikon SB-910 and one SB-600 – and for my main light always I’m using a 56 or 41 cm Beauty dish. I love working with my Beauty dish, it´s gives the model a fine catchlight.
I can build my Livingroom into a studio in ½ an hour and have a complete photostudio with up to 8 studio lamps.

Can you tell us about your work flow from the point you first step onto the street until you showcase the developed picture?
I always spare with my model up to the photoshoot, and I always have same inspirations printed for the model, so she can see what I have in my mind for the shoot. After a Photoshoot I think I have it like the models, I can´t wait to see the pictures in real. Trying to provide images so fast as possible often the same day as the shoot has occurred. I work only in Photoshop and Adobe Camera Raw.

What would you say characterizes your work in comparison to other photographers?
I don´t think I differ from other photographers, for me it is important to provide reassurance about my photography, so I can concentrate 100% on the model, light and angles. I always work on the model's premises; I try never to squeeze a model for anything she does not want.

What would you tell a newcomer who asks for your advice on how to start?
Start with getting a portfolio, use family and friends in the beginning.
Buy a DSLR camera and a good Lens. Start working with one light source and work always on the models' premises, obey your appointments and deliver images in the agreed time. Join a photo club and learn the basics about photography.

Justin, please tell us a little bit about yourself to begin with. (How old are you, Where were you born and where do you live now, What is your profession and do you have other besides photography?
I'm a software engineer originally from Detroit, MI, but I've been living in Charlotte, NC for the past 17 years with my wife and four children. I'm 42 years old. Besides photography, my other passion is basketball.

Have you been involved in the arts in some form other than photography?
No, photography has been my focus for a number of years.

Seeing your remarkable work, I am curious where your creativity comes from?
I love seeing beauty throughout the world. I'm a very visual person, and I like to share things that I think are beautiful with other people, and also I like to see beauty that others have created.

Could you share with us how you first became interested in photography?
Like many others, I started with photographing friends and family in casual settings. I decided that I really liked making images of people, and when I had free time, began to do a lot of street photography and street portraits. As I continued to make images, I gravitated towards portraiture, and it's been my focus for the past seven years.

What equipment are you using now and with what did you get started? what is your favorite lens?
I started out with Olympus DSLRs, the E-500 and E-330. I had used film beforehand, but was never attracted to it in the way that I was when digital arrived. I moved onto the mirrorless platform in 2013 with the Olympus E-M5 and subsequently the E-M5 mkII. As I'm a location shooter, the size and weight of my kit is important, since I often find myself clamboring up and down hills, over rocks and through brush. I don't have any assistants to carry gear, and so the m4/3 platform works really well for me with it's lightweight cameras and lenses. I shoot fast primes for portraiture, including the Nocticron 42.5/1.2 and Oly 75/1.8. I have a few manual legacy lenses for fun and variation, including a Nikon 135/2, Rokinon 85/1.4 and Olympus 100/2.

Can you tell us about your work flow from the point you first step onto the street until you showcase the developed picture?
My sessions usually last 2-3 hours on location. I like to incorporate some natural light and some off camera flash shots. I love to use the background and environment to lend a sense of time/place/season/weather to the images to add interest. I like to get in 2-3 looks on a shoot, so I usually have the models bring lots of options and we make wardrobe decisions on site. The atmosphere is relaxed and casual, with me directing posing and placement, unless the model is more experienced and has their own ideasl/movements. Once the shoot is done, I import the images to the desktop. I shoot RAW and develop using Olympus Viewer, I really like the skin tones and colors the Oly software produces. From there, it's into Photoshop for cropping, color/contrast and touchup. For fun, I sometimes use Nik software to add effects or layers to images. Once the image is to my liking, I have a few actions that run to resize, add IPTC info and a border to the image. People seem to either love or hate the borders, lol. I've removed the borders at various times, but I keep coming back to it, it really doesn't even feel like my image unless it's there!

Do you see a particular influence, be it a photographer or school on your work? Any subject that attracts you?
I think I'm very much influenced by my earlier work in street photography, and that carries over into my portraiture. My street photography was very much people-focused, and I find that I like scenes with people in them much more so than say, empty architecture studies. So generally my images have a prominent background or sense of location to put the viewer into the image. My subjects are usually women, 18-35 years old, although I do enjoy shooting men as well. I've actually found it rather difficult to find male models with the particular look you're going for in a city as small as Charlotte, so I don't shoot them as often.

What would you say characterizes your work in comparison to other photographers?
Probably 75-80% of my portraiture is full length. I love to position and pose the entire body, and I'm not entirely comfortable with anything less. On rare occasion I will shot 1/2 body or 3/4 length if I think the image works. Most people think my work is very fashion oriented, as I do like to incorporate some challenging poses into the session. I'm a fan of poses that lengthen and flatter the body, and I usually shoot from lower positions to give the model the 'hero' perspective. I also do some headshot portraiture, and it's a passion of mine, but I still think I have much to learn about that particular subject.

Among your works, which is your favorite and why?
Oh wow, you may as well ask who's my favorite child! OK, if I have to choose one, I have an image of Breona in my modelmayhem portfolio, where she is wrapped in a purple fabric that is being blown by the wind. It's one of my favorites because it was one of the first images that was moderately complex and came out as beautifully as I imagined. It was a cool, rainy day, and Breona withstood the elements like a champ. I was still getting used to off camera flash, and I had a friend that day hold the fabric out of frame and fling it. The wind, the rain, the flash and the beautiful model worked together perfectly, and the image helped me realize that I could get great results with a little hard work. I may never remove it from the portfolio, even though it's now seven years old! grin emoticon

Tell us your funniest or most awkward photography story.
Haha, well, my first time shooting on a beach, I had gone close to the water, while the model was further back on the beach, as the sun was coming in over the water. I was snapping away happily and then saw the models face change to a look of shock in the viewfinder. In the next instant a rogue wave crashed into me and almost soaked about $3000 in gear! I was drenched, but happily, the only damage was to my ego, the equipment escaped unscathed!

What would you tell a newcomer who asks for your advice on how to start?
My advice would be to shoot, shoot, then shoot some more! It's the best way to become familiar with your gear, learn composition and framing, and most of all, it's fun!

Jehan, please tell us a little bit about yourself to begin with. (How old are you, Where were you born and where do you live now, What is your profession and do you have other besides photography?
I'm 33 years old. I was born in Colmar in France. I’m a service technician on mobile cranes and photography for me is simply a passion.

Could you share with us how you first became interested in photography?
I always liked seeing beautiful photos (my dad was also an amateur photographer) and I began photographing in 2014. I was attracted by portrait photography and I began to practice with strobist.

What equipment are you using now and with what did you get started? what is your favorite lens?
I use at present a Canon 5Dmark2 and several objectives especially in focal fixed. My favorite objective is the 85mm, I adore his bokeh! I also use one 35mm, one 50mm and especially often deported flashes and various modifiers of light. I began the photo with one Canon 60D and one 50mm.

Can you tell us about your work flow from the point you first step onto the street until you showcase the developed picture?
I often sell door-to-door my models by internet (Facebook mainly) then we plan a session, dresses, make-ups, etc... Then the sessions of shots always take place in a good mood and with fun. Then once at home after the shooting, I make a big work of sorting and selection of images. I begin then to handle one after one photo at first under Lightroom then under Photoshop.

Do you see a particular influence, be it a photographer or school on your work? Any subject that attracts you?
I like particularly the photo of mode(fashion), beauty but also the urban exploration and I thus try hard to mix these universes. I would not know how to say what are my works which I like most because I always have something, what does not really please me and I leave the principle that what would please me to me will not please forcing somebody else !

What would you tell a newcomer who asks for your advice on how to start?
The only advice which I would have to give to a beginner would be to make it enjoy you really and especially to document, to read, to look at tutorials and especially, to go out to make photos!

Dusko, please tell us a little bit about yourself to begin with. (How old are you, Where were you born and where do you live now, What is your profession and do you have other besides photography?
I am 43 years old. I was born and raised in Čačak (Serbia). I still live there. Besides photography I am a web designer as well.

Have you been involved in the arts in some form other than photography?
When I was a child, I used to draw a lot, especially portraits. I guess that doing that as a child is somehow reflected on my present preferences in photography.

Seeing your remarkable work, I am curious where your creativity comes from?
I like working with models a lot so I guess that I can say that I draw ideas from different magazines, such as Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issues, Vogue etc. Also from Victoria’s Secret photo shoots and many more.

Could you share with us how you first became interested in photography?
Well, it all started at a really young age. I always had a camera with me wherever I went to take photographs of landscapes, which I was infatuated by. The admiration for photography stuck with me for many years and has constantly grown since then.

What equipment are you using now and with what did you get started? what is your favorite lens?
My first camera was LOMO Smena 8m and currently I am using Nikon D600 and I have two favorite lenses, one is 85mm f1.8 and 135mm f/2 DC.

Can you tell us about your work flow from the point you first step onto the street until you showcase the developed picture?
Firstly, I have to thoroughly organize every photo shoot, from the location to the choice of models and agreements with the assistants, stylists, hairdressers etc. Then, after a successful photo shoot I go through the photographs carefully, choose the best ones and retouch them in photoshop.