I came across Philip’s work on 500px while I was looking at some snowboarding photos (hopefully planning a trip, more details a little later on), after seeing a few images I noticed that they were all from the same photographer. It made perfect sense to me, to feature Philip and his work.

Tell us a little about yourself?

I am a 33 year old (sports) photographer and retoucher based in Graz, Austria.

What inspired you to get started in photography?

I love to do sports such as surfing, snowboarding or rock climbing and i was always thinking “damn, someone should capture all this moments!” I was always interested in photography and so I decided to buy my first dslr.

What gear do you take to each shoot and what lens can you not live without?

Oh, it really depends on the shoot. Sometimes you just need a 50mm and sometimes you need the whole package of lenses and strobes. But usually i use 2 Bodies (Nikon D4 and D700 for back up), 16mm fish, 16-35mm f4, 50mm f1.4, 70-200mm f2.8 and a 300mm f2.8 Elinchrom Rangers, Softboxes/Umbrellas and a Sunbounce…

To be honest, I don’t have a favourite lens, maybe the 50mm…

How do you market yourself and has social media been an important part?

I do not market myself, not really. I get a lot of jobs by recommendations of former clients and some other photographers i know. We share a lot of jobs.

The social media makes it a little bit easier to show your pictures, to get feedback from other photographers, but I am not sure if you get reliable jobs and bigger clients by facebook and co.

What’s your favourite photo that you’ve taken and does it have any significance?

A great photographer said “my favourite picture is always the next one, the one I will take tomorrow”. I guess that’s true and have the same point of view.

Select a photo you have taken, explain how it was taken and how did you edit it?

I like that one. It’s a shot which had been taken during an underwater-shoot while the model was waiting for the next dive. After the selection I found it, turned it upside down and started to work on it in ps, just some basic color corrections and dodge and burn. It was not for the client, just for me.

What processing tool do you use and do you believe in the camera doing all the work or in post ?

I use Photoshop CS6 and Bridge. I believe in both, but some things you just can’t photoshop (like composition, expression…) and some others you can’t shoot without a little help of post.

Whats your favourite photography accessory other than your camera?

California Sunbounce – one month ago I was assisting on a big fashion shoot and we used nothing but 3 of these great bounces, the pictures look really nice and natural…

Where do you prefer to post your photos online and why there?

I mostly post them on 500px, i love the layout and you can find some amazing photographers there as well! I also have photos on photocase.com, it’s a fresh little stock agency without typical “stock” photography, i am part of the editors-team of the site, based in Germany.

Do you ever get photographers block and if so what do you do to get inspired again?

Good Question, i guess looking on pictures of photographers you like is a good way and sometimes you just need vacation

Is there anything you wish you had done when you first started in photography that would have made a difference?

Hm, no. You need to do mistakes to grow and find your style.

Any advice for new photographers wanting to go pro?

Shoot, shoot, shoot! Look at pictures of your favourite photographers – think about the lighting and shoot again. Make a realistic business plan and get in touch with other pros, find a „mentor“ if possible.

Visit Philip Platzer – website and facebook