Creating a Photo Book: Interview with Trent Mitchell

Photo by Trent Mitchell

In this era of social media, where we are inundated with digital imagery, curating your work into a photo book might just be the best way to fulfil your creative vision and give your pictures a purpose. 

Thanks to Instagram and the like, it’s possible to take a photo and share it across the globe within seconds, potentially reaching an audience of millions. But how your image will be displayed at the other end is entirely unpredictable. There’s just no way to manage the colour and contrast differences between screens, no matter how skilled your editing is, and your followers are only likely to pause for a second before moving on to the next image. 

Printing your photos allows more control over the way they will be viewed. All the elements you worked so hard to bring together - colour, contrast, tonality, and composition can be presented in a way that is faithful to your creative vision. And photographs gain a magnetic quality when printed. They have more impact. A viewer is likelier to sit with a printed photo for longer, not simply glance at it as they scroll through a patchwork feed of images.

If your love of photography has led you to build a body of work, creating a photo book is a perfect way of bringing the individual pieces together in a cohesive manner. And with the rapid growth of online publishing and printing tools, it’s now incredibly easy to publish a collection of images in book form.

Photo by Trent Mitchell

Australian photographer Trent Mitchell is an award-winning commercial, portrait, and documentary photographer with a strong affinity for the ocean and its forms. Throughout his 20+ year career, Trent has published three books and multiple zines and is currently working on a fourth book. He shares with us a little about his photography career and some valuable insights into the process of creating and curating a photo book.

Tell us a bit about how you got into photography. Was it always your career plan, or did you have something else in mind?

I first got into photography by using photographs to illustrate my art process in my HSC art diary. I was painting / doing woodblock prints as seascapes at the time, inspired by Hokusai, and I took pictures of the sea for reference. That was the catalyst for my journey into photography, and I haven't really stopped since. It's been my lifelong passion, and now I don't know what I'd do without it. I never started with the intent to operate as a business; it was always about playing with the technical aspects, the art side of the craft and pushing my personal limits. Nothing has changed in that regard. It's just that now it's my job and balancing those things becomes much harder when someone else's time, money and expectations are involved. But like I said, I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Your work traverses genres, from photojournalism to fine art. Do you have a favourite, or does it shift depending on what’s going on in your life?

I like to reframe that in this way; I just make photographs that I'm interested in at the time, and then other people can put the images onto boxes afterwards. I just like to make pictures, but I don't go out and think to myself, " Oh, I haven't done a fine art project in a while. I should think of one soon." I just get inspired by what's happening in my life at the time. I like to keep that fluid and not force things or become stagnant. But having said that, I really love the documentary approach and love the Magnum style of photography. I equally love fine art and conceptual long-form work too. I have a broad scope of influence and like to think that life is full of possibilities –– so why limit yourself to one lane? The counterargument to that is pouring all of your energy into becoming an expert in one genre. But I think you can master many genres over time if you sprinkle them throughout your practice and stick at them for ten years or so. I like to think personal style is the ultimate goal, and that way, you're just a photographer and can shoot anything you want in your own unique way. That's my goal, just to find that personal voice, and it's really difficult to stay true to. That's the ongoing life vs photography challenge for me. 

Photo by Trent Mitchell

You’ve shot with a lot of different cameras over the years. What are you using at the moment, and what do you love about it?

I'm using the Nikon Z9 at the moment, and I like it because it satisfies all of the things I photograph. From on commercial set stills and back of TV ( silent shutter with stacked sensor ) to portraiture and lifestyle ( beautiful native lenses, eye detect AF and resolution ) and seascape photography and sports (20fps stacked sensor), it really is the best all-round workhorse. Plus, the video specs are wonderful, and I think I'll be playing with motion in the very near future just because of the camera's possibilities.

You’re working on a new book. Can you tell us a little bit about it?

I've been working on a seascape project called Tessellated Seas since 2013 and have had great results with the work over the years. On reflection, the project took a bit of a creative turn during the past two years. I realised I could really build this project out to become something that I'll genuinely be happy with for a long time. It's a place close to where I grew up, and I spent 1000's of hours standing in one spot and photographing this one unique bombora where swells combine to create tessellated patterns in the sea. It's a super unique phenomenon, and I hope the work does the place justice as it's very special to me.

You’ve called your project ‘Tessellated Seas’; will you title the book with the same name?

No, my book is not named yet; Tessellated Seas is a working title only. I think I will name the book and series when it's complete!

Photo by Trent Mitchell

Do you know you want to create a book from the outset of a new project, or is that something you decide as the body of work takes shape?

The only time I definitely knew I wanted to create a book was with my first one. It was a dream and something that I hung over my head for 10 years as I was shooting the photographs. I definitely put the pressure on myself as if it was my statement piece and I needed to get it right. Kind of an artist's first album launch. You're kinda going all in on it. If it fails, well, that's a really hard shift of energy to pick back up and go again. So beyond that, every other book has come from a successful project. I try so many things that no one sees or hears about ... it's only the successful evolution of work that makes it into consideration to become a book. The more that time passes, the more I feel a truly timeless book is the pinnacle of a great photographic practice and what I aim to achieve. If I can make one book in my life that stands the test of time, I'll be a happy man.  

What do you look for and consider when compiling images for a photo book?

When I first started out, it was a pure aesthetic exercise to edit images. But now, I've evolved my work into either a storytelling space or long-form conceptual work. To make a book like that, I think the work has to be unique to a story, yourself, place, time or person, all while holding a visual rhythm throughout, much like a great piece of cinema.  It just works, and if there's anything that picks up to be forced or lacking substance I ditch it right away.

How do you go about finding a publisher, and what has that collaborative relationship been like for you?

I tried to seek out a publisher back in 2010 for my first book, and It felt like that was the dawn of the self-publishing era. There were only a few publishers I admired then, and they were overseas. I didn't hear anything back from the publishers I pitched to, so I just went ahead and published myself. I knew design, print, production and distribution through my day job at a magazine, so I just went for it. Even the publisher I worked for in the magazine world didn't help me out. They couldn't see my vision. I just backed myself and went for it. I knew the potential of the genre and did it myself. Every book I've made since has been self-published. I like the final say on everything; it's all personal work with my vision, so I like to keep it that way unless I find the perfect partner.

Photo by Trent Mitchell

You’ve published three books and multiple zines over the years. How has your book-making process changed between developing your first book Chasing the Curve: a Portrait of the Sea, and your new book?

The process has remained relatively the same. Although with recent projects, I have allowed myself to bounce ideas off peers and also add an editing cooling-off period, so to speak. Where I shoot what I think is the complete project, yet I only see it as my first draught. I'll compile my edit, reflect on that and seek out any improvements. After that, I'll move forward and try to execute on my own brief for round two. This could be a change of approach, a variation of subject, a rediscovery of the work's meaning ... you name it. This little window helps me push myself a further 10% to get the work beyond what I first intended. There's no cheating this leap; it's only time, others' insight and experience that can assist it. So I like to build more time for reflection and practice for each book project now.

What advice do you have for photographers thinking about turning a project into a photo book?

First off, I'd say just go for it. Gone are the days of self-publishing 1000 books in china and distributing yourself minus your life savings! The financial barrier has been removed with local, high-quality digital printing. Finding a publisher FOMO is also gone now. All you need is your work, a solid idea and an audience that loves what you do. Not even a big one. You can start at 25 books easily. I'd just say go for it. The process teaches you so much about your own work like no other practice. To me, it's the pinnacle of photography output, and I believe every photographer should aim to publish something in their career. To me, not publishing is like being a cinematographer and never making a film. That way of thinking doesn't make sense to me. 

To learn more about Trent and see some of his stunning work, check out his website here.

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