What kind of equipment (camera body, lens, filters, flash, tripod, cleaning equipment other) do you use?

I use a Pentax K-7 with four lenses from different brands from ultra wide angel to 300 mm Tele.

What do you like and dislike about your equipment, specially your camera, and how would you improve it?

Honestly I’m not very happy with my camera from the very beginning. It’s having an Autofocus failure out of the package. I heard many Pentax K-7 models have this problem. What I like about the camera is the weather resistance. I can shoot by bad weather without being worry damaging the camera. And the weigh of the body is a plus point as well. You can carry it a whole day without breaking your neck.
How I could improve my gear is probably changing the whole system.

 

What is your favourite lens, and why?

I like wide angle lenses. As the name says, they can capture a wide field of view and I like the dramatic dynamic effect of distorting of them. For example by shooting clouds.

 

When you travel, what is in your essential photographic kit bag?

I have a Lowerpro Flipside 300 as backpack. It is small and light and enough for my gear. I fill it with the body, the four lenses, a small digital camera, several SD-Cards, a grip, extra batteries and a head light. And a tripod is certainly a must.

What kind of software/tools do you use for post-processing, if any?

I use only photoshop for every kind of post processing. I can’t imagine any other softwares better that photoshop. I also use a few plugins like Niksotware.

 
How long have you been taking photographs? How do you find inspiration? How do you take your pictures?

Like many other photographers I found my interest in photography in a very young age. I climbed mountains with my father very often and once in age of 14 we overnighted in a shelter on mountain top and very early morning I woke up and photographed the sunrise. It came out a nice image and my father printed and put it in his office and it is still there. So, I think that was the beginning.

I believe my inspirations don’t have their root in visual arts, but rather in philosophy, literature and music above all. Before becoming serious with photography I wrote sometimes poems and often my thoughts. Parallel listening to music, specially classical and dark-genre. I wished I could make music or play any instruments, but sadly I can’t. I needed to do something creative and just listening to music or occasional writing weren’t satisfying. Photography turned to a medium to reflect those thoughts and feelings in a visual creative manner.

I very seldom get out to shoot, and if, it’s most of time in colder and darker periods of year, because the weather simply matches better to my imagination. I live in a place very close to nature and most of my images have been taken in a radius of 25 km from where I live. Otherwise I shoot a lot while traveling. But it’s different for photomontages. If I have an idea for a specific image with specific elements and symbolics I look for them and use them later in the image.

Which style of photography do you like the most, and why?

I like surreal and mood and minimal photography the most. Fact is surreal photomontages can’t be observed as pure photography, since they are not created by pressing the shutter just one time and the scene never has existed in reality. I like to use real elements to create unreal worlds, which is a prove to the perception of our mind from our environment. Those moments when you become tired, bored, angry or disappointed by the world around you and you need new worlds, which only exist in your mind. A refuge, where you are the only ruler and you determine every happenings. On the other side the mood photography becomes a companion through your soul wanderings. It takes and carries a part of your burden walking beside your solitude.

What goal are you working towards within your photography and when will you know you have reached it?

This is a difficult question. I don’t know the answer completely. But I think my final goal isn’t static, it is dynamic. Meaning it hasn’t an end, so it is principally not a goal . But I try to go deeper an deeper in content and the message of an image. Not only the visual enjoyment or pleasure of an image is important, but also the content. I know I have reached the satisfaction when I smile after the image is done.

 
Looking at your own work, which piece is your favourite? Why? Please provide a link to the picture.

My absolute personal favorite piece is one of my very few images with a title! It’s called “The Perfect Death” and it’s quiet an old piece. I made it 5 years ago. It is an extremely personal work and I like it the most because it mirrors perfectly a certain period of my life. It is an affirmation to my philosophy from that day to today. Link: http://steppenwolf.pixu.com/images/hd/33abb1fc3278759439650099059734e1.jpg

Does your work fit into any one or more distinct genres (nature, landscape, long-exposure, black-and-white, infra-red, urban, artistic, macro, vintage, vernacular, social, street)? If other, please specify.

Most of my works are artistic black and white. Rarely I do color too.

Are there any photography websites that you visit regularly?

At the moment not really. But I used to visit 1x.com daily. I also like “Artlimited” and visit it often. I believe they have a very high standard on images. Specially black and white photography.

What is the one most important lesson that you have learned since you started taking photographs?

Be yourself , be honest with yourself and be faithful with your work.

And finally, what other interesting photographers would you like to see in this blog?

Oh, there are many great photographers out there. I can’t recall any specific one right now.

Kaveh Hosseini Photography

http://www.kaveh-hosseini.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Hosseini.Kaveh

http://500px.com/Steppenwolf