Interview with Zach Doehler on Photography Trends

Website:
https://calibreus.co/

Country: Canada

Photography Genres: Aerial, Nature, Landscape, and Astrophotography

Favorite Camera Brand: Sony

Socials: Instagram

What’s in your camera bag?

• Sony A7RIV
• Infrared Modified 590nm Sony A7RII
• Sony ZV-E1
• Sony RX100VA
• Tamron 28-200 2.8-5.6
• Tamron 17-28 2.8
• Tamron 150-500 5-6.7
• Sigma 85 1.4
• DJI Mini 3 Pro

Where do you get the latest news on new gear? Where do You usually buy new gear?

I usually research and learn about new gear from social media, primarily YouTube. I try not to purchase new gear, if possible. I’ve saved a lot of money by purchasing used gear through places like Facebook Marketplace.

How is photography making the world a better place in 2024?

Photography is a beautiful medium to create art and express yourself with. It forces you to pay closer attention to the world around you, to your subject, to the little details the average person doesn’t see. I think that photography deepens our appreciation for just how beautiful life is, and through the photographs we capture, we’re able to share that appreciation with others.

Gratitude is one of the key elements of happiness and positivity. And I believe that the more gratitude we can have individually as humans, the better the world can be as a whole.

What emerging photography trends do you foresee gaining popularity in 2024?

There seems to be a growing interest and trend in creating images with a cinematic and moody feel. Whether that’s through certain compositional elements, the editing, or even the ratio of the images, I could see cinematic photography being a popular trend in 2024.

If you could pick a photography mentor in 2024, who would you pick? Why?

There are so many amazing photographers out there that it’s difficult to really narrow it down to just one. But Michael Shainblum has been one of my favorite photographers since I first started getting into photography back in 2016. His photography and editing style are incredible, and he’s multi-talented in other genres as well, such as videography and filmmaking.

He also just really loves photography and always approaches his work with a very humble perspective, which I think is something we can all learn from and imitate.

The unavoidable question: How do you see the use of artificial intelligence or machine learning impacting photography in 2024?

It is definitely desensitizing people to beautiful images. Only a year ago, it took a decent amount of effort to be able to create a beautiful and unique image, whether that be through photography, digital art, painting, etc. Now, you can create something that is near-perfect within a few seconds of typing on your keyboard.

I think it is important to remember, though, that while photography has only recently become a new format of creating art in the past 100+ years, older mediums of art, such as painting, drawing, instrumental music, etc, are still as popular today as ever before. AI will simply be another way of creating art, but it won’t replace photography.

What is your favorite photography-related book or resource that will continue to have a significant impact on your career in 2024? Why?

It’s not a photography-related book per se, but my wife and I have recently been making good use of a productivity planner to plan out our work days and our business goals. This has made our vision clearer and helped us to be more productive during the days we work on my photography business. I think being able to keep up our productivity going into 2024 will be crucial for us to maintain a profitable photography business despite the slowing economy.

What is your go-to method for overcoming creative block and finding inspiration in 2024?

Try something different. If you’re finding yourself feeling creatively unfulfilled photographing landscapes, then go photograph people, cities, or animals. If you feel bored with photography in general, try cinematography, filmmaking, writing, and so on. Doing a different form of art always helps me to overcome my creative blocks and find inspiration.

I think many artists and photographers feel they need to narrow themselves into one specific niche and never leave, but this can be exhausting after a while. You need to spread your creative wings from time to time.

Don’t try to be the best artist. Just try to be unique.

Zach Doehler

If you could give one piece of advice to a beginner in photography, what would it be?

Shoot as much as you can. Don’t worry too much about gear. It’s a ton of fun to research and buy new gear, but often, it won’t have as significant of an impact on your art as simply getting out and shooting more often will. Also, ignore the criticisms of others. Your photos won’t be great in the beginning, but no one’s photos are. You have to practice and find your voice through your own time and experimentation. Don’t try to be the best artist. Just try to be unique.

Can you share a specific tool, technology, or software that has revolutionized your workflow and significantly enhanced your creative process as a photographer?

Adobe Lightroom Classic is my absolute favorite tool/software for my editing workflow, and I can’t see that changing anytime soon. Every photographer needs it, in my opinion.

NFT and photography? Any thoughts?

I was among the first photographers to experiment with selling my work as NFT in the Spring of 2021 before NFT Photography really took off. I had multiple pieces collected by Caktux, the NFT Photography collector, that really started the boom and appreciation for NFT Photography. I then went on to sell more of my work to various collectors throughout 2021 and a bit in 2022. NFTs saved my career as a professional photographer during those years.

Since then, the market has slowed quite a bit due to the overall crypto market. But I think the technology behind NFTs is fantastic and potentially game-changing for the future of displaying art as a whole. It is important to look past the scammy cartoon animal pictures that have given NFTs a bad reputation and pay closer attention to the technology behind them.

What is your biggest strength and your biggest weakness as a photographer in 2024?

I think one of my biggest strengths as a photographer is my unique style and workflow. Many of my followers have told me that they can recognize my work without seeing a name attached to it, and I think that’s one of the greatest achievements you can reach as an artist.

My biggest weakness is probably my anxiety and worries about the future. I really love and appreciate that I can do photography full-time as my job. But it truly is a challenge not knowing where your next pay cheque is coming from, especially in a slowing economy. However, if I can maintain my optimism and keep making a solid effort towards my goals, I know that everything will work out.

What is the biggest challenge in your photography genre in 2024? What are the solutions?

Being able to afford to travel to new photography destinations is certainly a challenge. I think making good use of local areas near you, especially with good light and conditions, is a big help when it comes to creating new and exciting work without breaking the bank.

What is the most important factor to consider when choosing a photography niche or specialization in 2024?

Just shoot what makes you happy; it’s as simple as that. Try a bunch of different photography genres and then spend more time focusing on the one you enjoy the most. If you’re trying to make a career out of this, remember that you can make money from just about any photography niche or specialization you choose to go with.

Some will be easier and more profitable than others, but all will be difficult and challenging. You have to be willing to put in the effort if you want to make this your career, and you have to really love and enjoy photography first and foremost, regardless of the money.