How did you become a photographer and what type or genre of photography do you enjoy most?
My passion for photography began when I was working and living in London, England with my wife. On the weekends we would head out to the countryside and I would document our jaunts on my smartphone for social media. I started using Lightroom on my smartphone before I received my first DSLR, so I guess I kind of hit the ground running by the time I had my first 'real' camera as far as processing my images. When I first started out I tried all types of photography before I realised my love of wildlife photography - my current 'go-to' genre!
I attempt to capture my subjects in a different light (excuse the photography pun). I look for different behaviours and/or unnatural positions, in the hopes I can present the viewer with something different. I like to focus on the subject only, and I use exposure adjustments to the subject and background to give me a hand with that!
What is the inspiration behind your photographs?
The animals themselves are my inspiration. They constantly amaze me. I knew nothing about any of the species or wildlife in general before I took up photography, so I've just been totally engrossed in learning about them and their behaviours. I really like to capture animals in unnatural or awkward positions to create a more interesting shot, and when I wait for these occasions to present themselves, I really feel I learn a lot about the animal's personality and behaviour.
Have you sold photographs through an image library before, what has your experience been?
Yes, I have sold some of my photos on istock and Getty Images in the past. I like the idea that once they have been submitted, they kind of work for themselves however, it’s quite difficult to sell your images among literally millions of others.
How do you select which images you publish for sale?
Particularly with wildlife stock images, I find there are so many images that look the same. I mean, apart from compositional differences and lighting, the animal in question is generally very similar to another of the same species. Therefore, I feel it is super important to select images that are as far removed as possible from the others, so that the buyer might just stop on my image when flicking through!
Why did you decide to start selling your work with Excio?
I really like the Excio community of like-minded photographers, and I wanted to support the platform. In addition to Excio offering a fair price to their contributors for each sale, the fact they contribute a percentage to charity of the purchasers choosing is just awesome.
What do you like most about the Excio Image Library?
There is a huge amount of talent among the contributors, it is well catalogued and there is a huge selection of genres to chose from.
Can you tell us about a favorite photo that you’ve taken?
It is difficult to single out a favourite, as I like different photos for different reasons. One image that seems to have been fairly popular on social media and other media outlets, is my Oystercatcher image. I actually have a series of 6 images taken of the Oystercatcher preening in different positions, and this was the one I feel speaks to me more than the others. It was also used as the front cover of a print magazine issue which was cool.
Do you hope to make photography your main source of income one day?
I fear my style of imagery wouldn't necessarily be conducive to a main source of income, but I hope that it will at least in part contribute to it!
Where can we find you online, any links you wish to share?
I'm pretty active on insta: @fraserfotography and I have my website - jamiefraser.co.nz
