366 Days in an Instant: An Interview With Matt Day

With weekly Youtube photography reviews, working as an editor at The FIND Lab, and engraving monuments at a family company, Ohio-based photographer Matt Day is quite the busy bee. But he’s determined to take one photo a day for 366 days with his Lomo’Instant Wide! We had the opportunity to chat to him about his #instax366project and how the Lomo'Instant Wide allows him to “shoot what [he] loves and shoot it everyday.”

Tell us about yourself and your practice.

My name is Matt Day, I’m 25 years old, and I’m a photographer from Chillicothe, Ohio. My family consists of my wife Molly, my daughter Nora, a baby that’s due in November, and our two dogs, Taker and Russi. Aside from being a portrait photographer, I also work for The FIND Lab as an editor and I work for my dad’s monument engraving company, Memorial Lettering Service. I like to work!

What’s your photographic philosophy?

Shoot what you love and shoot it every day.

What is your #instax366project all about?

I’ve never fulfilled one of these projects before, even though I shoot every day. This just gave me a reason to stick to one film stock and one camera for an entire year to see how that would influence my work and how it would change. It’s an exercise for myself and also just a way to study how I shoot and what I shoot within the busy life that I have.

What’s your favourite #instax366project photo so far?

I don’t think I have a favorite yet… I honestly haven’t had time to really sit down and go through them all just yet. But I do share the photos from each month in a monthly video on my YouTube channel!

What’s your first impression of the Lomo'Instant Wide?

It’s design is interesting. The viewfinder on the right was something I wasn’t used to. I love that the focus is on the lens and not a button I have to press. I was also just thankful that I had a wide instant camera that had the option to disable the flash. Simple, but rare in the instant photography world.

What’s your favourite feature of the Lomo'Instant Wide?

Being able to disable the flash. Focusing at 0.6 meters without the need for a filter or attachment. The remote lens cap. Bulb exposures. I can’t pick a favorite!

Advice for first-time users?

Shoot in all different kinds of light and get to know the meter. I’ve found certain situations can be tricky for the meter to read. Experiment with the exposure compensation and see when it needs to be used. Like any camera, shoot with it enough and you’ll know its strengths and weaknesses.

Tell us about your Youtube reviews and videos.

I shoot a lot of film. I always have. I’ve always looked on YouTube for information on film cameras before I buy them, but could rarely find the information I was looking for. I also just enjoy watching other photographers and learning more about them and their craft. I figured if I was looking for this content, other people were too. And if I couldn’t find it, I should just make it myself! It’s almost 2 years old and it’s grown into so much more than I ever really anticipated. It’s been a fun thing for me and I’ve been able to meet a lot of great people because of it.

Do you have new projects lined up?

I’m organizing a project that I plan to start shooting this year that will involve dogs. That’s all I can say at the moment!

Thanks to Matt Day for taking the time to speak to us and share his instant photos! Head over to Matt’s Youtube Channel to see more photos from his #Instax366Project and to get lost in his archive of photography reviews and videos—including one for the Lomo’Instant Wide!

To follow Matt’s photographic work, head over to his Instagram page and website.

written by azinteimoori on 2016-05-18 #news #people #videos #instant #instax #showcase #lomoamigo #instax-wide #lomo-instant-wide #first-impressions #instax366project #366-project #lomo-instant-wide #instantshowcase