{"id":16146,"date":"2014-02-13T12:09:13","date_gmt":"2014-02-13T20:09:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/?p=16146"},"modified":"2014-02-23T21:30:50","modified_gmt":"2014-02-24T05:30:50","slug":"video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/","title":{"rendered":"Video Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/un20Q4yJ1aI\" height=\"371\" width=\"660\" allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>When I was in Stockholm end of last year, I interviewed <strong><a href=\" http:\/\/www.olabillmont.com\" target=\"_blank\">Ola Billmont<\/a><\/strong>&#8212; a very likable and talented street photographer. He is one of the co-founders of CUP (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CupStockholm\" target=\"_blank\">Contemporary Urban Photography<\/a>) in Stockholm, and also shared some of his work at my workshop there. He frequents LA quite often for shooting&#8211; and he specializes in shooting with a flash in multiple formats (35mm, medium-format, large-format) in both black and white and color. I put together this video interview at a bar, apologies if it is a bit loud in here!<\/p>\n<p>Read more to see the full transcript and his images from the interview.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><b>So I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m here with Ola Billmont in Stockholm. So Ola, why don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t you introduce yourself to the camera?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"3\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/3.jpg?resize=660%2C478\" width=\"660\" height=\"478\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Hi I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m Ola Billmont and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m shooting film.<\/p>\n<p><b>Can you tell us about yourself\u00e2\u20ac\u201dhow you got interested in street photography? You said you celebrated your 2-year anniversary of shooting.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>It was due to a certain camera I started carrying around\u00e2\u20ac\u201dmy whole life I had bulky cameras, and then I started carrying a small Olympus ep-3, and for the first time I felt I could carry it with me. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s how I got started pretty much.<\/p>\n<p><b>Is street photography something you discovered or fell into?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Actually I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know, it feels so natural. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve always been a guy who wanted to sit outside having a beer and looking at people, so capturing that with my camera is what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m interested in. its people I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m interested in\u00e2\u20ac\u201dshooting people.<\/p>\n<p><b>What about people?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16151\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/18-2\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/18.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,478\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"18\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/18.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16151\" alt=\"18\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/18.jpg?resize=660%2C478\" width=\"660\" height=\"478\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/18.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/18.jpg?resize=300%2C217&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Weird people? No not weird people\u00e2\u20ac\u201dmaybe funny, awkward situations. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s lots of characters out there, and if you can memorize that on film its great.<\/p>\n<p>You mention how you never had an art background, and I think in a short time you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been able to build a pretty strong body of work. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m especially a big fan of your color medium-format flash work. Can you tell us about how the passion or drive you had to get to where you are?<\/p>\n<p>I think its trial and error\u00e2\u20ac\u201dI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m experimenting a lot. I shoot with flash around 80-90% of my photos. Sometimes I think I want to take photos without flash, and I try\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand its really hard. When the flash comes back on, I feel back on track.<\/p>\n<p><b>So why flash?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16150\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/11-5\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/11.5.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,478\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;13&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;GR&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1374013059&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;18.3&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;200&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.00625&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"11.5\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/11.5.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16150\" alt=\"11.5\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/11.5.jpg?resize=660%2C478\" width=\"660\" height=\"478\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/11.5.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/11.5.jpg?resize=300%2C217&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Well show them, its dark (outside in Stockholm). To some sense that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s true, 6-7 months in the year its dark after you get off work. And I have a normal job, so once I get off work its dark. So I cant shoot in the daytime unless its weekends. And if your shooting film, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s limitations in terms of ISO. So part of it is out of necessity.<\/p>\n<p>Part of it is a technical reason.<\/p>\n<p>And I think so\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwhen I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m shooting in LA, during the day\u00e2\u20ac\u201dfull sunlight. I love the flash as a fill flash, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s amazing.<\/p>\n<p><b>You have experimented a lot, digital\u00e2\u20ac\u201dfilm, 35mm, medium format, and large format. How do these formats affect you?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16149\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/2-8\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/2.jpg?fit=660%2C500&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,500\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"2\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/2.jpg?fit=660%2C500&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16149\" alt=\"2\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/2.jpg?resize=660%2C500\" width=\"660\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/2.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/2.jpg?resize=300%2C227&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>It doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really\u00e2\u20ac\u201dit\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a mood thing. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m a big guy, big hands, so the size of the camera doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really matter. I love to experiment, and I use Portra 160 or Ilford FP4. So I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve changed cameras, but now I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m pretty much fixed with 28mm with all cameras. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my focal length.<\/p>\n<p><b>So can you tell us a little about what you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re shooting with right now?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>This is the standard go out camera, a Nikon with a 28mm 2.8 lens. And I have a small Contax flash, which is neat\u00e2\u20ac\u201dbecause you can choose to have a spot flash. And its full power all the time, so you have to adjust the power of the flash with your aperture.<\/p>\n<p><b>So what are the settings you use on your flash?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>I shoot close, so I need a high aperture. So usually I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m at f\/11, f\/16, with 1\/125<sup>th<\/sup> of a shutter speed, with ISO 125 film. And the flash is at full power. There is a lot of cheap china stuff, which aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t as reliable.<\/p>\n<p><b>Why Nikon, as you used to shoot with a rangefinder?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16152\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/13-5\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/13.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,478\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"13\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/13.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16152\" alt=\"13\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/13.jpg?resize=660%2C478\" width=\"660\" height=\"478\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/13.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/13.jpg?resize=300%2C217&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Well, lets have a look here&#8211; .2 meters! Close, very close. Now I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m doing portraits of strangers at maximum .3 meters! Getting in their face with a flash. So Leica and Voightlander lenses are .7 meters, which is a limitation. So that is how I got started with the Nikon and this lens.<\/p>\n<p><b>Tell us about your lens.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The 28mm is fantastic, its super sharp. I have a Ricoh point and shoot 28mm as well. It was in service in Ricoh Germany, they fixed the screen for 110 euros. So if you have a broken LCD screen thing, you can fix it there.<\/p>\n<p>So you like to shoot color and black and white, and you have two Flickr streams (one for black and white and other for color).<\/p>\n<p>Someone told me that: don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mix black and white and color, and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s how I went there. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not even posting all kinds of photos on Flickr because I wanted to feel as solid as possible. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like the Flickr stream, because it bundles up images too much.<\/p>\n<p>It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s kinda good to edit your stream, because you have an easy overview of how you shoot. So if you have any outstanding images, so to speak, take them out.<\/p>\n<p><b>When you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re shooting in color vs. black and white, do you look for different things? Does your shooting style change?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16153\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/16-2-2\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/16-2.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,478\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"16 (2)\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/16-2.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16153\" alt=\"16 (2)\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/16-2.jpg?resize=660%2C478\" width=\"660\" height=\"478\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/16-2.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/16-2.jpg?resize=300%2C217&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>If you have found a style of shooting\u00e2\u20ac\u201deventually you assemble images. I found I have a lot of photos with weird hair pointing up. So that has become a series, sort of\u00e2\u20ac\u201dbecause I have a few of those.<\/p>\n<p>Either you can invent stuff, but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hard I think. Its better if it comes organically from your own shooting. If you can find a thread in your body of work.<\/p>\n<p><b>At this point, can you tell us about your inspirations as well as maybe how you describe your style now? Or the thread you see in your work?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16157\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/17-4\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/17.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,478\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"17\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/17.jpg?fit=660%2C478&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16157\" alt=\"17\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/17.jpg?resize=660%2C478\" width=\"660\" height=\"478\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/17.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/17.jpg?resize=300%2C217&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I want there to be a face, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not always true. I shoot backs and the back of heads. But I like to shoot portraits, so to speak.<\/p>\n<p>I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s really hard. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s very hard- I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really answer that right now.<\/p>\n<p>Well, color vs. black and white\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwhen its dark I shoot black and white, but in LA I shoot color film. So it depends, I mix it up. 35mm, 120, color, black and white\u00e2\u20ac\u201dI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m starting a project in LA now, shooting Christmas in California. I find a few photos I liked which were quirky. So I want to hunt down weird people and places. The thing about palm trees and Christmas. They tend to overdo Christmas in LA.<\/p>\n<p><b>Can you also tell us about your inspirations? Any street photographers whose work you admire?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16155\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/7-8\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/7.jpg?fit=478%2C660&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"478,660\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;16&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;GR&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1374009457&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;18.3&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;200&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0.00625&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"7\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/7.jpg?fit=478%2C660&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16155\" alt=\"7\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/7.jpg?resize=478%2C660\" width=\"478\" height=\"660\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/7.jpg?w=478&amp;ssl=1 478w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/7.jpg?resize=217%2C300&amp;ssl=1 217w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 478px) 100vw, 478px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=mark+cohen+photography&amp;espv=210&amp;es_sm=91&amp;source=lnms&amp;tbm=isch&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=YXv6UqfZG4iA2gXswYFo&amp;ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&amp;biw=1366&amp;bih=670\">Mark Cohen<\/a> I would say is it for me. When I got the book: &#8220;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/gp\/product\/1576872300\/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=9325&amp;creativeASIN=1576872300&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=erikimstrpho-20\" target=\"_blank\">Grim Street<\/a>&#8221; it was pretty amazing. I love everything bout it. The cut off heads, the details, the soft dirtiness sometimes\u00e2\u20ac\u201dnot that I aim for that. And I saw a quite a few photos, which I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve already kinda shot in a certain sense. I like his stuff a lot.<\/p>\n<p>But then I like those like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/search?q=Gregory+Crewdson&amp;espv=210&amp;es_sm=91&amp;source=lnms&amp;tbm=isch&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=zXv6Uv_lGabN2QWr24GwCg&amp;ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&amp;biw=1366&amp;bih=670\" target=\"_blank\">Gregory Crewdson<\/a>, which is totally different\u00e2\u20ac\u201darranged photos. But dramatic, melancholy style. Totally different genre. Nevertheless it inspires me. But there are so many.<\/p>\n<p>Among our friends, there are so many talented photographers. Its silly naming all of them.<\/p>\n<p><b>Can you tell us about the local photography scene here in Sweden? I know you, Brian Sparks, and Mattias Mattias Lepp\u00c3\u00a4niemi\u00c2\u00a0started <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CupStockholm\" target=\"_blank\">CUP (Contemporary Urban Photography)<\/a>. Can you tell us how that started, and the somewhat recent in-public show and workshop you held?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"The Thrill and Anticipation of Street Photography: Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm\" alt=\"1x1.trans The Thrill and Anticipation of Street Photography: Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Please-660x471.jpg?resize=660%2C471\" width=\"660\" height=\"471\" data-lazy-loaded=\"true\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a constant struggle when it comes to street photography\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwhen it comes to definitions and such. There is a street photography group in Sweden where there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a contest now and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m trying to interact in that group, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s totally impossible. People put up partially colored photos and don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get it. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hard. So we decided we decided to name our event and organization \u00e2\u20ac\u0153<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CupStockholm\" target=\"_blank\">CUP<\/a>\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201durban, instead of street photography\u00e2\u20ac\u201dbecause we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want that discussion. If we have a photographer who is borderline street or urban photography, we didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want it to be an issue. So that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the name of it.<\/p>\n<p>And there was a need for it. <a href=\"http:\/\/fotografiska.eu\/en\/\" target=\"_blank\">Fotografiska<\/a> is an amazing museum, but they are the big guys. There is tons of talent out there, so that is why we did it.<\/p>\n<p><b>Can you tell us with CUP\u00e2\u20ac\u201dthe in-public exhibition and your guys showing your work, and the workshop? How did it go?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>It was pretty amazing\u00e2\u20ac\u201dI hunted down a guy at the biggest daily newspaper and they interviewed the in-public guys at the workshop, about what street photography is about. Because the whole thing is part of the CUP existing\u00e2\u20ac\u201dis to educate people about street photography. Even some photographers don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how it is defined. But nobody knows [laughs]. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a strategy to step by step\u00e2\u20ac\u201dshow people how fun and exciting street photography can be.<\/p>\n<p><b>So this is a tough question to ask\u00e2\u20ac\u201dhow would you define street photography, personally?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"The Thrill and Anticipation of Street Photography: Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm\" alt=\"1x1.trans The Thrill and Anticipation of Street Photography: Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/8952216953_003950a1d9_c-660x410.jpg?resize=660%2C410\" width=\"660\" height=\"410\" data-lazy-loaded=\"true\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I mean, lets put it this way: some people have a studio to shoot in\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand most people don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. So if I can see a photo and in a certain location, and which I think ill be amazing\u00e2\u20ac\u201dif I can make that happen with super small links by asking\u00e2\u20ac\u201dI will do that. I wont miss that opportunity to take that photo. So that isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t street photography.<\/p>\n<p>But what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m saying, you can find those chances or possibilities when you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re out there. But street photography is just capturing that specific thing happening right now in front of you, mostly.<\/p>\n<p>The hardest part is that it has to be candid. When I shoot with flash, I sometimes I ask for peoples attention to look into the camera, not posing. But before I used to snap. I used to say, hey, to have them look into the camera before shooting.<\/p>\n<p>It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so different. Its like I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how many styles you could define within it. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know, is that good enough?<\/p>\n<p><b>Haha yeah. Some local photographers here in Sweden are putting together a book\u00e2\u20ac\u201dcan you tell us about it?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>My colleague calls it \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Paper\u00e2\u20ac\u009d \u00e2\u20ac\u201c which will be a soft book. It will be black and white, 6 photographers doing it. It will be named \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Out of necessity\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwe are releasing it hopefully in February. There are some really good photographers here. So there will be 300 copies.<\/p>\n<p><b>Why is it called \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcout of necessity?\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Out of necessity to shoot. We all have the need or the necessity to shoot. We need it as part of our lives.<\/p>\n<p><b>So why do you need to shoot?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"The Thrill and Anticipation of Street Photography: Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm\" alt=\"1x1.trans The Thrill and Anticipation of Street Photography: Interview with Ola Billmont in Stockholm\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Pluto-660x565.jpg?resize=660%2C565\" width=\"660\" height=\"565\" data-lazy-loaded=\"true\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I consider myself a curious person, and with all the experimenting I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve been doing all my life\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand taking photos of the things I see. I mean sure you can film, but no\u00e2\u20ac\u201dit\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s amazing, to take photos\u00e2\u20ac\u201dits so much fun. The thrill of shooting film and not knowing if you got it enhances the whole experience for me.<\/p>\n<p><b>Maybe shooting film versus digital\u00e2\u20ac\u201dit\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a tired talk, but what do you think?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Its not a money thing for me, it costs a bit more. I develop all my film myself, color and black and white. And I do darkroom prints of the black and whites. So I think its just fun. Dodging and burning in the darkroom is so much fun. The next copy might be different. Its mind blowing.<\/p>\n<p>I use Lightroom as well obviously with color stuff\u00e2\u20ac\u201dbut it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a whole different feeling. It feels more like \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcart\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 so to speak. Its fun.<\/p>\n<p><b>To wrap this up, for anyone else starting off in street photography and others who are curious\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwhat tips or advice might you give them?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"16156\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/2014\/02\/13\/video-interview-with-ola-billmont-in-stockholm\/15-5\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/15.jpg?fit=660%2C416&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"660,416\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"15\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/15.jpg?fit=660%2C416&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-16156\" alt=\"15\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/15.jpg?resize=660%2C416\" width=\"660\" height=\"416\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/15.jpg?w=660&amp;ssl=1 660w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/15.jpg?resize=300%2C189&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 660px) 100vw, 660px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Of course I shoot very close with a flash. The most common question is \u00e2\u20ac\u02dchow dare you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122? A lot of people need help to feel secure with a camera amongst people. I think that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the biggest threshold with people starting.<\/p>\n<p>Then you can make a goal to stand in a crowded area with a camera in your face\u00e2\u20ac\u201dnobody will care.<\/p>\n<p>Then you can move into less crowded areas\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand you will see the same.<\/p>\n<p>It will grow on you. Very rarely do people get mad. But its worth it\u00e2\u20ac\u201dget close and take photos of people. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s my tip.<\/p>\n<p><b>Any last words or shout-outs?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>When you shoot, lean on someone you like\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand try to do something. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always good to copy in the beginning, honestly I think before you can find your own style. Do that. Find someone you like, try to do what they do\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand eventually your whole style will evolve from there.<\/p>\n<h2>Follow Ola<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\" http:\/\/www.olabillmont.com\" target=\"_blank\">Website<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/aboutsweden\/\" target=\"_blank\">B\/W Flickr<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/anotherswede\" target=\"_blank\">Color Flickr<\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/anotherswede\" target=\"_blank\"><br \/>\n<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CupStockholm\" target=\"_blank\">CUP Stockholm on Facebook<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When I was in Stockholm end of last year, I interviewed Ola Billmont&#8212; a very likable and talented street photographer. He is one of the co-founders of CUP (Contemporary Urban Photography) in Stockholm, and\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16147,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[372],"tags":[1429,614,1461,1428,716],"class_list":["post-16146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured-photographers","tag-cup","tag-interview","tag-ola-billmont","tag-stockholm","tag-video-2"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/3.jpg?fit=660%2C478&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16146"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16146\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/erickimphotography.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}