The Power of Personal Photo Projects

I first heard about Andy Day back in April of 2019. Periodically I am a guest on my friend Don Komarechka’s Photo Geek Weekly podcast, and we covered a story Andy had written for Fstoppers – and let me say, please check out Don’s podcast, it’s fantastic. Knowing Andy was finally going to be on Behind the Shot I decided to look back to see what I had in my notes about him from that show. The story titled “Five Reasons Why You’ll Never Earn Good Money as a Photographer”, and here is what I wrote at the top of my notes: “I looked up the author Andy Day — LOVE HIS WORK, AND WANT HIM ON Behind the Shot!” Yeah, I over research a bit sometimes, like searching out the author’s website when I like a story. In Andy’s case the results were awesome. He’s an internationally published photographer specializing in adventure sports, travel, architectural and landscape photography, but it’s the way he combines those in a single show that is so impressive. His website describes it by saying that his work “examines the body’s relationship with the built environment, willful misuse of architecture, subversive practices, appropriation of space and place, edgework and social interaction”. I simply describe it as being unique as hell. Andy captures landscapes, with structures in them, and with people climbing them as though it’s some sort of Parkour course. Ans all of these components come together to form a cohesive story. It’s like if American Ninja Warrior had a photographer, and then the show was filmed using old abandoned monuments in some out of the way place in the Balkan wilderness. What’s so fascinating to me that Andy has a formal photography education, having received an MA in photography from Goldsmiths. He is also a speaker, teacher, and as I mentioned above a great writer (which makes sense when you see that his BA was in English Literature and American Studies. His client list includes companies like American Eagle, Jack Wolfskin, Gravis, Ecko Unlimited, Canon, Dairy Crest, and Yota. His work has been published in magazines and newspapers around the world, including The Sunday Times, The Guardian, Stuff, Front, Zoo, and Men’s Fitness, and again….. he’s a senior writer for Fstoppers. Andy is one half of Landmann Studios, a partnership with conceptual artist Diego Ferrari, teaching workshops and short courses about photography, the body and urban space. In recent years, Andy has taught short courses at Central St Martins, London, and a series of workshops for the Royal Institute of British Architects in conjunction with The Barbican. You’ll even find him parkour training events where he speaks and runs workshops on photography, urban space, and commercialisation, as well as teaching people how to climb buildings. Join adventure sports photographer, educator, and author Andy Day and me as we discuss how he captures the relationship between urban climber and architecture, along with the power of long term photo projects, on this episode of Behind the Shot. Connect with Andy Portfolio: andyday.com Instagram: @kiellgram Twitter: @kiell