Q&A with Profoto

Q&A with Profoto

At the end of last year the guys at Profoto gave me a Profoto B10 to test out. I cannot begin to tell you just how much fun I had with this light. It was like the light in me was switched on again and all my creative inspiration surged! I started playing with my photography again and made a series of portraits which were an absolute pleasure and joy to create. When you are shooting constantly as a professional photographer  it is easy to get tired and get into a rut. Using Profoto got me even more excited about using strobe lighting as it is so lightweight and uncomplicated to use.

Top-South-African-Creative-Family-Portrait-Photographer-Jacki-Bruniquel

Top-South-African-Creative-Family-Portrait-Photographer-Jacki-Bruniquel

Top South African Photographer Jacki Bruniquel takes portraits

Top South African Photographer Jacki Bruniquel takes portraits

Next thing you know they asked me to be a brand ambassador! Wow! What a milestone that was.

I am now using the B10 and 2 A1’s along with various lighting adaptors and a trigger and I am loving them!

Top South African Photographer Jacki Bruniquel takes portraits

Image by: Tyrone Bradley

They recently asked me to answer the following 10 questions which I thought I would share on my blog.

1.When did your commercial photography career start, and what was your first commercial job?

I kinda fell into wedding photography about a decade ago, which is when my photography career seriously started. I did quite a few photography jobs in the years previous to this but I didn’t call my self a photographer. I studied Fine Art after school and then headed overseas. After many years of backpacking around the world I returned to South Africa and went back to Tech to study photography and get a more technical boost to my education. During this time I was also making mixed media art and having exhibitions. People started asking me to photograph weddings and because I have a creative background and approached weddings differently to what other photographers were doing at the time things took off really quickly for me. My initial plan was to use the wedding Photography to fund my art career but I haven’t picked up a paintbrush in a very long time as the weddings took over everything! Nowadays I also love photographing portraits and I’ve been doing some commercial work recently as well.

2.What camera did you use to shoot your very first commercial job with?

The very first time I got paid to do a photography job I was using a film camera, it was that long ago.

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Image by: Tatum

3.Can you remember your first payday, and how much did you earn for that very first job?

I literally cannot remember!

4.Did you have any formal education in photography, and if so, where? If not, how did you learn your craft?

I completed a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Art majoring in Photography at Michaelis UCT – this degree was very much about “how to think and communicate ideas with images” rather than a technical degree so after traveling abroad for many years I returned to South Africa and did a Diploma in Photography from the Durban University of Technology. I also worked for free for a few different photographers and that REALLY helped me learn my craft.

5. Is there a genre in photography that is on your “bucket list” and something you still aspire to get involved with?

Yes I would love to do underwater photography, get back into my Fine Art work and also do some more documentary work with NGO’s.

6.How important is Tech in your career, referring to the latest and greatest that the manufacturers supply?

I believe good ideas, creativity and a thorough understanding of light and composition are more important than having the latest gear. That being said I was extremely excited and inspired with my new Profoto B10! It’s so easy to use and makes me sooooo happy!

7. In your world, what technological advancement or improvement made the biggest difference to your career

Learning how to use flash was a game changer for me.

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Jacki-Bruniquel-South-African-Photographer-001-01

Oyster Box luxury hotel South African wedding

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8.If you could change just one thing about the greater industry, what would that be?

I wish that there was less ego. We are all just photographers on a journey. When we think we know everything we have lost the ability to grow!

9.How do you see the future of the photographic business in all segments of the market?

That’s a very tricky question to answer in the time of COVID-19 when we are unsure of anything but one thing is certain all businesses need content to build an online presence so we will be back! As for weddings and families, I think people are realising how important loved ones are during this time so hopefully this will mean that people will value beautiful images of their loved ones even more.

10. Do you have a single image from your commercial career that stands out as a personal favorite? Please share

I recently made a series of “lock-down portraits” which are deeply personal and have helped me move out of a difficult depression so whilst they aren’t commercial they have a lot of value to me.

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If you would like to view the rest of my lockdown portrait series, click here

11.What do you see as your biggest challenge in the next 24 months?

As a wedding photographer most of my clients are postponing their weddings to 2021, which means that there will be a knock on effect as it will be hard to juggle these dates and the need to get new business.

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Lockdown-Portraits-Top-South-African-Creative-Photographer-Jacki-Bruniquel-005-4578-1

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Creative wedding photography at Brahman Hills etate, by top South African wedding and documentary photography Jacki Bruniquel

I am also going through huge shifts and reconnecting with my artist’s heart so I feel change is in the air for Jax. I wont stop shooting though. I feel alive when I have a camera in my hand!

12.If you had R100 000 today to blow on hardware, what would you buy?

Can I make it R250 000 and buy the Sony A9 and some lenses?? Pretty please J

13.How do you feel about attending workshops to better your skills, and how would you like to see workshops in general being formulated? 

I attended the Two Mann Wedding photography workshop in Spain in 2016 and it was an incredible experience. Besides attending conferences and photography expos this is actually the only workshop I have attended.

I think I could’ve really jump started my technical and business knowledge and saved myself a lot of time and made a lot less frustrating mistakes had I done a few workshops right at the beginning of my career.

I’ve been running my own workshops over the past couple of years and really do delight in seeing my students grow and thrive. These are called the Unstuck Yourself Creative photography workshops and I made them for photographers who want to learn to think outside of the box, develop their own style, find their ideal clients and make friends with their flash along with a bunch of other things.

Unstuck Yourself Creative Photography Workshop

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14.Who is you biggest Icon in the photographic world, past or present?

Annie Leibovitz blows my mind away! I just love her portraiture.

15. If you were given a choice, and could only choose one, would you shoot in colour or B&W for the rest of your life?

Definitely colour!!!! I am all about the colour, I love black and white but colour makes my world go round!

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Best of farm weddings

Best of farm weddings

One of my earliest memories as a child is climbing the magic faraway tree and looking down at the Tugela river from the tippy top of the branches. We lived on a farm in Northern Natal for a brief period and I have so many magical memories making fairy houses in the bush and collecting eggs from Henny and Penny the chickens! These formative years must have had a profound effect on me as I have wanted to live on a farm ever since! I love animals, wide open spaces and old farm houses with big verandahs and endless cup of tea. You can give me a pair of gumboots over a pair of heels anyday!

Farm weddings are high up there with my favorites to photograph and I’ve had the privilege of traveling all over South Africa and being welcomed into so many peoples homes and lives. In this set of images you will find wedding photos that I have taken at  farm weddings everywhere from Creighton to Tzaneen to Eshowe to Limpopo to Hilton to Newcastle to the Karoo. All of them bring a smile to my heart and remind me of how lucky I am to have had all of these wonderful experiences.

Great farm venues in KZN if you don’t own a farm!

Netherwood

Hartford House

Cranford Country Lodge

Cairn of Old Kilgobbin

Haycroft Farm

Crystal Barn Farm

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Best of Hartford House

Best of Hartford House

If you know me you will know that I absolutely love horses so any wedding venue that offers a bit of equine therapy makes me very happy! Hartford House is one of my top wedding venues in South Africa because of its horses but also because of its excellence. This prestigious boutique hotel sits snuggly on a horse stud farm just a few clicks from Mooi River in the Natal Midlands in South Africa. The natural beauty of this farm is truly something to behold and offers the visitor emerald rolling hills to walk in during the summer, beautiful gardens to inspire and delight in the spring, golden trees in the Autumn and a roaring fire place in the winter. They are known for their gastronomic food experiences and have thrilled patrons with delicious feasts for many years. What has always struck me about this particular hotel is their ability to make every guest feel special and at home. It’s a fancy hotel and yet it’s totally unpretentious. It’s the type of place where you can lie around by the pool with a book or go for a jog around the farm, you can eat till you pop or jump on a horse and have a gallop around the track.

As a wedding venue it is most definitely one of KZN’s best. Besides the wonderful food, luxurious rooms, 5 star service and beautiful gardens it offers some of the most gorgeous photo opportunities around. I absolutely love shooting there and if you are a bride or groom to be, I can assure you this is a wonderful option if you love the outdoors with a bit of fancy thrown in!

Here are a few pictures I have taken at various weddings at Hartford House over the years. Unfortunately some of my Hartford clients didn’t want any of their pics put online but there are enough here for you to get the idea of the wonderful celebrations I have had the pleasure of photographing at this venue over the years.

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Best of Netherwood Weddings

Best of Netherwood Weddings

You will find Netherwood wedding venue in the Natal midlands on the way to Nottingham road, which is just a couple of hours away from Durban in South Africa. It’s an changing farm which is painted by the seasons every few months, vermillion green in the summer, and brown, amber and crispy in the winter. Netherwood is a working farm with a herd of Nguni cattle and a few other interesting animals like Zebras and Alpaca’s, but it also homes one of the loveliest places to say I do in KZN! Every time I go there I find something that I haven’t seen before, a new angle or an orchard of spring blossoms and a field of maize. Beautiful, open places inspire me and so I find Netherwood to be a very inspiring place!

So far as wedding venues go, the reception venue is a very clever design with the bar right in the middle of the dance floor and this makes for cracker parties! It’s a neutral space, which means it‘s  a blank canvas for you to decorate. It also has cottages and a huge big farmhouse with loads of bedrooms in it, so it’s a great venue for a weekend wedding. The chapel looks over the valley and on a clear day you can see the mountains way off in the distance.

I’ve shot so many weddings at Netherwood and every single one of them has been special. From the rainy, muddy and misty, to the bone chilling icy cold, to the mild and temperate they have all been an experience to remember. I’ve seen some crazy moves on that dance floor and so many tears and happy smiles at the chapel. My main reason for loving my Netherwood wedding memories however, is because I have just loved all the couples I have photographed there!

Oh and the blueberry café on the property definitely worth a visit!

Here’s some of my Best of Netherwood wedding pics!

 

Click here for Netherwoods contact details https://www.netherwoodfarm.com/contact/

 

If you are looking for top notch wedding planing and decor suppliers from the midlands try

Adore wedding and Events

Natural Nostalgia

The Wedding Co

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