Behind the lens with Lucinda Grange

We love catching up with our professional photography friends, especially when they’ve been with us since the very beginning of our journey. Lucinda has been working with us since the inception of CoinaPhoto, and she’s been uploading some stunning shots, so we decided it would be great to find out a little bit more about her, how she got into photography and what she’s learnt so far…

1. Great to finally meet you Lucinda, we’re loving the photos you share on CoinaPhoto, especially the Egypt ones. Tell us a bit about yourself. What do you do?

Hi Coinaphoto. I’m a free lance photographer living in the North of England, but my work takes me all over the world. My work consists of extreme landscapes, portraiture and sport mostly. But I photograph almost everything; it’s more like a lifestyle than a career for me.

2. How did you get in to photography, and what made you want to share your pictures with the world?

I got into photography when I was 17. When my Grandfather passed away my parents, brother and I got his camera. We joined a local camera club and it changed everything. At the time I was studying Maths, Further Maths, Physics and Chemistry in order the study Mechanical Design Engineering. Who would have thought I would end up where I am now!?

When I got into photography, I knew I wanted to make a difference with my work, make people feel something, or look at the world differently, I just wasn’t sure how yet. While I was studying photography at university I worked a part time bar job to pay my rent. I stopped drinking, and with the money I would have spent enjoying the uni lifestyle, I would go on cheap weekends away and climb things or go underground. I’d go back to work after a week off, and the regulars would call me over, I’d pick up a glass and ask if it was their usual, but it wasn’t a drink they were after. They’d ask me what adventures I’d been on, what I’d done and how I did it. Then often they’d say they wished they could come with me, but age, health, career amongst other things would prevent them. It was then I realised why this work in particular should be shared. Not many people would climb the Brooklyn Bridge, but lots would want to know what it was like to do so, and see the view. By sharing my work, I’m able to take people with me, if only in their mind, and share the experience with them.

3. You spend a lot of time in the great outdoors, would you say nature is your biggest inspiration from a Photography standpoint? Why?

I would say the great outdoors is what got me to where I am. I spent much of my childhood climbing trees and building dens, and camping in an old disused, overgrown quarry with a close friend. With schoolwork and college we weren’t able to spend as much time together in the quarry any more, and I found myself more and more in the urban environment, so I started to climb there. As I got bigger, so too did the things I climbed, from rooftops, to chimneys, to bridges, to skyscrapers.

4. You travel A LOT, and I know you were keeping an eye on our ‘Journey’ competition; do you have any particularly memorable journeys – bar the Egypt one?

Gosh! It’s hard to choose! Every place and picture has its very own memories and emotions for me, which people don’t always see when they look at a photo, how it was to be there at that time with those people. I guess one that is really memorable was climbing the Manhattan Bridge. I’ve just uploaded some photos. I won’t bore you with the full story, but there was a helicopter, nudity, cross dressing to an extent I guess, and of course a beautiful bridge…

5. With the advent of social media and mobile technology people are sharing more photographs than ever before. Why do you think this is?

Every single person is interesting, has a story to tell and sees the world in their own way. It’s said a picture paints a thousand words, so it’s no surprise that photographs are being shared more and more frequently. If I could type a thousand words in the fraction of a second, I’d write even more, but sadly I can’t, so I take and share pictures, much like everyone else. I love it; I really enjoy getting little insights into people and their lives through their images.

6. What’s your favourite feature about CoinaPhoto?

My favourite feature on CoinAPhoto would have to be the Lucky Strike games. The fact I can award someone fun and tokens of monetary value (if they win them) in thanks for the enjoyment I got from their image. It’s great! I must admit, I don’t think I’ve ever won one of the games, but that’s all part of the fun.

7. If you were going to give 3 top tips to an aspiring photographer, what would they be?

• Slow down! Don’t rush. If you have things going on all around you it’s easy to get flustered, but just stop, take a deep breath, compose yourself and start again. Maybe you’ll miss a shot in the time it takes to do so, but maybe you’ll save the rest of the shots from the day by being in a better, more relaxed frame of mind.
• Share your images! Get on all the different social media. Get people looking at your work. Positive feedback will only help build your confidence, and negative gives you a way to move forward.
• Enjoy yourself! Photography is art, it’s creative, and it should be enjoyed. Don’t forget that you choose to take photos for the enjoyment of it, make sure you keep enjoying it. If photography is your job and it begins to feel like your job and not your life, grab your camera, go and do something fun and document it. Try to remember why you chose that career.
  8. And now your top 3 definitely don’ts?

1. Don’t give up! I was told many times, by many different people that a career in photography was too difficult, that it was pointless, that I should give up. The difference between myself and those who are no longer taking photographs is that I didn’t give up when these people tried to put doubts in my mind. I saw no other option that to succeed, so I had to continue. It was my dream, and no dream is worth giving up on.
2. Don’t get bogged down to makes and models! Don’t get upset about competition between all the different makes and models cameras. They all work in near enough the same way. Yes, some have better sensors, some have more features, some cost more, but if you don’t have it/can’t afford it, then don’t worry about it. Work with what you do have, what you can afford, the camera truly is only as good as the person using it. Master what you do have, once you’ve done that, you feel you’ve outgrown your camera, and you if you have the money to upgrade, then it is a good time to start looking about, but not before.
3. Don’t stop learning! Always push yourself and your equipment to the limits and never be of the attitude that ‘it’s the best it’ll ever be’. Yes, you come to a point where you need to stop shooting, finish editing and hand over a ‘finished piece’, but always bear in mind that you can learn more, and your last image is a platform to go from, to move onwards and upward, not to Plato at.7

That’s all from Lucinda for now but we’ll be catching up with her again soon all about her latest projects and adventures. Don’t forget to keep checking her latest shots on CoinaPhoto; we have no doubt that they’ll be truly stunning. If Lucinda’s story has inspired you make sure you start sharing your photos with us today, you never know it could be you that we’ll be featuring in the spotlight next.

Happy Snapping!