How I Draw Inspiration From the Photography of James Popsys

I enjoy watching photography based YouTube videos and, like many others, I am more influenced by certain photographers than by others.

Often, I will watch occasional videos by certain photographers depending on the topic, sometimes I will watch videos based on the photography genre and many times I will watch videos by photographers whose whole approach appeals to me. These will be photographers who have built a good relationship with their audience, who obviously put time and effort into producing their content and whose images I enjoy seeing.

These are the photographers from whom I get the most inspiration.

One such photographer is James Popsys. His style of photography – a mix of landscape, street and general photography – appeals to me, while his humour, his general approach to photography and his way of delivering his content resonates with me.

Five elements of James Popsys’ photography stand out in particular. These are:

·      The relationship between the human-made and the natural environment which is conveyed through his photography.

·      His editing style – his images are usually brightly edited; images that are ‘bright and lively’, to quote himself.

·      His preference for scenes that look as though he has just stumbled across them, rather than the usual ‘iconic images’.

·      His constant advice to photographers to take photos that are ‘about’ things rather than ‘of’ things; to consider the story that the image tells.

·      His dislike of rules in photography.

During his videos James gives plenty of good advice and tips for novice photographers in a humorous, personable style.

While my editing style may be different to that of an accomplished photographer such as James Popsys, I have taken inspiration from his style of imagery, particularly since I like to take a walk with my camera and shoot subjects that I stumble across.

I am also a fan of including human-made subjects alongside natural subjects and of documenting the impact and imprint that we humans leave on the land we inhabit.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Although the locations and subject matter, as well as the photographic competence, are different, the images above have, to some extent, been inspired by James Popsys. They include scenes I stumbled across during my daily photo walk, scenes or subjects that are ‘about’ something, that attempt to tell a story, and scenes in which human-made and natural elements exist together.

If you are interested in this type of photography, or would like some more information on the work of James Popsys, you can find him on YouTube, on instagram @jamespopsys, and on his website www.jamespopsys.com.