Meet Our Members On Mondays: Featuring Photographer Jared Platt

It’s another Two Bright Lights Member Monday on Done Brilliantly! Today, we are excited for you to get to know photographer and family-man, Jared Platt of Jared Platt Photography.  He has a wonderful philosophy towards life that he applies to his photography.  Not only that, he loves teaching and sharing his knowledge, so you can sign-up for one of his photography workshops! (For more information, see link at the bottom of this interview.) Jared has been a huge supporter of Two Bright Lights and we are honored to be able to feature such a talented and supportive member today!

 1.  Tell us a little about yourself.

I grew up in a one horse town where entertainment was scarce, so I spent my time developing my talents in music and photography. I thought then that I wanted to be a rock star, perhaps a war photographer, or something equally fantastic. But as I grew older I recognized that what I really wanted was family. An ordinary moment with my wife and children is more extraordinary than any life I had imagined in my youth.  So I am not a rock star… but my two boys still dance to my music and love to take pictures with their daddy. And my baby daughter lights up when I walk in the room.

Headshot courtesy of Isaac Bailey.

2.  How did you get started a photographer?

I was studying Man Ray and Ansel Adams in a Humanities class in high school and I thought, “How easy is photography, you just point the camera at something beautiful, and you’ll have a beautiful picture.”  So I set out to prove that Ansel Adams was no big deal.

I borrowed my mother’s camera and spent an entire day driving around my grandfather’s ranch taking pictures.  When I got the film developed, I found that I had taken some extraordinary images.  I showed them to my teachers and everyone thought they were fantastic.

If that had been my only experience with photography, I would have rejected it as too easy.  But I then took a photography in my first year of college and realized that my first experience with the camera was purely beginner’s luck.  It took me a year of dedicated study and practice to learn to see what I was seeing that first day behind the camera.

By my sophomore year at the University, I was a Photography Major and then a Master Student and now a Photographer and Businessman.  It’s interesting how a little success followed by a lot of struggle will shape your entire life.

3.  What types of photography do you do?

I am a documentary photographer and all of my work stems from that.  I photograph weddings, children, seniors, families, lifestyle and politics, etc… but all of it comes back to documenting life.  While there is a bit of posing and manufacturing of circumstance, the overreaching goal is for reality to ring through and the best, most beautiful version of that reality. I suppose I am a people watcher.

Here are some great examples of Jared capturing “the moment” on camera.  We love how you can see the real emotion.

5.  Tell us about your photography lectures and workshops; What kinds of topics do you cover?

I teach workshops on photography post-production efficiency, or workflow.  I have been traveling around the country for three years teaching this topic, but my favorite lectures to give are on the topic of photo aesthetics and the history of photography.

6.  We understand that you give lectures and workshops around the world, too. Where were some of your favorite lecture/workshop sites?

I was invited to give a lecture at the Chinese University of Hong Kong a few years back.  That was certainly the furthest I have traveled to lecture on Photography.  But each new city is enjoyable.  I am a documentary photographer and it is life that interests me.  People interest me.  I have enjoyed every city I have visited; from Atlanta, to Syracuse, Toronto, Seattle, Denver or San Diego and everywhere in-between.  I enjoy a small workshop because there is more private instruction that occurs, but I love to entertain a big crowd.  Teaching is my calling in life.  So I teach what I know: Photography, History, Post Production.

I am working on new educational avenues as well in the form of webinars, private online consultations and video instruction.  All of this will allow me to stay closer to home and spend a little more important time with my family.  I am excited about that.

7.  What inspires you?

The human spirit inspires me.  Whether it is in the form of a small child who is just discovering his world, or in leaders of nations, congregations or industry.  I am inspired by those who create something from nothing, who struggle against all odds or who take a faithful step into the unknown to discover what they are really made of.

Love, commitment, relationships and character are the things that matter to me.  Here are some great images from Jared’s collection that show how his photography reflects what he finds important in life.

8.  What are your interests and/or hobbies outside of photography?

My world consists of work (photography), family and God.  Not necessarily in that order.  I am a singer and musician, and when I have the time, music is a welcome respite.  Mountain biking is the only form of exercise I can endure.  Everything else is too boring.  But my number one hobby or escape from the “daily grind of photography” is politics.  Other people escape the seriousness of their lives through play.  I escape the constant “play” through the deadly serious topic of politics.  We all have our escapes…

If you would like to sign up for one of Jared’s workshops, visit www.jaredplattworkshops.com!

Website: www.PlattPhotography.com

Thanks, Jared!

Comment

Share

Tweet