Featured Photographer: A N G E L A K A J A F E R R O

 A N G E L A   K A J A   F E R R O

 

"I’m half German, half Italian, and I grew up surrounded by sprawling greenery in Australia. 

Initially I was shooting a lot of fashion and commercial work 

and spent some time in New York exploring that, but it wasn’t fulfilling for me. 

After a lot of soul searching I ended up in New Zealand living in a van and exploring the wilderness, teaching myself how to take decent landscape shots. 

That was a real turning point in my life and how I viewed things. 

I’m now living in the mountains in Switzerland but will be back on the road in April."

"I started taking photos about ten years ago now. I always had a lot of creative energy.

Photography just so happened to get enough of a hold on me at an age where I started thinking about career choices and what I wanted to really pour my life’s energy into. 

 At the moment I have a Nikon Df, but I also use an iPhone.

The best camera is the one you have with you, as the saying goes. 

I would love to shoot with film and have experimented with it just enough to know one day

 when it logistically makes sense, I’ll give it another go."

 

"By nature I’m a roamer and as I followed my instincts down the rabbit hole, 

my photography and way of seeing evolved with my desire to experience the world as richly as possible. 

Exploration and creation are synonymous for me.

When I started hiking a lot I really began to marvel at how explorers and landscape photographers 

hauled around so much sensitive equipment in the pre-digital age. 

I can’t look at Ansel Adams’ work now without thinking about the huge weight 

he would have lugged up the side of a mountain with him. 

The stakes were definitely higher back then."

 

"I take photos to celebrate, savor and marvel at the beauty this world has to offer. 

It's a really easy thing to lose perspective on when you're stuck in the city 

and surrounded by rush hour traffic and billboards trying to sell you things you don't need.

There are also some deeper truths that can be learned about yourself when 

you're removed from society and relinquish control to the elements. 

My photographs document my own journey through that process.

What is most important is where my work takes me, in all senses.

 A long, hard climb that requires all my strength, skill and concentration

 to witness the conditions aligning just-so, knowing that I’m experiencing 

a once-in-a-lifetime moment, and I have the privilege to be there

 and capture it and then share it with others. 

It all comes together then, the universe feels like it’s humming around me 

and I can be absolutely present. "

 

"I'm inspired by people who stay adventurous and creative
 and don’t let fear stagnate them, no matter what life throws at them. 
That can be a really hard thing to do sometimes.

 I’m also really hoping to foster more collaboration with NGOs

 and other groups that are trying to implement change for the good, especially in the fields of education and creating sustainability in developing countries. "

 

"No one’s really got it all figured out, 

life’s just one big experiment and we’re all just trying our best. 

Perspective is everything. "

(Interview by Carli Vögel)