Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeff Galfer.
Jeff, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
A little over a decade ago, I picked up a camera as a way to distract myself from debilitating depression. I had always been fascinated and drawn to photography, but it took an immense amount of pain to force me into trying it out.
I started with one simple rule. GET OUT OF THE HOUSE. Shoot anything and everything as long as I was out of the house and moving around. This led me to various neighborhoods in New York – where I lived at the time – and allowed me to explore places I had never been.
Since then, photography has served as a healing device. I still have a career as an actor, but acting has a lot of business aspects that suck the fun and joy out of it. Photography is the escape – the art form in my life that allows me to distract my mind from my mind. A way for me to be alone, explore, and interact with the world in ways I never would if I didn’t have the camera in my hand.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I don’t think any artistic endeavor is a smooth road.
At first, shooting photos was thrilling. There was no business involved – so I didn’t have to worry about being a salesman or setting rates. I could simply enjoy shooting for what it was.
Also, when you start as a photographer, you think you are a genius. And that feeling is nice. You aren’t, of course, but you think you are and the fantasy that you are producing imagery the world has never seen before is exhilarating.
Then reality sinks in and you realize you have no idea what you are doing and you have no idea what makes a good photo and you feel completely overwhelmed by the technique of photography. It’s unsettling, to say the least.
The advent of social media only made things exponentially more challenging because there is a compulsion to compare yourself to others, which is totally and utterly useless – as much so as it is counterproductive.
The good news is, you eventually get to a point where you once again begin to explore – like you did when you first picked up the camera. And that’s when it gets exciting again.
What should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
My company is me. I shoot wherever and whenever I can.
I’ve done work in all areas – corporate, product, lifestyle, portraiture, architectural, and now dog portraiture.
I love shooting people. I love shooting street scenes. I have a tendency to shoot with an almost geometric approach – so you’ll see a lot of lines and shapes and interesting architectural structures in my work. I also am drawn to moody scenes that borderline on surreal – probably because I’m a bit moody myself and appreciate that world.
Lately, my work as a dog photographer has been taking off – primarily because I’m dedicated to capturing a dog’s essence in the exact same way – both emotionally and technically – that I would capture a person’s essence. It gives the dog portraits a certain human quality that is both artistic and soulful.
As far as what sets me apart from others, I am obsessive in my desire to deliver something that is meaningful, deliberate, and of top quality. You will not see a difference in my work for jobs that I have donated for free to jobs in which I have charged a considerable amount of money. I care an immense amount about my work and what I’m able to do for a client regardless of the size of the job.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
My brother and I put on a photo show together here in Los Angeles. It was about our troubled friendship and how we repaired our relationship through our mutual love of photography.
We did this by pairing one photo of his and one photo of mine as a set. And we did this over and over again until we had roughly 30 sets.
We were one of the first Kickstarter campaigns back in 2012 and we exceeded our goal in a matter of days. Turns out that many, many people related to the troubles that siblings struggle with and they wanted to be part of that story of healing.
My father passed away during the process of making that show, but not before he got to see my brother and I substantially repair our relationship. That was as rewarding of an experience as they get, I think.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.jeffgalferphotography.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @jeffgalfer AND @thepetprojectco
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/jeffgalferphotography
- Twitter: @jeffgalfer
Image Credit:
Jeff Galfer Photography
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