“I guess everyone has a way of escaping from reality, mine is photography. I feel I can just do anything when I’m behind the camera – I can create any image I want”.

Ines Monnet

Ines Monnet was born in 1985. She currently lives in Lausanne, Switzerland.

“My Best Shot”

The story behind the picture: “I think our best shot is usually part of our most recent work, since we are always evolving as photographers and getting better with time. This shot of the snowy roses was taken very recently for a photo collaboration I’m doing during the month of December on my blog. I enjoy doing photo projects with other photographers and to challenge myself – it makes my creativity flow a lot more!

I tried to photograph these roses on one weekend but the result didn’t feel right. One week after it snowed, I went back to that place and tried again. I was very happy with the results and worked on the image in post production to get those muted tones.

I really like to shoot with wide apertures and create images with bokeh, I feel it gives the image a dreamy look and it also helps the viewer’s eye to focus on what you are trying to tell through the photograph.”

Interview

Ines Monnet, what was your first camera and photographic experience?

I honestly can’t remember the brand of my first camera, but I can say it was film. What I mainly retain from my first photographic experiences is that my creative thought process was all made before I pressed the shutter. The 24 printed photos I would get after the film roll was developed would be my final results. So, at that time, I was really thinking about the image I wanted to get and was only taking it if I was sure it was worth being one of the final 24 printed photos.

Nowadays with digital cameras we tend to shoot a lot and not worry too much. Sometimes when shooting, I try to get on the “film roll mind-set”: think more about what I’m doing and shoot a lower amount of images.

What does photography mean to you?

“…beautiful images and letting people imagine what the story behind them (…)”

I guess everyone has a way of escaping from reality, mine is photography. I feel I can just do anything when I’m behind the camera – I can create any image I want. I really enjoy getting creative, making beautiful images and letting people imagine what the story behind them would be.

Which photographer has inspired you most and in what way?

I think it was photographer Natalie Dybisz a.k.a Miss Aniela. I always loved photography but it was when I discover her work that I understood photography was much more of a creative process than just documenting life around me. That’s when I started exploring photography in a more creative way.

What kinds of photography do you like best?

I’ve always been a fan of travel and street photography perhaps because I like to travel and I’m a bit of a “people watcher” when I go somewhere – so I can relate with these two kinds of photography very well. I recently got more interested in portraiture and I would like to explore it more in my own work.

What kind of photography equipment and photographic supplies do you use?

I’m building my photography kit and so far I own a Nikon D90 and two lenses: a 35mm 1.8 and a 70-200mm 2.8. I also have a tripod, a remote control and a reflector. To carry my camera I either use a camera bag or a shoulder strap.

What’s your favorite website about photography, Ines Monnet?

I’m regularly connected to creativeLIVE which is, in short, an online classroom. It has a lot of workshops that you can watch live for free, I’ve attended quite a few and so far I feel I have really learned a lot.

How do you learn more things in order to improve your photographic skills? Are photography books a source of information and inspiration?

“You should master the theory to make sure you are practicing it the right way.”

In my opinion the best way to improve as a photographer is to practice as much as you can! You will only get better by taking more and more photographs. But of course photography books are a great source of information, mainly because you should master the theory to make sure you are practicing it the right way. However it’s not in books that I look for inspiration most of the time, I confess I spend hours and hours on the Internet looking at other photographer’s sites – their beautiful photos inspire me to create my own.

What photography book would you recommend?

One of my favorite photography books is “PHOTO:BOX” by Roberto Koch. This book presents a selection of 250 photographs from some of the greatest photographers of all time. Each image comes with a text that lets you know the story behind the photograph and a brief biography of the artist. It’s kind of a photography encyclopedia and that’s why I like it so much!

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