Photographer Jan Steinhilber studied graphic design with the ambition to become an art director—and accidentally discovered photography during the studies. He got deeper into it by working as an assistant for different photographers and finally decided to make his way as a freelance photographer. He established his own studio in 2000 and since then has worked with great enthusiasm for numerous clients, magazines and ad agencies—and whenever possible he works on personal projects to develop his skills and bring his own ideas to life. His awards include the German Art Directors Club, British AOP, PDN, Graphis and Communication Arts.
12.29.09
A Good Work and "Work" Balance
If you have a degree in what field is it? Graphic design.
What was your strangest assignment? I was working on a campaign that, among other things, contained a visual that needed to be shot underwater. Since I'd never done that before, I had to learn to scuba dive to be able to shoot all images for that campaign. It was pretty strange to tell the diving instructor that I was doing all this because I needed to take an underwater photograph.
Which photographer would you like to meet? Nadav Kander and Nick Knight.
What famous person (living or dead) would you most like to photograph? Steve McQueen in his Gulf Porsche 908 driving the 24 Hours of LeMans course, car-to-car.
Aside from your camera and lighting, what item could you not work without? Obviously not an “item,” but i find it really helpful to have my assistant with me to share my thoughts about what I’m doing while I’m doing it.
Is there anything you would not digitally retouch? No. I always use every means I have to improve the strength and the impact of an image. If that meant retouching I would certainly do it. If unnecessary, even better.
From where do your best ideas originate? Thinking while driving works great for me.
How do you overcome a creative block? Luckily, I’ve never really had a serious one. Sometimes I need a couple of days to really clean up my desk from all the distracting paperwork—a clean background makes it a lot easier to come up with new ideas.
Do you have creative pursuits other than photography? I do a lot of drawings, but they’re mostly little sketches of ideas that might become photographs later.
What music are you listening to right now? My iPod’s in shuffle mode and right now it’s playing “Ghetto Pop Life” by Danger Mouse and Jemini.
What’s your approach to balancing work and life? I try to find a good work and “work” balance between assignments and personal work. It keeps me happy with what I’m doing and makes it easy to spend a lot of time working.
What’s your favorite quote? To be honest, I don`t really have one.
Do you have any advice for people just entering the profession? Never sit down. Always be awake and keep moving.
What’s one thing you wish you knew when you started your career? I knew very little when i started out, but if I’d known then everything I know now, I would still have done things the same way. I’ve had ten great years in this profession. But... I’d learn how to make a good risotto; photography is great, but there are a few other important things too.