Questions for Marcus Westen

When did you start your photography?

My father introduced me to photography when I was still in elementary school. Back then, I took my first pictures with an analog Yashica. As a teenager, I switched to my father’s Minolta SRT and took pictures of theater and musical performances at school.

Is photography your hobby or your profession?

It is an ambitious hobby and is practiced whenever I’ve got a minute to spare.

How and where was the image taken which you entered to the competition? Is there a story about it?

The image “Red Energy” was taken on the way home from a customer appointment. I had refueled and was immediately thrilled by the location, the colors and lights. After I received permission from the gas station owners, I set up the camera and aligned. Now I had to wait for vehicles, because I believed light trails to be absolutely necessary and I often integrate them into my pictures. After about 1 hour I had taken my pictures. In the post-processing of the image I worked on the colors and focused on the gray and red tones.

Who and/or what inspires you most?

I get inspired and excited very quickly, whether it’s a picture from fellow photo club members, at exhibitions or a social media post. But in the consideration of photography and when it comes to the attitude to an image and the image composition, currently David duChemin has the greatest influence on me. However, one should never forget one’s own history: I am surrounded by images and books by Jim Brandenburg, Harald Mante, Steve McCurry, Elliot Erwitt, Henri Cartier-Bresson, to name a few. These all have their place in my subconsciousness and influence my photography.

What’s your photographic focus?

After many years of photographing during and capturing the golden and blue hour, e.g. with available light shots with natural and artificial lights, or the classic sunrises and sunsets, I am currently primarily engaged in project photography.

Last year, for example, I realized photo projects on the topic of “working environments”. Among other things, a series was created in a foundry in Bonn and then in close cooperation with the University Hospital Bonn I created the exhibition and the photo book “Working World University Hospital”.

What’s your next photo project, your next challenge?

Currently I am working on the project “pedagogical architecture”, i.e. I deal photographically with the architecture of kindergartens, educational institutions, libraries but also of companies. I want to give viewers the opportunity to make up their own mind about the influence of architecture on learning and living environments.

Do you include color management in your photographic workflow?

For me, color management is the be-all and end-all for images. In addition to a good calibration of the monitor, care must also be taken to ensure that the print profiles are matched in the same way so that the image quality can be maintained throughout the entire digital workflow.

What do you do with your photos? Do you print them, post them on your social media accounts or your website or do they simply stay on your hard drive?

The pictures are used in several ways. On the one hand, they are printed in poster format and displayed in exhibitions frequently. On the other hand I create photo books, but for private use. My images are posted on social media channels like instagram and also find their way into an official photo book or a photo calendar every now and then.

What’s your photographic goal? What do you dream of?

There are always pictures that absolutely impress me and at which I can at again and again. I would be happy if someone would feel the same way about one of my pictures. Otherwise, it is the photography itself that gives me pleasure.

I live near Bonn, Germany, and work there as a managing director and IT consultant. For more than 40 years, photography is my hobby and beloved balance to my job. Due to the job and the family, my photo sessions often shift into the evening hours.