Jason Peterson: Black and White Visual Delights by Joanna D
Joanna’s Inro
For a long time I have been following Jason on Instagram and have been really intrigued with his photography. He does black and white photos like no-one else I have seen. They are always so strong and eye catching and often I look at his work and think ‘how did he do that?’.
Its always a visual delight for me when I look at his photos.
So I was excited to have a chance to find out more about him, his life and his phenomenal photography and introduce him to you if you have never seen any of his work.
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J = Joanna JP = Jason Peterson
J: Can you tell me a little about yourself? Who are you, where do you come from?
JP: I was a punk rock kid from Phoenix, Arizona who fell into advertising. I spent most of my professional career (about 18 yrs) in NYC. I was the founding partner of a successful advertising agency where I created work for NBA, Coca-Cola and Reebok to name a few. Then moved on to be the creative director of Jay Z’s youth marketing company called Translation. While there I created the State Farm “Can I get a Hot Tub?” campaign. My family and I recently moved to Chicago when I took the Chief Creative Officer position at a large digital advertising agency called Havas.
J: What do you do?
JP: I am the president and North American CCO of Havas. I work with brands to help them fit into the culture they want to reach.
J: When did you first discover photography/mobile photography?
JP: I studied photography up through college. I was really a film purist and never owed a digital camera.
Mobile photography (iPhone) came along with Instagram. It started out as a game at first. I was amazed by my first image on the lake shore. It was a total Hiroshi Sugimoto shot of the horizon of Lake Michigan. I was blown away by the level of light and the shades of grey. From that I set out trying to recreate the work of some of my favorite classic photographers. I’ve been heavily influenced by Harry Callahan’s shots of urban landscape and the shots Kubrick took of Chicago in the 40′s.
J: Do you have a creative or photography background?
JP: I have always shot photos, always film, many undeveloped or unprinted! Music has also been a huge part of my creative outlet. I grew up playing in hardcore bands. I played CBGB’s when I was 17. I was also promoting and booking shows at young age. I really subscribed to the DIY/PMA culture and was all about creating and designing fliers. That’s when I really started to think about advertising as a career.
J: What camera/cameras do you shoot with and if more than one what’s your go to camera?
JP: iPhone 5S only.
J: Your work on instagram is very striking and I don’t think I have seen anyone else emulate black & white photography quite like you do. What or who influences you and helps inspire you to you create such beautiful art?
JP: Classic and early fashion photography. I love where the urban landscape meets the everyday people. I also listen to a lot of music when I shoot, all the titles come from what I was listening to at the time.
J: The majority of your photography is black and white. What is it that draws you to process your images in monochromes rather than colour?
JP: You know I actually love color photography but I can’t comprehend how to create a color image. Black and white really helps me have everything in it’s place.
J: A lot of your photography is of silhouettes in wide open spaces. How do you compose these shots?
JP: Most of the time my shots involve lots and lots of waiting around. Usually I’m waiting on people to exit frame and one person to walk in.
I will return to the same location again and again. Shooting is very therapeutic for me. It’s white noise to me and allows me to really clear my head.
J: Do you spend a lot of time waiting for the right moment?
JP: I LOVE coffee so most of the time you can find me drinking coffee on a busy corner in Chicago waiting for the shot to happen.
J: What apps do you use to process your photos? What are your go-to apps?
JP: Snapseed & Filterstorm only.
J: Apart from instagram, where else on-line can we find your photography?
JP: I use my tumblr for shots I’m still thinking about. Sometimes I post shots and look at them for a while and take them downif I don’t think they are good enough.
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Juxt thanks you Jason for your time and for sharing your work with us.