| Tony KoukosI met Tony many years ago on the beach in Mykonos – he was just starting to take photography seriously, but hadn’t yet made it his career. I could tell immediately he had the gift, and this past summer, I had a chance to see an extensive portfolio of his works. It’s truly magnificent. His passion for travel fuels his art with a unique and special spirit. Tony is an incredible artist and his warm soul can be felt in every picture. Over the years I’ve excitedly watched as his talents have grown and he’s become recognized around the world as a serious artist. I’m thankful he’s my friend and look forward to our next time together when I’ll be able to see his new inspirations.
Tips from Tony.
- Composition. The best photographs have a unique angle. Climb on top or kneel down to get that perfect shot; capture a different perspective. Walk around the subject that you are wanting to shoot. Art is everywhere, it’s just a matter of scoping it out. It’s all about the angle. On my most recent trip to Dubrovnik, Croatia, I woke up at 4:00 a.m. to capture the polished stone streets right after they were washed. I stretched out on the ground and set up my tripod. It’s as if the stones were coming into my lens.
- Synergy. Everyone always asks, “What do you shoot?”, and “Where do you get your ideas for a collection?” Inspiration is everywhere. A piece may be beautiful as a “stand-alone”, however, if you create a theme, and run with it, the results are astounding. On my most recent trip to Italy, I was intrigued by the door knockers in Tuscany. Each one is a piece of art, with a beautifully-aged wooden door as a backdrop. Each knocker was stunning, but when I saw the entire collection together, the results of my efforts were magnified. I also photographed collections of clocks and doors from around the world. Get creative and start thinking of themes to capture. The sky’s the limit!
- Keep snapping. Now with digital photography, you can keep taking as many pictures as you want without incurring the cost of film. It’s just a matter of editing and deleting the ones you don’t want. Also, always shoot on the maximum resolution, meaning the largest file format. At a later date, you can always crop out certain areas of the picture, and still have enough resolution to enlarge the portion of the picture that you like. A maximum file size will allow you to print your pictures to almost any size. I also recommend stocking up on extra memory cards, film, and batteries. I will never forget my frantic search for batteries in Venice back in 1998.
- Digital Restoration. If you can keep the image real without manipulating it to look beyond fake, go for it! Clean up your images and make them more visually appealing. Take out that obtrusive power line, and allow the beauty of what it is you’ve captured to rise above. Also, have your favorite film images converted to digital files, that way you can keep the film in your archives, and a digital back-up off site. By the way, film is still great. I love to capture Europe with black and white film. Take two cameras; one digital SLR and one film.
- Back it up. External drives are very inexpensive. Always keep images backed up. I suggest keeping them on your computer, in a smaller file size, for easy viewing. Larger or maximum file sizes will start taking up valuable storage space. Also, viewing/retrieving them is much faster with a smaller size file. All images (maximum/originals) should be backed up to hard drives; one in your residence, and a duplicate drive at a close friend or family member’s house. It will only take a few minutes; be proactive to the situation. The last thing you would want is to lose those precious holiday photos, or vacation photos with your fabulous friends from your summer holidays in the sun-drenched Greek Isles.
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