Real Photography With Live Models

"Dreams of the Gulf"
 Honestly. When I first saw the macro photography of the series' Ant stories "," Ant House "with scenes, where insects pose and clearly fulfill the "reasonable" actions have had different ideas about how is it that the author managed to implement such tricks. His thoughts were of the most blasphemous - and I will not even specify now, which - to the banal three-dimensional visualization.
The reality was much more incredible: it's all real, albeit staged photography with live models!



I contacted the author of the photos, and we have agreed to an interview. When the conversation was held in response to the dry preform questions fotoobyvatelya I got a wonderful and heartfelt story of a man with an interesting and difficult destiny. Hero publication asked just call him - Andrew (the Internet - Antrey). Born in Moscow, Leningrad, graduated from the Faculty Makarovka Arctic, on expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctica with occasional returns to his wife and daughter in his native St. Petersburg.
"The Rotten Swamp no dummy!"
And then all my words will be commonplace, and you will find exciting, filled to the brim with love of life and optimism history of the relationship between man and nature with the real stories in pictures. - Can you say to yourself that "was born with a camera?" And anyway, how come into the picture?  - Occasional shooting always Fotomat not part with the last seven years.   
- Is there a hobby, not related to photography? 
- I listen to anything, I love good music in any genre.

"You are my Fluffy"
- What inspired the creation of the work?
- Probably in childhood tales nedochital now trying to remove them :)).
- In addition to the macro is there any other favorite genres?
- My work is rarely a macro (in the classic 1:1), I make stories about narcotic low, and there is a place and a portrait and landscape.

"The Bridge"
- Looking at your pictures, do not move my surprise your patience and perseverance. Do you really have such qualities?
- What other skills help you in your work?
- A lot of things artistic remade hands - from stamping and painting to the decorations in the student theater - a good experience to create layouts scene.



"Compote to third"
 - Interest in macro photography and ants in particular has something to do with your profession or just wondered? 
- Digital photography learned in a state vegetable - seven years ago refused spine
so that was within reach of a square meter of grass suburban area, with all of its inhabitants.
And then, like many, fell under the charm of these amazing humans. A community that cares for the weak - children, senior citizens and people with disabilities - can not command respect.
This biological civilization for 150 million years of existence, has mastered a lot of environmentally friendly methods of life support and a strategy of survival. And live for the same amount, if the young man has technological civilization would kill the planet finally ...
However, it is written for many.

"Do not eat, and then become a little man! .."
 - What equipment, optics, accessories, in addition to the camera, helping to solve creative problems, and especially in the macro?1. Stage-with adjustable height, tilt, and fasteners for the props, able to perform a lot of functions;2. Raynor-250 makrolinza of all time;3. Flash - like more powerful smart kids Metz cs 28, but more often I use Xiongnu 460 ll,at Metz synchronize only the world, and on a sunny day it is not good clarify - always rented with pulsed light, or vibration active antennae ants much blurring). Plots shot on location, in the studio or combined? How is it arranged workplace?  I like to shoot pets - red forest ant Formica rufa at 50 meters from the house.Working places trail is clearly structured, the movement is strictly ants on a trail it can conveniently be attached to the side of the people and not to suppress the remaining neiskusannym. For the free rotation of the cast scene is set right on the trail, flashes, backdrops and reflectors on the wire pegs stuck in the ground. When I can not walk, shoot directly at the site, the benefit of the population - five species of ants: When the door is open - come to the house (but not rude). Plots rented in multiple exposure technique: a series with a fixed camera, light a scene and then pile - Editor-in eraser and wipe the most talented artists. With the experience of a pile is getting smaller, sometimes missing one or two shots (selected from hundreds). Collage do not do out of laziness (except hopeless cases, such as the moon with stars), I find it easier to remove as it should.Tried shopit artists in the sun - did not even once, and that's to shoot with the sun on the background learned quickly: 

"Babies do not touch me!"
  It is noticeable that in each photo with love served surroundings, scenery: moss, mushrooms, different things, and so on and it's all very carefully. How much time is spent on the development of such scenes and props where you dig? With an entourage and props are no problems - in May I was taken to the country until October, I live in this all. The most time is spent on thinking through staging - artists should want (and be able) to perform the necessary movements in the proposed decorations.
Moreover, the action should be in the same plane, so as not to fall out of the meager depth of field.
Because of the complexity of these interfaces has not been implemented half the subjects: (.
 Is there a favorite work, and connected with it special?
Now here's a favorite:

"The new bridge and the boatman grabber"
 A small but important victory for me, given the understanding that has learned something, complexes diminished. The picture is not fictional, these sometimes obtained when preparing to shoot.  How did invent stories that you then embody in their work?  Usually not making this up, just that I know of behaviors portrayed in humanoid form, well, try to get fun.

"Good morning!"
 How well do manage to "train" of such small models like ants, "persuade" them to carry out the necessary tricks?Authoritative opinion:1. "Their ability to obey ... - The dream of every dictator! 
 2. "It is proved that the ants learn faster ... birds, while they afford invariant task "(AA Zakharov," The Ant, the family, the colony "). Easy to get the attention of an ant, is sufficient to produce a fake production or enemy with skill you can manage an entire troupe. If you do manage to persuade one trick, others will do this is easy. Not all artists are good, stupid and lazy to have to drive out the set.But the main thing is not to educate the ant, and to learn myself. I'm out to "get in touch" took two or three years. Tell me some unusual or fascinating history, to the obtaining of a frame?First backstage: bump with artists - a plum bush, four meters away from the house, illuminated by a pulse, but in the bright sunny morning vspyshechek not see ... self-timer shooting is on a timer

"The launch complex Chanterelle"
 Now imagine: you're poking around in the garden, and you notice that your neighbor oddity that continually removes bugs, just poplohelo ...He happily waving his arms on the porch, hobbling consult with plum bush, returned to the porch and again welcomes bush ... you would have called the doctor, but in a wilderness nuthouse not go. I did a lot of takes - not like a sharp chiaroscuro of sun and only when he finished shooting, said a person sympathetic neighbors. Is there a book or online resource that helps professional? A community dedicated, technically very competent people, I am diligent (absentee) student from 2006 ...Read discussions, flattered that teachers believe my work comp graphy.And also "ant literature": Khalifman, Zakharov, Werber. Favorite - a novel Werber "Ants."Is there a favorite photographer? Salvador Dali. Is there a problem for you, "writer's block", and if so, how to deal with this?When you can not translate the story, from beginning to rave about their helplessness: ((... just get by - giving up and I take up the other.

 Do you have plans and projects for the future?
The plans for the summer - off at least half of the planned ... Has a dream - to combine ant stories into one - yes still can not, Global thinking is not enough ... If someone helped, would be pleased.