WorldScapes - Fine Art Photography by Serge Chriqui

art photography: “photography that is done as a fine art — that is, done to express the artist’s perceptions and emotions and to share them with others” – gloria s. mcdarrah, et al. from the photography encyclopedia

fine art photography: “a picture that is produced for sale or display rather than one that is produced in response to a commercial commission” – terry hope from fine art photography: creating beautiful images for sale and display

fine art photography: “the production of images to fulfil the creative vision of a photographer. … synonymous with art photography” – barbara lynch-johnt and michelle perkins from illustrated dictionary of photography: the professional’s guide to terms and techniques

"what do you do?"

it's a natural enough question when one meets you for the first time... my answer is never straightforward, because let's face it, some people don't and won't get it... a Fine Art Photographer.

i usually reply, "i am a photographer..."

a look of recognition: the immediate assumption, that I shoot weddings, bar mitzvahs and other such events. The truth is I have never had a paid gig shooting a special occasion. lest you think that i thumb my nose at such an endeavour, nothing could be further from the truth! i don't have the personality, disposition or inclination to deal with people on such a level. quite on the contrary, i admire those who can pull it off.

commercial photography and photo-journalism? nope. neither.

i am not a 'photographer for hire'. Not in the conventional sense, anyway. Again, i admire those who do it and earn a living from it.

"i am a fine art photographer", i say. followed by a confused expression akin to a 'deer in the headlights' look and an "ohhhhh". i immediately follow up with "i am an artist: a fine art photographer; i sell my photographs as art".

then the obvious, "can you earn a living? how do you earn a living?"

well, not from my art - not at this point anyway. don't get me wrong, i have done well with it in prior times; that would be 'pre-economic downturn' times. the market for fine art photographs has not exactly been booming since late 2008; certainly not for a one-in-a-million-wanna-earn-my-living-taking-pictures guy. i am not ansel adams. nor peter lik or rodney lough jr., for that matter.

since then, i have been an art dealer (refusing to leave the industry) and a part-time bookkeeper.

i am a solitary animal. i enjoy peace and quiet. i try to live my life calmly with a minimum of fuss. i like to think i am a keen observer, prone to watching, rather than one who has the gift of the gab.

so, what is it that i do?

in a nutshell, i strive to create artistic photographs. i strive to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary. most times in black and white. some times in sepia. indeed, my best selling images have been with a splash of colour on a monochrome background, by a process i term colour isolation (others call it selective colouring).

so there it is...

you've made it this far. have a look, won't you?

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