The Gren Group: May 2011

Eric Schmidt, On Being Classic Without Convention and Getting Wet

Posted by Melissa Pang in Advertising, Artists, Motion

Eric Schmidt takes the road less traveled. From shooting a resort without a blue sky to an unsentimental but tender video portrait of a 90-year-old woman, we’ve quizzed Eric on his unconventional vision and casting his eye on nature’s elements.

You’ve made some unusual creative choices with that first image: a long exposure blur effect on the figure, where most photographers would have gone sharp; muted colors and an overcast sky instead of white sandy beaches and jewel-tone blue, and a moment of relative solitude instead of the typical family shot.

I guess one could call it an unusual creative choice nowadays…perhaps because it might be beyond the comfort zone of many clients to show an abstraction. But truth be told, this has aways been a direction I’ve gravitated to. I’ve always been drawn to using larger format cameras – and then quite often, key elements in my compositions are intentionally blurred.

For the most part, I’ve never been one to create images that are static and sharp throughout. My favorite pictures generally have something going on in the atmosphere of the composition; prairie grasses blowing in the wind, the ebb and flow of waves or even a kid dragging a kayak to shore.

Yet, I think your image captures a traveler’s fantasy in its own right; for those of us who see the adventurous appeal in exploring our own smallness in the midst of looming rock and vast empty ocean. How did you make that vision happen?

It all started earlier this year, when I received a phone call from a creative director (Mark Paolucci) who I’ve been working with for many years. His agency had started working with this new client; a gorgeous resort in California. They were in desperate need of having new photography created. Fortunately for us, the imagery they had to work with was of a very low standard…I’ll leave it at that!

Mark told me, “Eric, this project has your name written all over it,” and then he made reference to an image on my website, of two blurred boys playing in waves. He absolutely loved its poetic, painterly aspect. That image has always been one of my favorites, so naturally I was stoked when I heard this.

I was given a shot list early on, some shots with layouts and some without. This particular image was described as “family sand shot on beach” – there’s a lot of wiggle room there! We tech scouted a couple of weeks before the shoot and it was then and there that I knew what the shot was going to be. Mark was easily convinced – which is where a long working relationship is beneficial.

So all the pieces fell into place. I knew what the final image would look like the moment I tripped the shutter. An entirely new direction for the client, and all were thrilled with the goods – myself included. I’ve been told that more is on the way…I’m keeping fingers crossed.

Speaking of unusual creative choices, the absence of bright blue skies in your work is immediately striking – usually that means dark, edgy, high-contrast stuff. Yet your body of work is gentle and warm – in fact, my favourite image from your portfolio (above) has a rotting, murky, stormy color palette – but the shot is incredibly soft and beautiful. How would you describe your visual style?

That image was taken along the Adriatic Coast in the midst of a manageable downpour. I wouldn’t be the first photographer to tell you that great things can happen with a camera when it’s raining!

But here’s what I know: my best photographs have personal aspects to them. They might have been made in Montana – which is a place I fell in love with many years ago. They most likely were taken during the last few hours of the day – which are my favorite. Nature’s elements are definitely involved – I love the wind, rain and big skies. And my favorite images of people involve spontaneous moments. I have three kids – enough said?

Also, I’m a pretty simple guy and I love simple compositions. I’ve been told many times that there’s a timeless quality in my photographs.

For the shot above – I have to ask, how did you make that happen?

We launched prior to sunrise in a Zodiac and made a variety of images during a long and wonderful window of light. Some were made with my camera in an Aquatica DSLR underwater housing, and others were taken from the boat utilizing a Hassey and a Phase P45 back. There were whales within fifty yards of us and it was an epic way to start another wonderful shoot.

You recently shot a short motion piece; “Conversations with Anne”. It’s a moving portrait – what was the inspiration?

I’ve always been in tune with older generations, even when I was a kid. But our grandparent’s generation is slowly fading away – they’re a part of our lives that is usually taken for granted, and that’s a shame because most people never really appreciate something until it’s gone.

I wanted my first video to have substance and not be thirty seconds of fluff for the sake of doing a video that looked commercial. It’s seven minutes long, which I realize is a stretch in this world of ours…but I’m fine with that, because it’s not geared towards someone with a short attention span. I made mention of this piece in my journal, you can check it out.

So what made you start wading into motion, and how has that experience been?

Well right now, I’m only ankle deep – and it’s a very deep pool. I remember taking a required film class when I was at Art Center. I fell in love with it and remember asking myself if that was the direction I was meant to travel. I’m shooting another piece next week, and there are two more on my mind after that – with both of those taking me to a more epic place.

There’s an enormity of smoke and mirrors in the world of video, and that alone will inevitably alter a creative process. Sound is almost a visual sense for me. Remember, I grew up with MTV and I believe that what we hear is just as important as what we’re looking at. Visually, I don’t think there will be a dramatic change in what I shoot. And I suspect my work in the two mediums will have similar thumbprints. But like I said…I’m only ankle deep.