Friday Art Star: Jordan Fraker

Jordan Fraker, a Dallas native, lived and breathed painting at one point in his life. He was never very good at it however, based primarily on his desire for fast-paced situations and his inability to be in one place for any considerable amount of time. He found himself wishing he could somehow take his studio outside. Jordan naturally discovered and embraced the “art” of photography as his personality gravitated in that direction. It also didn’t hurt that the time required to make an image had been trimmed from several weeks to fractions of a second. That could be blamed on his lack of patience and surplus of ideas, perhaps. He has in fact, had many different kinds of photographic endeavors since his “awakening” in 2000, the year he found his mother’s Canon AE-1. He’s worked as a travel photographer, shot products, events, fashion, families, high school seniors, editorials for musicians, head shots, to name a few. Jordan finds solace in tackling a wide gamut of obstacles photographically. It tells his personal story, one of a guy who loves the tool of photography and who considers himself anything but an artist. He prefers to think of himself as a storyteller. To understand more about his way of thinking, please view ;Gary Bishop’s online portfolio. Gary taught Jordan all that he knows.

When and how did you become interested in photography?

I remember the first day of “Photo 1″ with Gary Bishop, my first photo professor. I was also, at that time, taking an illustration class. That was far more up my alley. Photography hadn’t really seemed very interesting to me. I didn’t see the artistic validity in it at all. On that first day of class, I remember raising my hand while Gary presented a slide show of famous documentary photographs. He acknowledged my desire to ask a question, and I naively asked if we were ever going to look at “art” photographs. He, and a few others in the class, scoffed at the question. “What doesn’t make this ‘art’, in your opinion?” I sat there silent, at the ripe age of 18, ready like a sponge to absorb all he was about to unleash onto me. This was a rare state for me to be in, as I of course felt rather knowledgeable in the vast terrain of the “arts”. It’s hard to remember what he said to me that day during that slide show, as if it were a car accident I’d been in. The details are just gone. But, I was jolted into understanding what now matters most. I took that mindset from Gary that day, and I’ve never looked back.

What gear do you mainly use?

I typically try to refrain from “gear talk”, because I find that it has a way of steering the conversation away from photographic intention. Ironically though, I don’t usually find it easy to talk about my intentions as a photographer either. But, to answer the question, I’ve shot with many different types of cameras throughout my career. I suppose it goes right along with my desire to also photograph many different subjects. Currently, I am digital…. and though I at one point a few years ago stated quite blatantly that I would NEVER go digital, it appears that I have and I somehow enjoy it greatly. It’s all about that instant gratification. I use a Nikon D200, which now seems to be obsolete in it’s abilities when compared to the new crop of DSLRs. However, like all tough situations, I make the most of it. Because of digital, I have a new found love for using strobes and artificial lighting, something that I was rather scared to use when using film, because I never knew how the images would turn out. In a bad way, of course, not the “oooh, I can’t wait to see how these turn out” way. I also love Photoshop. I know plenty of “purists” that claim that Photoshop is just a fad and that it will be over before we know it. I tend to disagree with that sentiment. I feel that Photoshop is the future of photography, so all you purists better find your place now before it’s too late. I could talk about that for hours, so I’ll stop there.

What is your favorite genre to shoot?

This is hard to answer for me. The examples below are all genres I’ve worked with, but they aren’t exclusive genres on their own. All three can and have been combined many times over. So, in that particular case, which of the three would take most importance? This is, in a sense, one of the attributes of photography that I treasure most. If I have a camera in my hand, I have a full 360° offered. I can find a piece of that giant puzzle to highlight into two dimensions. If I take a picture of a tree, most would say it’s a landscape. But it might have editorial value, so you can tack on editorial as well. As with any photographer, I am naturally attracted to certain things more than others, but not always. I take pictures of just about anything that interests me. For the past several years however, I have been working with a lot of portraiture. Primarily street portraits (a style of photography that combines fashion and documentary, typically in urban settings), but I’m also getting really into fashion. I wouldn’t mind doing that professionally one day, but that’s of course a pipe dream. I like people, so I photograph people. A to B.

Many times photographers find themselves with a full schedule of paying gigs, and end up with little time for doing the work they truly love. Do you struggle with finding time for your personal work?

I recently just took a job as a traveling executive photographer. I will be traveling extensively, so I can’t say how I will answer this question in one year. But up to this point, I have never ever had this problem. Even in times where I have been extremely busy, I make time for my personal work if I get the notion to… because I have to. That’s the way it works, right? If you have to breathe, then you do it. However, the one problem I’ve had several times is a dry spell, a lack of desire to photograph. From time to time, just about every creative individual has this. I get frustrated by it, but it just comes with the territory. Water is wet, football players will sustain injuries and I will occasionally feel uninspired. But something always happens, something sparks it. I never worry too much about it. Even if one day I decide to give up photography, which I imagine is a vague possibility, I’m sure I’d move onto the next medium of preference. Film making, for instance, is something I’ve wanted to explore further (I minored in it). Hell, maybe I’ll take up some medium that hasn’t even been invented yet. It’s the creative process, it’s the inner need to get something out. It can’t be ignored easily.

Where do you find your inspiration?

Thank you for asking this. My answer is not original or unique in any way, but television and movies inspire me most. But it’s not just the way they’re filmed or the acting, it’s the writing. It’s always about the stories for me. I’m attracted to the drama that plays out and my reaction to it. Interestingly enough, I find action and horror movies fascinating because they’re the films that tend to throw themselves out there cinematically, because they have to make up for poor writing. They use really cool angles and lighting that put you right there, making me buy into whatever storyline they’ve come up with. Don’t get me wrong though, I love all genres of film and television. One of my favorite shows is Law and Order, for example, because of it’s consistency and ability to “wrap it up” so perfectly at the end of each episode. I try to put that into my work, in fact. A change in location, a change in subject of interest, but a consistency in mood and view point. But I also draw inspiration from magazines, billboards, books, real life situations, jokes, traveling, music (of course), etc. I even right now just looked at my calendar and noticed that I sorta like this month’s picture. It’s of two bulldog puppies in flower pots. I’m a modern guy, I like all kinds of stuff.

Do you have any upcoming shows or events you want our readers to know about?

I recently was part of a fantastic group exhibition at Kettle Art Gallery. Also, I might be showing some work at a new coffee shop in the Bishop Arts District in Dallas, but I’m still working on that. I’m really just preparing myself mentally and physically for this long trip to Los Angeles that I’m about to make. I used to live out in San Francisco, so I’ve spent a good amount of time in LA as well. I have many friends there, so I’ll have a great time. I’m not really too big into showing my work, though. If someone is interested in showing off my work, I’m all about it. But I keep myself quiet and my work close to my chest when it comes to public viewing, because I usually hate “art speak”.

What is one thing you feel makes your style or your work unique?

As bad as this may sound, I generally don’t think my work stands out greatly from others. This may, however be because when I look at other photographer’s work, I view it as if I took it. I like to look through their eyes. And, during that process, I find similarities between the photographer and myself. Of course, I see the differences too. But when you’re dealing with photography, you are dealing with time, and choices, and myriad variables that have tremendous guiding power. Take one photographer to a subject and ask him to photograph it, and then bring in a second one to do the same… the probability of having two identical images is next to impossible because of all the countless variables. But I digress. The question asks about the “ONE thing that makes my style or work unique”. The answer is simple: my life experiences. I feel quite passionately about life experience and it’s discernible ability to guide those who learn from it. In addition, I find myself more interested in those who have had a great number of noteworthy experiences in their life, as it seems to stretch their mind and makes them able to understand and adapt to more experiences. In short, they aren’t close minded. With that said, my experiences have made me ME, and it’s the only thing that CAN make my work different. When it comes to the evolution of my photographic mind and the work it produces, the experience of viewing others’ work is, in and of itself, just as important as any tragedy that may happen to me. What I see, feel, hear and think will mold me and because of this, my work is the way it is and will always be different than any other photographer existing in the long history of photography. I find such comfort in that.

Samples of Jordan Fraker’s work

More of Jordan’s work can be found at:
www.jordanfraker.com
www.flickr.com/jordanfraker

If you are a photographer in the DFW area, and would like to be featured for our Friday Art Star, please email some examples of your work to info@photopolus.com