Lets start with the basics, what’s your name, age and where do you live?
My name is Owen Woytowich. I’m twenty-five and I currently am kicking it in Toronto, Ontario.
Do you have a blog, website?
I have my one blogspot one, which is http://shutterdopes.blogspot.com . I also was enlisted to contribute one to the http://bneeth.com community, so I post on that too from time to time.
How long have you been shooting skating, and how did you get started?
I have been shooting skateboard photos for about ten years now. I actually started out with a camcorder though bro-filming my brothers and friends. Then one day there was this snowboard/skateboard contest thingy in Saskatoon where I somehow scammed a media pass that got me all access. I borrowed a high school Pentax K-1000 and nabbed a few shots that had me stoked. My high school graphic arts teacher Cam Sikorsy was super supportive and let me display all these horrible photos in an exhibit and just encouraged me to keep at it. Gave me all the darkroom time in the world to make prints, and do other things… and I just kept at ‘er. My parents gave me a manual Pentax camera for grad and I just kept snapping away. No training, just trial and error with film…which I swear is the best way to learn. I used to tag along and study a local photographer too, Darrin Langhorst for any crumbs of information he might have dropped while he shot skating, but was always to afraid to ask. Ha-ha. Working at a camera shop helped a lot too. Aside from that, just submitting and hopefully getting lucky enough to have my work printed.
What gear are you currently rocking?
Like I said, I’m still a die-hard film nerd so I still shoot a ton. My main body is a Hasselblad 500CM camera. I know there are fancier ones, but that one is a work horse and for the amount of times flying skateboards have nicked it, it still looks brand new. Then I have a few lenses, including the ever so pretty 30mm fisheye that is the size (and weight) of a coffee table.
When I’m shooting digital stills, you’d be stoked to know how ghetto my set-up is: My main camera is the toy camera from Nikon, a D70. But you know what? It’s so sick! The files look ill, and you can sync your flash up to 1/1000th of a second so I don’t care. Plus you don’t see it in the photo so whatever. Shut-up haters. Ha-ha. Kidding.
When I HAVE to shoot a sequence, which I despise doing PS, I pull out my camcorder/D2H. Actually, I have two because on my OG one, the auto-focus quit working and I’m too lazy to drive the ten minutes to Nikon near my office in Toronto and get them to fix it, so Andrew Norton (andrewnortonphoto.com) gave me his old one since he upgraded to a camera I really should own too.
The lenses I have for the digital system ranges from the 10.5 fisheye, the 50mm, the 17-some focal length I can’t remember right now, and an 80-200. I think that’s it?
For the lighting, I have little baby flashes, but a lot of them. The Nikon SB-800’s are super sick for traveling space/weight wise, perfect for sequences (I still hate sequences though) and easily consealible in photos. I also have this super ghetto handle mount flash that works so incredibly good. It’s called an Image or something…I’m sure they’ve been discontinued or bankrupt for forty years or something stupid like that, but I swear, that thing has been smashed on the ground so many times and it just keeps on a tickin’. I also use those Quantum Q-Flash’s too. They’re a bit more juicy, more impressive if ladies are walking by, and the external battery is radtastic for it not dying every thirty minutes. Those little buddies all get trigged with the Pocket Wizard’s program because they’re also light and super dependable. I’m hyped because the whole light package fits into the smallest shoulder bag so I can skate everywhere with it.
Then I have your standard light stands and tripods in my other shoulder bag. It’s sick though because in a city like Toronto, although I have my car, I don’t have to drive everywhere if I don’t want too. All I need to do is bring my skate and cruise from spot to spot.
Aside from that, I have the generator and lights for the short winter days we now have and of course the all night skate missions, the bondo, the sawzalls and hacksaws, the drills, the metal signs, the brooms, the spray paint, the fireworks, the cords, the bolt cutters, the skate tools, the sticker box for the bros, the hats and tees that aren’t black, the chargers… serious, I need to re-invest in a mini-van. ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hqX-z_QA1c )
I think that’s it… I dunno, I’m sure Andrew Norton will come to the SBC office tomorrow with something I don’t have and then I’ll be forced to sell my car and pick one up too. Ha-ha. One thing I do need to buy is a VX for filming when I can’t get a hold of a filmer and some more glass for the Hassy. So if someone has like a 180mm they don’t want anymore…
Who are some of your favorite photographers?
I’m keeping it Canadian and in absolutely no particular order:
Andrew Norton, Scott Pommier, Chad Coombs’ Polaroid/Canvas stuff, Glen & Becky Grambo’s unreal nature photography, Erin Hogue, David Christian, Brian Peech, Ian Snow, Geoff Warrington, Dano Pendygrasse, John Scarth, Gonzo, Erik Seo (one American), Jody Morris, Shane Hutton, Geoff Clifford, Terry Worona, Brian Caissie, Dylan Doubt, Jordan Manley, Ryan Allan, Brian Garson, Harry Gils.
What was it like shooting in Saskatoon, did you run out of spots quickly and had no option but to get creative?
Spots? No. It’s an untapped resource for skateboarding. Seriously, if people only knew the gems that city had it’d be Canada’s Barcelona. OK, not that rad, not even close, but it’s really really good. Locals will tell you it sucks, but that’s like in every city where everyone is sick of their spots. For me, the problem was really the talent pool. Everyone is super good, but there’s only so many bros. Factor in the older generation, well…growing older and fazing out of it and it creates a harder environment to get things done. It’ll always be my home base where I learned how to shoot but it’s more of a destination spot now unfortunately for me. And as far as the creativity, that takes a whole different meaning in Saskatoon. In the summer, you always want to be creative and shoot things outside of the box, but when seven months of the year is technically unskateable because of the insane winters, then you need to start thinking. I’m hyped though because when you go somewhere else, you’re not necessarily spoiled because you can make anything work or see things that other people may not have. My good friend Kevin Lowry taught me that.
Like most photographers you have your go-to skater, or your bro who you basically shot 100's of photos of while you were learning, who was that for you? How rad is he?
I had a few random bros that helped me out along the way. Pretty random mix-bag actually now that I think about it. Ha-ha. Mike “Pickle” Remando , a bro named Mike Peloko (where are you now homey??), Billy Gallagher, Chris Kendall, Brent Watier, Trevor Pilon, Scott Demeria, Jason Gordon… too many heads to count. Im forever grateful though. The stuff they were doing was ground breaking at the time and they trusted me enough to capture it. So thanks for being my guinea pigs! Sorry about the endless rolls of trash film. I should mention though that I more or less was over shooting about a year ago, not over shooting, but just the whole scene, until Kevin Lowry came back to Saskatoon. That’s the kid I have hundreds of photos of now that I’m sitting on. He got me out on missions all day everyday and rekindled my stoke to shoot. I was getting uber bummed out on spending three life savings on gear and not really seeing the full benefits and rewards, not having anyone to shoot with, not getting tons published at the time, and just not being motivated to find anything new anymore. Then he slapped me in the face and got me going. It’s been non-stop since and everything has worked out sick since.
What was the first photo you had published?
My first photo ever was ran about eight or nine years ago in a magazine called Concrete Powder. (just called Concrete Skateboarding now) It was a photo of Scott Demeria doing a kickflip to fakie on an indoor quarter pipe in Saskatoon, SK. I’m pretty sure that it was the worst photo in the magazine. I shot it with that old Pentax and an on camera flash. No idea about metering a flash, about flash sync, about shadows…nothing. I’m confident it was a mercy publish because of my submission…thirty negatives elastic banned together and a hand written note on the back of a skateboard ticket. Pretty pretty professional….
How do you feel about security/police showing up, everyone bouncing and you being stuck there trying to tear down your lighting as fast as possible?
Oh buddy, it’s the best time of my life. Nothing like being in a place you shouldn’t be at to begin with and having to pack up all your life and have an explanation why there’s a studio set up in front of some stairset.. I dunno, you can get really bitter at them, but it goes both ways. Some people are so ignorant and rude, whereas some are legitimately just doing their job. I know for sure though that professionalism goes a long way. There’s a lot of things that I’d love to say to some of them, but then what? Like I just ruined the spot for next time when I know I’ll be coming back and now I’m blacklisted….what’d the point? Nobody wins. I dunno, I’ve been through the faze where I’d speak my mind and not think about it, but now I’m older and know being nice goes a long way. If you can reason with them, some will give you a few more minutes, some won’t, but at least they’re not so insane and in your face about it. I strive to live by “show respect and be respected”. It sucks though when they have their mind made up before they even talk to you that you’re a menace to them. I hate those guys. The one’s on a mission to save the world from the evil skateboarders… c’mon man…it’s skateboarding! It’s just a skateboard. It’s the best too when they try to insult me too, like “Why don’t you guys get a job?” and I’m like ”OK buddy, I am working…why don’t you get a job? Clearly you’re not good enough to be a real officer so you’re basically like a No Fear shirt slogan where you’re second place making you the first loser.” I should mention too, when it’s the real police involved, it’s strictly “yes sir, no sir, ok sir.” I don’t give them any lip. Made that mistake before….
How did you make the transition from shooting in the ‘toon, to moving east to Toronto and landing a job at SBC?
It was really random. I had been submitting photos and articles to them for years and then Kevin had this idea where he wanted to go to London and skate with the Blueprint skateboards team. I said I’d be down and pitched an article idea out there. To my delight, they took me up on it, even paid for it, and long story short, I got home from my trip where I took an extra week in the Toronto office, just to get a call asking me to come back and work. Few days later I’m in my car driving to Toronto from Saskatchewan. Random…ha-ha…but stoked!
What's been the best thing about working at SBC (besides helping me get some photos published haha)?
Oh man, where do even begin? I’ve been a skate rat forever, and always strived to get anything in the mag, and now I’m in the center of it, and helping make it happen for others. I think that’s the best. For years I’ve wanted to be in it, and when I got even just a quarter pager printed, I would smile so much. Now I can do that for other cats, ya know? If I can stoke even one kid out, either a skater or an up-and-coming photographer, give him some hope that he can get somewhere too, I’m beyond stoked. Like think how hyped a skater is when he see’s all his work is paying off. It’s just the best feeling to be able to help other kids have that feeling. I’m really hyped. And with the job itself, the amount of travel to places world wide on their dime, documenting what I love to do, meeting all the pros, and the future pros, working with new friends, seeing some of the craziest skating done in the nation, writing about it for all my friends across the nation… just everything is rad. My boss’ are amazing, the mag looks super good, our online site is next to none, and we have the best skate warehouse in the basement complete with the sickest mini you’ve ever seen. What else? I’m priveleged to work beside one of the most talented photographers Canada has ever seen, Andrew Norton… actually, screw it, people can pick their favorite skaters, I’m picking my favorite skate photog. Nort’s the man. We’re two completely different people personality wise…and that’s probably why we work so well together, it’s the best. What else is dope…oh, we constantly have dogs and puppies in the office, that’s super rad. If you’re ever in T-dot, come by the office and kick-it. So ya, SBC? Basically, I’m wicked stoked.
What's been the worst thing about working at SBC?
It’s not in Saskatoon. I’d do anything to have my office at home where I still have my loft. Here in Toronto, the cost of living is so high, and as dope as everyone is here, it’s not the same. That’s not hating by any means, it just is what it is, ya know? But that’s not really a bad thing about SBC. What sucks about SBC? Hmmm….the carpet in my office has a stain? I dunno, it’s pretty darn good.
Is the traveling fun?
Oh buddy, it’s amazing. I’ll never be bummed on any trip where I can more or less put my finger on a map and go experience something new on someone else’s dime. Sometimes you think “All I want to do is sleep in my own bed”, but as soon as you get home from the airport, you want to do it again. And it helps so much when you have a rad crew with you too. I just got back from a mini trip to Halifax with the Element team and I swear it was the highlight of the summer. It’s all about surrounding yourself with good people. That makes travel so much better.
You're not a leafs fan are you?
Just the ones that change colors in the fall and look pretty in photos. I was a die hard Maple Leafs fan forever, but I despise Toronto drivers so much that I’ve decided I hate the Leafs too by association. When I go home, I’ll be a fan again though.
Does Avril live in Ajax with Derrick? Have you missioned out there yet?
The restraining order says I can’t look, but between you and me, I drove to Ottawa this weekend and stopped in Napanee for like half hour trying to get a photo with a sign that says “Home of Avril Lavigne”, and didn’t find one. What kind of community brings up the best person ever, and doesn’t have any shoutouts? C’mon! I mean Hanna, AB, has a freaken Nickleback sign, why can’t Napanee be rad and do something too? Makes my blood boil….ha-ha. You can decide if I’m joking or not..
As someone who's staff at a magazine, what advice would you give to photographers looking to send stuff in for publication?
Send all photos of girls to me. I mean… be professional. There’s a fine line between being a pest and being persistent, but don’t get discouraged. Be open to critisism if you get any on how to improve. Also, don’t just send a random sequence of a bro that you shot, or one or two random photos. Yes, sometimes they squeek in, but look at the magazine: There is only a few photos in the gallery ya know? Now if you had an article, or an article idea to go along with it, now we’re talking! And because I’m also in an editorial roll at the mag, I’ll throw this out there. If you have a timeless single page article idea, it goes a long way. Trust me. I mean every mag is different, but you’d be surprised at the response you may get if you have your ducks in a row. One more thing: It’s just skateboarding, the funnest thing in the world,,,so have fun with it. Enthusiasm is contagious right? Get stoked and stay stoked. Same with whatever you shoot if it’s not skating, whether it be ski, surf, snow, bike, heroin, not rollerblading… whatever, keep it fun. Too many “bitter Betties” not in it for the right reason. Quit whining and go shoot. Nothing happens over night…Oh, and make sure if you’re shooting something, that you do it yourself.
You got me hooked on You Will Soon when they first started that blog, now they're hitting 2000+ visitors a day, what’s next for them?
Someone should give their blog a signature shoe, and let them design it.
Oh man, I’d say the next thing would be to make money off of it. They get all those hits, and don’t get any money. Someone needs to teach them boys about good business practices. Think Jay-Z: “I’m not a business man, I’m a business…man.”
What’s next for you?
A lot more traveling, but a lot more time for myself too. A good friend of mine at SBC reminded me of the importance of sometimes just saying ”no” to going out and shooting and just taking time for yourself, outside of skateboarding. So I’ll be sure to do that. It really rejuvenates me and really helps me appreciate how fortunate I am to have what I do. Aside from that, I want to spend more time skating…a lot more time, seriously. My flat-ground is embarrassing. I really want to relearn tricks, learn new ones, skate transition, film a part for Dan Watson’s video myself, to stop annoying Andrew Norton all day everyday in the office with my horrible taste in music, and to go home.
Any shout outs?
This is where I’ll get into trouble for forgetting people’s names. Pretty much I’ve blown it before I even started. Frankly, there’s way too many, but in no particular order:
My family, Cam Sikorsky for putting that first camera in my hand, Harry Gils for printing my first shot in SBC, along with Brian Peech, David Christian, Andrew Norton, Stefan Goulet, Steve Jarrett, and everyone else at the mag. Dano Pendygrasse for being an inspiration. Kelly Litzenberger and Brian Caissie at Concrete. Dylan Doubt and Sandro at Color. My dawgs at the Windsor house, especially Chris Quick for filming. Devin Guiney too. Chad Albert, Dave Nolan, Elliot Boyko, Mike Maurer, Billy Gallagher, Max Fine for the use of the gear, Brittany King, all my internet friends that I’ve never met like Brian Garson. Skateboarding and skateboarders, Avril Lavigne, Mary, Jane, (kidding) my Manager Brad, Kevin Lowry, INF, youwillsoon.blogspot.com, Timmy Hoes Double Doubles, Jon Scarth for being so dope, Dons Photo, Tiki Room, Ninetimes, Undergrind, Adam Balon at Propaganda, Sir Rob Dawg, all my friends all over the place, and lastly, anyone that has taken a gamble and let me shoot their photo. Thank you for supporting me.
| < Prev |
|---|
