Hi, I’m Gary Holpin, a professional landscape and commercial photographer based in the beautiful county of Devon in the South West of England. My interest in photography began ten years ago, but it soon developed into a passion that has now become my full-time profession. I feel lucky to be doing what I love, and truly believe that loving your job is the best way to be great at it! You can find out more about me and see some of my work at www.garyholpin.co.uk.
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How did you get started in photography, and what drew you to this art form?
I only discovered photography in my 40s, after walking the amazing South West Coast Path, a 630-mile walking trail that circumnavigates the South West coastline of England. After walking the path, I was so disappointed that my photos just didn’t do justice to the beautiful coastal scenery, that I decided to walk all 630 miles all over again, but I decided that this time I would teach myself photography along the way! That adventure started a love of the coast, and a journey into photography, which led to me eventually becoming a professional landscape and commercial photographer, and photography trainer.
What is your preferred style or genre of photography, and why?
Although in my professional life, I have to photograph everything from corporate headshots to campsites, my real passion is for landscapes. Living in the South West of England there is so much gorgeous scenery; from the rugged north coast of Devon to the dramatic ever-changing coastline of Dorset, and the wild moorland of Dartmoor, so I feel spoilt for choice. My passion is driven by attempting to capture the place and the moment, but also by the sheer joy of being in beautiful places, watching the sunrise, or clouds scudding over the landscape. Getting a great shot is a bonus, but just being out in nature is great in its own right.
How do you improve and develop your photography skills?
Everyone has different learning styles; some learn best from structured training, but I find that I learn best by trial and error. Over ten years, I’ve seen photos on social media that I aspire to be able to take, and research the necessary techniques; it’s then a matter of trying, trying, and trying again until I have mastered it, and learning from each failure. I would recommend that everyone follows some photographers on social media whose work they admire, and challenge themselves to learn how to take a similar photo!
What equipment do you use and why?
When I first set out to learn photography, I traded my compact camera in for an entry-level Canon DSLR, as I thought that was the kind of thing a ‘proper’ photographer would use. The problem was that it was big and heavy, so rather than carrying it, I put it in my rucksack and barely used it! Eventually, I bought one of the early mirrorless cameras from Sony (the A6000) which was small enough to take on a hike and took great photos. As a result, I’ve stayed with Sony mirrorless, with my current kit bag including a Sony A7RIII and A7RIV. In terms of lenses, I believe quality matters, and so my main lenses are from the Sony G-master range including the Sony 2.8 24-70GM II, Sony 70-200 GM, topped off with the equally brilliant Sigma 14-24 2.8 DG DN Art for wide shots.
What do you think is the most important element of a great photograph?
That’s a tough question! I believe there are many elements to a great landscape photo, but if I had to choose one it would be ‘atmosphere’. When I first started out in photography, I would combine taking photos with walks on a sunny day, and wonder why I didn’t take great landscape photos. These days, the times when most people are either still in bed, or hunkering down in front of the fire are the times that I am out hunting for atmosphere; so early mornings for dawn and sunrise, or weather that could provide atmosphere such as mist, fog, storms or snow.
What professional photographers have influenced your work?
That’s actually quite a difficult question, as I tend to find inspiration wherever I see a photo that I admire, whoever has taken it. However, if I had to pick a couple of the photographers that I follow on Instagram whose work I particularly admire, it would include Helen Trust Photography (helentrustphotography.com) for her distinctive minimalist composition and pastel shades, and Jon Rees (drjonreesphotography.com) for his fantastic landscape captures of my local area.
How do you stay inspired and motivated as a photographer?
Every photographer goes through peaks and troughs in motivation, and personally, I always find it harder to get motivated in the summer with crazily early sunrises, blue skies, and sunshine (sometimes!) making it harder to find great shots. However, one thing that I have found that really helps is to have a project as a focus for my photography. Over the last few years, I have found that creating photography books forces me to find new locations, take new shots, improve my skills, and ultimately keep me motivated. Although doing a book might not be suitable for everyone, having a project such as taking a photo a day, can really help.
How do you handle difficult shooting conditions or subjects?
I always like to go armed with a plan, even if I don’t choose to follow it when I get to the location. This usually involves having researched the likely weather conditions, the route to take to get to the location, the tide conditions, and anything else that might be relevant such as the direction of sunrise or where the Milky Way core will rise. I also always make sure that I have all of the camera kits I could possibly need so that I don’t miss a potential shot, and personal / safety kit (such as a map, compass, GPS, waterproofs, etc) so that I don’t get myself into difficulty. Also knowing that things often don’t go to plan, I always also try to have a plan B in mind in case plan A doesn’t work out!
What advice would you give to someone who is just starting out in photography?
Although I taught myself, I think my number one bit of advice would be to get some training in the basics. It took me years to teach myself the basics, such as how to shoot manual, and how to do key techniques such as bracketing, when I could have been concentrating more on developing my creativity and photographic style. Although I do learn best by trial and error, with hindsight I believe that doing some training to learn some of the basic technical skills would have speeded up my development. As a photography trainer, I meet many students who have spent lots of money on equipment, believing that this is the key to improving their photography (it rarely does); so my key advice would be to spend some money on training first.
What do you hope your photography communicates to your audience, and why is this important to you?
My main hope is that my photography brings a little joy to the viewer from seeing some of the beautiful places that bring me joy to visit. I also hope that in some small way, I can help bring a little appreciation for the beauty of the world around us; a beauty that as a species we seem to be doing our best to destroy.
What editing software do you like to use for your finished photos?
I am a long-time Adobe Lightroom user and an occasional Photoshop user. I use Lightroom for basic processing of raw images, in terms of overall look, and only use Photoshop for some specific tasks that Lightroom can’t do, such as focus blending.
