Photography News | Issue 62 | photographynews.co.uk
19 Interview
PN: Endangered was published in 2017, but we didn't get to enjoy your exhibition in the Wex Photo Video London gallery until a year later. Why’s that? TF: When you are a photographer, you are on a continual journey, constantly evaluating how images work and asking questions about the natural world. There are two sides to the show at Wex. The first is that it supports the Whitley Fund for Nature (whitleyaward.org), which is one of those charities that has people verymuch at its heart, andhas themas grass root ambassadors. In a sense, it gives acknowledgement to people who support the charity and help to realise projects within the natural world. The second side to this is that the debates covered in Endangered have become more, not less, urgent. They are not something that we are moving away from. The animals don't change. In fact, some of the animals in the book, like the male northern white rhino, are no longer alive. So, what you have is a document; a document that might gain more potency with time. PN: Which was the most challenging assignment you undertook for Endangered ? TF: I think it was when I was trying to photograph hammerhead sharks. I am not a particularly experienced diver, though I have a PADI credit but nothing else, and in a strong current I did get pulled onto the rocks, which was not clever but I was okay. There were other projects which had their moments. I had to go back to the saiga antelope in the winter after I had attempted to do it in the summer. For this one page, I had to make two trips to the Caspian Sea in Russia. At that shoot rate, I would not havemade a book in ten
or even 20 years. Fortunately, there weren’t many one-pagers that needed several weeks of work. PN: Which picture from Endangered are you most proud of? TF: That’s a difficult one. I think it is probably important to say that I am more proud of the collective outcome rather than individual pictures. I feel that the natural world is very much something we all need to be more connected to, and to explore it through animals that are near the edge of extinction was a privilege. I also had the honour of working with some fantastic people. So, I feel most proud of the book rather than any individual image but I would also say there are still images of my work that resonate with me – such as the portrait of the Philippine eagle. Something simple like that, which was in natural light, but it has a certain character to it. PN: When you pack for a trip, do you have to plan for every eventuality and take a lot of kit with you? TF: I do take a lot of kit with me on my travels. For example, we took all of these flashes with us to an island and then found it was not very practical, or the animals were too far away to even get a light to them. Or, with the saiga antelope, I was told I’d have no problem using lights, but as soon as we got even half a mile away from them, they were off. So, I had to use an 800mm lens. PN: In terms of camera kit, what were you using? The prints here are very big, so did you use much medium format? TF: I mostly used the Canon EOS 5DS. I didn't
have many options with this project because getting close to some of the animals didn’t give me the luxury of using a Hasselblad. I am hoping to use the Hasselblad much more on my next project. PN: And what is your next project? TF: At the moment, it is about birds. I haven't made a lot of progress but I am getting there. It is more stylised birds, which is why I am hoping to use the Hasselblad more. I am aiming for very graphic shots of birds – wild and domesticated breeds. I have been contracted to deliver the images in early 2020, with the book coming out in the autumn of that year. The deadline certainly focuses your thoughts.
I wanted my book to capture a sense of wonderment inspired by the natural world
Contact
To seemore of Tim’swork, including full galleries of Endangered and his other projects, visit hiswebsite. timflach.com
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