PDNedu: Q & A With Photographer Dustin Aksland

I recently received an e-mail promotion from photographer Dustin Aksland. His lovely images caught my eye, so I contacted him for a brief Q & A. Below, Dustin answers some questions about exhibiting and discusses his plans and the challenges young editorial photographers face today.

PDN Where did you study and were you a photography major?

DA I studied at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and received my BFA in photography, in 2006.

PDN What did you do right after school, to keep afloat and get started in the industry?

DA I was fortunate enough to shoot a couple editorial jobs while I was still in school and that continued when I graduated. But the amount of jobs I was shooting was not enough to cover my living expenses. So I began assisting, it paid the bills and was a great learning experience.

PDN You’ve had a few shows and you have more on the horizon, how did you get started exhibiting? How did you get your work in front of gallery owners, such as the Meat Market Gallery in Washington, D.C?

DA Small group shows with friends was my first experience exhibiting. The internet has been the most effective way for me to get my work in front of people. It is amazing how much exposure you can get from just being posted on someone's blog. Jorg at Conscientious posted a one-line review of my work, with a link to my site, and the next day I had galleries contacting me. That led to being invited to Fjord , which is an online collection of up-and-coming photographers. After Fjord, the Meat Market Gallery discovered my work and contacted me. After 8 months of planning, printing, and framing, I had my first solo show on April 4th. It was an invaluable experience.

PDN Is it expensive to be part of a show? What are you responsible for?

DA Yes, it can be expensive, the cost of printing, framing and shipping adds up pretty fast. Sometimes the gallery will help with the framing and shipping cost, but you always pay for the printing.

PDN What is it like in the editorial market right now? What clients are you targeting?

DA It would be nice to be shooting a little more, but I can't really complain. I've been fortunate to shoot some really great assignments this year.
Right now I'm only contacting editorial clients, but I would like to start getting some Ad work. I'm working on a new promo campaign and I will start sending that out at the beginning of the year.

PDN Which photographers do you admire? Do you have any influences?

DA The list is too long to print, so I will try to narrow it down to five, in no particular order. Joel Sternfeld, Harry Callahan, Robert Adams, Larry Sultan, Nadav Kander. I think it would be safe to say that all the photographers I mentioned, have had some sort of influence on me over the years.

PDN What are you going to do next? Do you have long-term goals or plans?

DA Currently, I'm continuing to work on my ongoing project " Under The Western Freeway". My only real long-term goal is to keep shooting. I'm trying to convince myself that if I keep shooting, everything will sort it's self out.

PDN Do you have any general advice for students?

DA Read everything written by Robert Adams. Find something that you really care about and don't stop shooting it. Have perseverance, but if you are not having fun, don't do it. And get your work out there, websites, zines, shows etc.

To view more work by Dustin Aksland go to www.dustinaksland.com