COLORFUL UNIQUENESS
IAN ROSS PETTIGREW
I'm a Graphic Designer who happens to take photos. Over 25 years as an Art Director makes a difference in my work. Of course, you can learn technical skills as a photographer, but having a great eye is what really matters. I was lucky to work with many great photographers and was mentored by some great creative minds in the advertising industry - it taught me how to work with people, connect with my subjects, and, most importantly, see things with a designer's eye.
You'll see a lot of my work on very bright, colorful backgrounds. I love color and using it to accentuate the person. Most of these images are recent - as you can notice with the one reoccurring model (my girlfriend) - quarantine will do that. One project we have started (still ongoing) is photographing a one-color set.
So an example here would be slicing lemons on the yellow background wearing the yellow dress. I've done many fashion-type shoots outdoors in the past, part of me misses them, but the other part of me prefers the controlled environment of the studio. Some of my commercial projects are outside or on a specific location, so that's usually a fun challenge and gets us out of the house every now and then. Having to stay at home for (close to) two years has forced me to be more creative and much more carefully selective with whom I work. I have Cystic Fibrosis, so I have to be vigilant with protecting myself in these weird times.
I search out interesting faces, first and foremost. There's beauty in every face. But uniqueness is more valued to me. That unique quality helps determine the colors used, and ultimately the feeling of the atmosphere of the final photo.
And props helps, too, sometimes.
Amazon and dollar stores have been my lifeline during the pandemic for fun props and fabric stores for some interesting backgrounds. My mind still works as an Art Director, so I see things very graphically.
I'm inspired by bold art and graphics, not necessarily by other photographers.
Over the years, a few of these images are from using many different cameras, from Canon 5DMII to Nikon d810 to Fuji GFX 50s to my current Leica SL2.