Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Langley.
Eric, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
My career started in 2005 with the purchase of my first digital SLR. I had been shooting as a hobby for a few years with my point and shoot, mainly doing street photography for fun, and I was ready to learn how to use a fully manual camera. It was less than 2 months later that I walked away from a 6 year career in corporate marketing to pursue event photography.
I started off finding odd jobs doing corporate events. I got a regular gig as a third and sometimes second shooter as a wedding photographer. I found my way into team building stuff, usually on multi-day retreats where people would take classes and participate in obstacle courses designed to get them to connect with one another. I began to discover the value of capturing emotion and looking for the story.
In 2008, I unexpectedly found myself in the local Mixed Martial Arts community, which turned into a 4 year career photographing fights. Because of the work I was doing previously, I had gotten a feel for capturing the important emotional details in the story and it translated perfectly in that world. The response to the work was overwhelmingly positive, which led to me getting hired to shoot promotional images for posters and magazine covers.
This is what caused me to discover portraiture. Suddenly I had to learn working with the subject directly. I had to learn off camera flash. I was forced to learn the necessary elements of portrait photography to deliver what the client was looking for. Now it’s all that I do. It’s my true passion. I haven’t photographed a fight since 2013, although I still shoot fighter portraits occasionally.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I am inspired by “Old World” portraiture. There was a time when you had to get your portraits painted. I like my photos to resemble that. They are highly illustrative but not composited. I make photos that look like paintings.
What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
Depends on the artist. For those trying to make a statement, or issue commentary on the state of the world, there are more tools than ever to spread those messages. I personally am not affected by current events as it relates to my work. I am more interested in creating aesthetically pleasing images that evoke a different kind of emotional response.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
I am in all the usual locations:
Website: ericlangleyphotography
Instagram: @ericlangleyportraits and @ericlangley_fight
FB: ericlangleyphotography
Contact Info:
- Website: ericlangleyphotography.com
- Instagram: ericlangleyportraits
- Facebook: ericlangleyphotography
Image Credit:
All photos © Eric Langley
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