Julian Baird - Photographer of the Month - January '19
Introduce yourself
I’m Julian Baird, a landscape photographer from Devon. I have a full-time job in IT but photography is my full-time hobby. If I’m not out taking photographs, I’m thinking about taking photographs or talking about photography on my YouTube channel.
How did you get into photography?
There wasn’t a single defining moment that got me into photography. It was a very gradual process which developed as I increasingly became interested in the outdoors. My first camera was a simple film camera which I used to document my travels. When I started walking the hills and mountains of the Scottish Highlands I progressed to my first digital SLR. It was at this point I really started to take an interest in the art of photography. I was seeing so many amazing natural sights that I wanted to document them properly and share them. About 10 years ago I moved to Devon, and for the last 5 years, I have been taking my landscape photography very seriously investing in gear, learning and adventures. Capturing beautiful images of the great outdoors still drives my photography to this day.
Do you have any particular style of photography you specialise in?
I’m definitely a landscape photographer at heart. I like shooting big vistas, open moorland, and mountains. Living so close to the coast though, long exposure seascapes also feature heavily in my work. I also like to do a bit of live music (gig) photography during the dark winter evenings as a way to get my photography fix.
What do you enjoy about photography?
Everything! I love being outdoors, and despite the misery of a 3am alarm call, sometimes there is no better place to be than on Dartmoor watching the sunrise. I enjoy many aspects of photography including making my own prints and creating videos for my YouTube channel.
Tell us about one of your projects/your work…
For almost 2 years I planned a week-long photography adventure to the Isle of Harris and the Isle of Lewis. The Outer Hebrides had long been a bucket list location for me and given the cost and time taken to get there I wanted to come away with a portfolio of images. It was a very successful trip and not only did I get some wonderful photographs, but I also managed to create a video of the experience for my YouTube channel, and another video on creating a gallery of images from the trip (featuring some nice frames from Picture Frames Express).
If you could offer one piece of advice to aspiring photographers what would it be?
Practice! Practice your photography as much as you can. Even if the weather stinks, get out there with your camera. Photography is a skill, and like any skill, you need to practice it. When you are presented with the ideal conditions for a photograph you don’t want to be trying to remember how to use your camera. Keep your skills sharp.
Where can we see your work?
You can see all my landscape work at here, and on my YouTube channel.
Do you have any plans for 2019?
2019 is looking like a very busy year for me. I’ve got several photography talks booked in, some very interesting YouTube collaborations to film, and a big photography trip to the Isle of Skye.
