Home > Culture > Mentor Showcase > The 2006 Best-of Series: Benjamin Mendlowitz
The 2006 'Best Of' Series
For the second annual Best Of issue of the ASMP Bulletin, we selected twenty projects from a field of nearly sixty candidates. It was a tough decision and we thank all those who submitted their work. We hope you will enjoy reading about the projects featured in print and here on the ASMP Web site.
25th anniversary of the Calendar of Wooden Boats
2007 will mark the 25th anniversary of Benjamin Mendlowitz’s Calendar of Wooden Boats. Over the years, Mendlowitz has honed his skills and gained considerable success by taking ownership of a niche subject.
Portrait of Benjamin Mendlowitz © Louise Rothery
All other images in this article © Benjamin Mendlowitz
ASMP: How long have you been in business?
BM: 28 years.
ASMP: How long have you been an ASMP member?
BM: 28 years.
Moonbeam IV
ASMP: What are your photographic specialties?
BM: Yachting photography, specifically classic wooden boats and marine scenics.
ASMP: Please summarize the equipment used in this work.
BM: Up until a year ago, I had been shooting 35mm Velvia film with Nikon F5’s and a lens selection from 24mm through 300mm. I have recently started mixing in digital capture, first with a Nikon D-70 and now with a D-200. With the D-70 I was shooting film as well for most situations, but now with the quality of the images of the D-200 I am shooting less film. I find myself depending more and more on the D-200, especially in marginal or mixed lighting situations where film is at a disadvantage.
Santana
ASMP: What do you feel are your most important considerations when photographing boats and the yachting specialty?
BM: The quality of the subject — boat, sails and equipment. The weather — wind, clouds, water and light. The environment — background setting, color of the water, the people on the boat and what they are wearing.
Saltworks
ASMP: Your specialty in Wooden Boats is very focused. How have you used this to your advantage in your business?
BM: Well, I have produced many products with the theme of “wooden boats” as the key focus of interest, second to the fact that they are my photographs. Whether it is the calendar, cards or books, the title or subtitle of the product always includes the wording “Wooden Boats by Benjamin Mendlowitz.” So I see my audience first as interested in the boats and secondly interested in my personal photographic style.
Vital Spark
ASMP: Are there specific ways that you differentiate yourself and your work from other photographers in your specialty?
BM: I would say that I try to use the quality of the natural light to distinguish my work from others in the marine field. Unlike most other marine photographers, I shy away from extreme wide angle or telephoto lenses that add visual impact to the shots at the expense of distorting the true shape and proportions of the subject boats. Instead I look for my visual impact in the lighting, dramatic clouds and seas or the golden light of early morning and late evening, while showing the subject boat in its true form with a normal to portrait lens.
Peggotty
ASMP: You studied physics in college. How has this informed your photographic work?
BM: It has not really played much of a role, although I suppose I have always been comfortable with the technical aspects of photography. In college, I also minored in documentary filmmaking, where I spent most of my time and effort. This discipline was very helpful, since it taught me available-light techniques and framing/cropping in the camera’s viewfinder. This is important in my work since I am working out on the water and shooting with 35mm cameras for their handling ease and speed. I’m working with a relatively small image area that does not allow for a lot of post-shoot cropping if you want to keep the image quality high; so, as much as possible, I try to do my final framing in the viewfinder.
Juno
ASMP: Are there specific visual attributes or technical details that you find to be most successful in your image making?
BM: Just to touch on the basics of this type of work: If you’ve ever tried to shoot one boat from another, even in a relatively calm sea, you will quickly become aware of the challenges. If you haven’t spent time shooting out on the water, think of trying to capture your favorite sports-action moment, and then visualize that instead of standing on solid ground by the side of the court or field — with a tripod — you are instead standing in the back of a pickup truck traveling off-road over very uneven ground, while it splashes through deep puddles that send mud (really salt) spray at you and your equipment.
So the first technical detail is creating a sharp image by developing “sea legs,” using a high shutter speed and keeping your lens free of salt spray. After that, I think one of the most critical elements is getting in close to the subject and keeping the horizon level. It is very common to see shots of boats that just have too much sky and water in them and with a tilted horizon. You then need to somehow capture the action or scene that you feel with all of your senses, while you are out on the water shooting, for the viewers of your image who will only be using their eyes.
Every scene and shoot is different, and there is much truth in the saying of “being in the right place at the right time.” I keep an eye on the weather and try to work on days when there is something more interesting than blue sky, blue water and gentle wind.
Agnes
ASMP: You’ve been self-publishing the Calendar of Wooden Boats for 25 years. What are the major changes you’ve noticed in publishing and printing during this time?
BM: Well, in publishing it has gotten more difficult. The market has become much more saturated with calendars, so there is more competition and it is harder to get a new one going. The market is also now dominated by large publishers with hundreds of titles, and large store chains (who also publish their own calendars) where a few buyers are making the decision for the majority of the retail outlets in the country. I was fortunate to be established before things became so vertically integrated. If I was starting now, I would seek a relationship with one of the established publishers. As for printing, it has gotten nothing but easier and better to buy and produce high quality color printing, due to improved printing presses and the advent of a completely digital workflow in the pre-press departments. The globalization of the printing market is complete for calendars and photo books, with the vast majority of the work now being produced in Asia.
Rebecca
ASMP: You offer a range of printed products from calendars to greeting cards to prints. How do you market these products?
BM: With the calendar as my first and still central product, I have developed a long list of wholesale outlets, businesses and individuals who purchase my work. I make contact with these customers several times each year through catalogs, e-mails and phone calls.
Brilliant
ASMP: Which of your products is your most popular?
BM: The Calendar of Wooden Boats has been and continues to be the most popular of my products.
Alera
ASMP: You also handle the commercial licensing of your images. Do you find it more advantageous to handle this independently, rather than working with a distributor?
BM: I have tried working with stock agencies but have not had very good luck with them. I feel my work is so specialized, and I have been at it for so long, that if a photo buyer is out there looking for am image of a wooden boat, they are likely to become aware of my work. I have a stock manager, Anita Jacobssen, who handles most of this work for me, and she does a great job of keeping up with researching selections, tracking images that are out for review, and negotiating usage rights.
Aphrodite
ASMP: How do you get property releases for all of the boats you photograph?
BM: I have a small property release on card stock (it is also an offer for a discount on prints) that I can pass to people while I am out on the water. But these days, more often than not, I am working on pre-arranged shoots where I will have time to secure releases as part of the preparation discussion.
Joyant
ASMP: What advice would you give to other photographers interested in self-publishing their photography?
BM: Know your audience, have a plan for marketing the work, don’t compromise on printing quality, and start modestly without too much investment. Note cards are a great way to test the appeal of your work. You can produce them yourself on an Epson printer to get started, and then if they take off, work with a professional printer to learn the ins and outs of this type of production on a fairly modest budget. Calendar production is quite expensive and you have a limited time to sell them before they become obsolete, so you really want to have a good plan in place before you roll the presses! Books are even more expensive to produce, but at least you have many years in which to sell the print run.
Ned Ludd