We are very happy to present to you 1x photographer of the week Adrian Donoghue!  Adrian is a brilliant creative edit photographer with a street/urban touch and a distinguished surreal style and he's one of the photographers with the most photos published on 1x.



Follow through Adrian's looking glass and let his imagination take you onto a journey, there are more photos by the end of the interview! Big thanks to Yvette Depaepe for interviewing Adrian!

Briefly tell us about yourself, your hobbies and other jobs.

When I’m not taking photographs, I work as a Clinical Psychologist in private practice. There is not much time for other hobbies at present, however I will return to the garden when I retire.

How has your history and life experiences affected your photography?

A recurring theme in much of my photography is the isolated person in an alienating urban landscape. This is not a conscious choice, but something I am emotionally drawn to. It could reflect the nature of my paid work and be a pictorial representation of my clients’ emotional journies. On the other hand, the isolated person may also be me, after all, I spend many hours wandering the streets of Melbourne by myself. I’ll leave it up to the psychoanalysts to sort that one out.

Describe your overall photographic vision.

I am essentially a photographer who loves photographing, and walking through, urban landscapes. Using these captures as a platform, I then try to create an air of mystery and intrigue by blurring the line between reality and fantasy; my goal being that the viewer will struggle to see where one starts, and the other finishes.

What first attracted you to photography?

I have loved photography since my childhood. The magic of permanently capturing a moment in time has been there from the start. I also love cameras, I would have loved to own a SLR as a younger person, butI could never afford it. One advantage of being ‘old’ is that I can now own, and play with, these beautiful machines.

Why are you so drawn to creative edit photography?

I returned to photography in the early 2000’s, just at the start of the digital revolution, so digital capture and postprocessing seemed a natural seamless combination. Although I still love the idea of a single capture street photograph, I also love the creative power of imagining photographs inside my head. I also find it very satisfying and challenging to be able to manage a sophisticated tool like Photoshop.

What is more important to you, the story behind an image or the technical perfection?

Both are important, whenever you put a person in an image there is automatically a story. Post processing will influence the interpretation of this story by creating mood and context. One certain way of disrupting this process is to have technically imperfect creative images; there’s nothing worse than images that look like a scrapbook cut and paste.

What generally is your relationship to your subject matter beyond being an observer?

Most of my subject material is taken in and around Melbourne. Over many years of walking through this city, I have come to know it intimately. As a younger person, the city was a large somewhat scary place, now, after so many kilometers walked, I am very comfortable in this place and it really feels like home.

Who are your favorite photographers and more importantly, how has your appreciation of their work affected how you approach your own photography?

A lot of my favourite photographers have appeared on the 1X website; there are many I admire, however I love the quirkiness and imagination of Ben Goosens’s work, the colours, creativity and femininity of Ambra’s work, and the creative technical precision of Tommy Ingberg’s work.

Is there any specific photo taken by another photographer that has inspired you more than others and why?

I have always loved ‘The Visit’, an early work by Tommy Ingberg. I love the story told in this picture, just by showing that leg leaving the car, so full of mystery and intrigue.

Are there any specific directions that you would like to take your photography in the future or any specific goals that you wish to achieve?

My major goal is to improve, and to take my best photograph (I hope I haven’t already taken it). I don’t have a conscious direction, however looking back over the past 10 years, my photography has certainly taken a direction. The fact that I don’t consciously know what direction I will take, is probably half the fun.

Describe your favorite photograph taken by you and why it is special to you?

Often, my favourite photographs only get a moderate response on the internet or do nothing in competition, however I still enjoy them.  ‘You lookin’ at me?’ is an early work that is a combination of original capture, plus some mild post processing, I think it captures a nice moment in time.