Magazine Submissions

The planning of the next milkwithtea magazine has started! Are you interested? 

Please send  your work (3 images) to mwtmagazine@gmail.com

Looking forward to the new zine!

Fábio Miguel Roque

Lisbon, Portugal

website

You studied photography, so it seems you decided to work as a photographer at an early age. What influenced you to make that decision?

Yes, I thought about becoming a photographer at a very early age. This was because of several reasons. But the main reason was that I simply wanted to be able to combine my huge passion for photography with a ‘proper’ job that I could actually have in the future. This made me decide to study photography.

Had you been active as a photographer before starting to study it?

Yes, I was very active and used to shoot pictures a lot. However, I still did not have a clear-cut direction of what I wanted to do. Most of the time I was photographing my friends and everything we'd be doing at that time.

In how far would you say has your work changed since then?

It has changed a lot! It started with photographing my friends, and then there was a period when I wanted to be the next James Nachtwey… Of course I did not really know what I was thinking. Now I try to orientate myself and find ‘my own space’ in photography.

What made you become more interested in conceptual photography?

For some time now I’ve been thinking differently about photography. By engaging in conceptual photography I mainly try to show a little more of what I feel rather than what I actually see. Therefore, I have worked less on documentary and more on personal projects. I guess that this is what I need right now. This is not to say that I have given up on other kinds of photography, I do have one or two ideas for other projects. 

In the set here, we can see pictures from your projects "Can You Predict Spring?" and "The Cubans". How did these projects come into being?

The two projects have two similarities: One is that they were both born out of curiosity. The other is that they were both shot during vacations with my wife. But I guess the similarities end here. Cuba had always been a destination that I wanted to visit because of all that it represents now and for what the country has represented in recent history. I wanted to see what the daily life looked like on an island, which practically is isolated from its neighbours. In this sense I had ‘a plan’ of what I wanted to do and see there. In the end, I loved it there and would love to go back there soon. The vacation in Tunisia, on the other hand, was different. I had not put together a ‘plan’ for the trip, I had booked a holiday tour that would take me everywhere without any worries. I just wanted to rest. It’s interesting that, at the end of the day, the things that I saw and the ‘reality’ I was confronted with urged me to shoot pictures. Therefore, it really was a very different experience.

What do you like most about documentary photography?

What I like most undoubtedly in documentary photography is being able to work on specific topics. For instance I can address topics that worry me. A good example for this is the project “Shelter”: Because one thing that really bothers me is the abandonment of animals. Thus I decided to work on this series. It addresses the topic from my point of view. This is actually how I usually work, by the way.

How can one stay 'invisible' when photographing people on, say, the street?

It's complicated, and in my opinion, it will become increasingly difficult. I confess that I sometimes have a hard time being unnoticed. I have to buy a smaller camera; I think that will help doing street photography.

Most of your conceptual projects as shot in black and white. Is there a specific reason for this?

I love black and white. From an early age on I preferred to shoot in black and white. Personally, I think that my projects gain intensity, and some amount of ‘drama’ and some ‘mystery’, if you will. I would not be able to achieve this result by shooting in colour. Therefore, I think that, for now, most of my next projects will be in black and white.

What kind of work do you mostly do as a freelance photographer? How does it differ from your personal projects?

As a freelancer I really do any kind of photographic work. In Portugal, there is little work for photographers: we have to take what we get. Of course, I will not agree to everything, or take work offers that I don’t like, just for the money. But until now, I've done work for various companies, advertising, baptisms etc. In the end, I still do prefer my personal projects.

Is there any project you're working on right now and would like to share?

I continue to work on "Awake", which is a project that I have planned out thoroughly and for which I still need a lot of time. There’s a lot of work to be done in order to finish it.
Also,  I recently wrapped up a project called "River". It will be soon on my website, in case you would like to take a look!

no winter lasts forever

... in fact, it's mid-July, so practically, it's already summer! 

It's been a very long break for milkwithtea. Interviews stopped, the little magazine promised patiently waited to be published online, and lots of emails are waiting for a reply. I am very sorry for this absence but believe me, it wasn't due to lack of concern! Real life work just took the overhand, like it so often does. Thank you kindly for your patience.

So here's to a new start:

The magazine, which had been ready already by March 2013 (you will notice by its date!) finally is online. There is also a new page entitled "milkwithtea magazine", where you will be able to access the first and upcoming magazine volumes from now on. But let's share the humble little zine here as well, shall we? Each artist is featured with three photos from his or her work, each set of three pictures is followed by the artist's name and -if available- contact details.

Finally, I would like to call for new submissions. We need new interviews and features of course. We gotta get back to business!

Lucas Ottone

Barcelona, Spain

flickr website blog

You're based in in Barcelona, and also work in Mallorca. Which city do you like  better for going out and shooting street photography?

As Barcelona is way bigger than Palma, I feel it more interesting to shoot urban pictures there. Barcelona is a city that changes quickly and it also has many neighbourhoods that are very different from each other. You can easily go from a rich and boring zone to a bohemian and inspiring street where lots of new things happen every day.

How are the times right now for a photographer in Spain?

Maybe I'm not the right person to answer that, but I will give a little opinion about what I think.

I think it's not about the talent that you have as a photographer here; it’s about your talent to spread your work. Some people may say this happens everywhere, but here, it's an ever-present issue since the art community is smaller than in other countries. In Spain, even if you have great talent, you cannot be "found" unless you make yourself recognizable. I know many gifted artists whose projects remain ignored, and tons of shitty photographers whose boring pictures are exposed because their father/uncle/fiancé has got some contacts. In Mallorca - and this is really true - you will find the same artists in every single exhibition. But I guess that this is a thing that we must learn to live with. The only solution to this dilemma that seems to work is to sell us a little bit and to not be ashamed about being such a pest sometimes.

Next to landscapes and people, what inspires you currently the most?

My pictures usually build a personal diary. I understand them as a way to remember things that have happened to me in the past. To me, they are surrounded by a kind of nostalgia. Any theme that can be related to that feeling will inspire me. I could say I take pictures in order to remember.

Would you say that a good photographer could take a good picture of almost anything? Or is this just a fairy tail?

I have no idea how to answer this question. I guess that if you love what you picture in your head, it will be well portrayed.

During your time in New York, was there something that surprised you about the city?

A curious thing happened to me when I was in New York. It's a city you see lots of times in movies or pictures, so you sort of already have an idea of how it will look like before going there. The thing is that when you get there, and see the streets and skyscrapers you've seen before, a strange feeling of belonging develops. The city looks familiar and new at the same time. At least that’s how I felt when I visited the city.

Why did you name two of your sets "Days of heaven" and "Days of Earth"?

Both sets represent different moments in my life during the last two years, 2011 and 2012 correspondingly. They serve to show two different ways to enjoy life, but at the end, if you compare them both, you see there isn't so much difference between them after all. In other words, "Heaven" and "Earth" become the same in the end. To me, these are sets of happiness.

Do you like artists' collaborations?

Yes, but only between different fields of art. I've worked with a painter (Juan Oliver) and a collage artist (Amadeo Orellana), but never with another photographer. Also, I think that we should consider models as artists as well; many muses have provided me with great ideas.

Do you ever find yourself criticizing or analysing pictures in newspapers?

If it's well paid, yes.

In contemporary media, what would you say has more effect: pictures or words?

Although I'm a bit better with the first ones, I think words get stuck in our heads better than pictures. For instance, I would say that music is far above pictures and words in that respect. Contemporary media, specially advertising, is exploring more than ever the power of music. It can evoke almost everything.

If a friend started engaging in photography and asked you for help, what would be the first thing you would advice him or her to do?

Firstly, I would advice not to do any course or degree in photography. At least in Spain, most of them are pure bullshit, at least in my eyes. Photography, like so many arts, is a thing you must learn by yourself.

Secondly, and this is a piece of advice a good fellow and photographer told me once, you should take only pictures that represent you, especially when you're starting to engage in photography. If you start by doing live music reports, for example, you will be called again to do live music reports. The question here is, would you love to be known for doing this type of picture? Because in the end, you are what you do.

Not mincing matters. Take a look at his work!