Why do you take photographs?
It fulfils some sort of desire to create and I was never a very good painter!
How do you get inspired?
By going for long walks and taking a lot of photos, and by looking at the work of others.
When do you get your best ideas?
Late at night when I should be asleep.
What have been your greatest challenges and achievements?
Trying to shoot colour portraits while being redgreen colour blind is a challenge! I'm still waiting for a great achievement
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by being a creative person?
Children and a day job seem to be good antidotes to any pretentions of being a creative person.
Do you ever give yourself assignments?
Each series of photos is a sort of selfimposed assignment.
What are your creative methods for creating images?
I use a combination of tiltshift lenses, long exposures, camera movement and multiple exposures. I useanything to interpret a scene rather than just replicate it.
Do you have any advice about creative process?
Study the work of as many other artists as possible. Take 500 photos a day for five years, force yourselfto post one a day on any social media, and then reassess the situation.
Which artist's work/life/career has inspired you the most?
Howard Hodgkin, for the beauty of his paintings and his single mindedness over 60 years.
Criticism do you see it as a friend or foe?
Any feedback, whether good or bad, means at least you have elicited a response.
What is your advice for handling criticism?
Ignore it Howard Hodgkin did!
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Drink less and don't try to become a photographer at the age of 46.
Something very few people know about you?
I have worked in 150 countries but still have 46 countries in the world left to visit...
For more information please visit http://www.cfriel.com/
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