Ep 150: Acclaimed portrait photographer Billy Plummer on being self taught, and side entrances and success

In this episode, we meet acclaimed art director turned photographer Billy Plummer. Billy boasts major clients in his portfolio but also talks about the importance of shooting personal projects and how those projects have been instrumental in getting him work as a photographer. He discovered photography as a career later in life and is now successfully shooting his way around the world.

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Show notes

Useful Link via Ken Burgin

Bicycle Graveyard in China

“RESIDENTS OF HANGZHOU, China, can hop onto any one of at least 86,000 bicycles and ride wherever they like. The bikes are easy to find, too, because people tends to leave them any old place. On sidewalks. Under overpasses. In parks. Leaning against walls and lying in vacant lots.

“Police have rounded up 23,000 bikes so far this year and hauled them to 16 corrals around the city. From the ground, these bicycle graveyards look like junkyards. Seen from above, they take on an impressionistic quality.”

Billy Plummer

Image by Billy Plummer

London born & based in Sydney, Billy Plummer grew up in an eccentric family; his Grandfather was the first ever horse racing tipster in the UK newspapers, his Aunt the first non-French principal dancer at the Folies Bergère and his Uncle, a Dallas newspaper editor was 2 cars behind Kennedy in the Dallas motorcade.

Billy has a deliberately distinctive style. He’s shot everything from hill tribes and homeless to Jean Claude Van Damme and Richard Branson. He believes there’s real magic to be found in the everyday and loves the challenge of revealing the extraordinary in the ordinary.

Billy’s background as an agency creative director means he fully ‘gets’ concepts – he knows how to articulate ideas, and identify genuinely surprising aspects to bring a brief to life. It also means he understands the need to deliver unique & brand proprietary results for his clients.

His personal work has been exhibited in Australia and Europe, including Honey & Dust at Northern Europe’s largest photographic festival, Nordic Light International Festival of Photography, in Norway in 2013 and Reportage Without A Cause at Australia’s renowned documentary photography festival, Reportage, in Sydney in 2010.

Billy recently won both Photography Gold at Midas Awards for Worlds Best Financial & Marketing and Silver at Award for best Campaign Photography.

Born in London, Billy is based in Sydney and represented by samiam

Website http://billyplummer.com/

Image by Billy Plummer
Image by Billy Plummer
Image by Billy Plummer
Image by Billy Plummer
Image by Billy Plummer
Image by Billy Plummer

Some William Eggleston quotes: http://www.johnpaulcaponigro.com/blog/12351/19-quotes-by-photographer-william-eggleston/

“I photograph to see what the world looks like in photographs” – Garry Winogrand

Richard Avedon “In the American West”: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/gallery/2017/feb/25/richard-avedon-american-west-texas-in-pictures

Irving Penn “Worlds in a samall room”: https://www.irvingpenn.org/worlds-in-a-small-room-80/fzbpus43bb3nj2gms0lcymwzl2fe6p

Awesome self taught photographer Neil Krug: http://www.neilkrug.com/

The very poetic work of Alex & Rebecca Norris Webb: http://www.webbnorriswebb.co/

How to direct and pose like a pro

About Gina

About Gina

Gina Milicia is one of the most widely known and respected photographers in Australia. She is the master of capturing that ‘magical moment’... READ MORE

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