Thor Engelstad uses personal assignments to expand both his creative horizons and his commercial opportunities.
This is the first image in a new personal project, an ongoing process of rediscovering the ‘North’, where I come from. For me, after living five years in Australia, the north has become exotic. Ironically, most other Norwegians would normally associate that word with tropical islands, rainforest, beaches and sun!
The series studies what I once took for granted growing up there, both in the rich human history of Scandinavia, as well as more immediately tangible features of this part of the planet, such as the unique and striking landscapes resulting from natural forces.
I’ve tried to capture some of the moods, atmosphere and ambience, while attempting also to incorporate the feelings I’ve experienced – the cold, the solitude, the remote emptiness, the darkness in winter, and the sun that never sets in summer.
I try to create one personal project per year and this is usually associated with overseas travel. There are many motives behind this. I feel it keeps my work fresh, and it balances my commercial activities. As a creative outlet it keeps me from getting stale technically and artistically, pushing me to new limits, and of course it’s a good way to build my portfolio. This material I then submit to national and international competitions, of which there are many, as well as to gallery exhibitions. Personally I think awards are one of the most important career-boosters and self-promotion agents, both in a commercial sense and for photo-media artists. Getting recognition from the industry and one’s peers, and gaining more exposure to more potential clients and agencies, are some of the invaluable benefits.
On the downside, of course, it’s an expensive affair, but I think the gains outweigh the expense. One’s commercial income can be complemented by selling limited edition prints through a gallery or art dealer. Over the longer term, the passive income derived from stock libraries that can be expanded while on location/transit for these sorts of projects also helps to offset costs. I speak from experience of my last three personal projects (crossing Cambodia on a dirt bike, shooting the harajuku girls in Tokyo, and shooting for the North series in Iceland and Norway).
In my work I shoot most of the elements separately and composite them in post-production. I love the ‘post’ work where I can experiment and try different things until I get the result I want.
Working this way definitely helps keep costs down, and also eases any problems related to access to locations. One man with a camera is so much easier to organise, as opposed to 10 people, clothing, make-up and lighting equipment.
This series was shot on a Canon 5D, Canon EF24-105mm F4 IS L USM with a Hoya UV Super Pro 1 HMC Professional 77.0s filter, shot tethered to laptop with Adobe Lightroom and Remote Capture. The ‘talent’ was shot in the studio on blue screen. Two lights were used for lighting the blue screen evenly and three Broncolor heads with grids and one large Broncolor Cumulite lit the models.
Article first published in Australian Photography magazine.
Image by Thor Engelstad. (Camera: Canon 5D, Lens: Canon EF24-105mm F4 IS L USM, Model: Shot against blue screen, Studio Lighting: Broncolor.)
Thor Engelstad