by Yvette Depaepe
Published: 23rd March 2020

Arnon Orbach  likes to focus essentially on urban structures giving him the ability to take a detail out of context and giving it a total new meaning.  He is happy with every photo that expresses his very own way to see the world.  His photographic vision is based on cropping images correctly – an art on its own. Arranging elements in a given area by strong compositions and using colours is his way to attract viewers and arouse emotions.
Enjoy this interview and Arnon's work.
(Scroll down to the end for more images) 

'Freedom 2'

To start with, I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to be interviewed, I feel very honoured and I truly appreciate it. 

1x is a big comfort for me and for all photographers in these difficult times the world goes through.

I was born and raised in Tel Aviv 73 years ago. I owe my passion for Art and Aesthetics to my parents who had a graphic design studio during my formative years and then my father founded an art printing shop to produce lithographs for artists, and print art catalogues and art books. We had an impressive library of art and photography books at home which were my growing up friends.

My father loved photography and used to take photos to document our life. He bought me my first Nikon camera when I was 15 and I quickly developed a passion for photography.
I stayed a loyal Nikon man all my life.

At the age of 20, I went to London to study art printing and design. After graduation I went back to Tel Aviv and joined my father business. While working at my father’s place I studied comparative literature and philosophy at Tel Aviv University

At the age of 27, I co-founded Monitin, Israel’s first monthly life-style magazine. Shortly thereafter, in 1977 I moved to London and co-founded a publishing company that specializes in illustrated non-fiction books and worked as a MD. Subsequently I served as Director in Goldcrest Television Productions.

In 1994, I relocated to Israel and founded a records company.
In 2006 I joined Indivisual as a partner and CEO. This company is specialized in producing quality niche content to on-demand platforms around the world.

I am retired few years ago. During these years I volunteered regularly in a Hospice for children with cancer as therapist in healing. I also photographed all the events and family requests in the Hospice.

I am also proud to be one of the founders of The Israeli Creative Photography club where the members are from the Arab, Druze and Jews communities of the Israeli society.

In all the companies that I worked in, I always had also the role of Creative and Art director. In my publishing company we used about 10,000 photos each year for our books. 80% was bought from libraries like Image bank and the rest were commissioned specially from photographers. I briefed the photographers, the picture editors and the designers to approve the final selection. I learned that cropping a photo correctly is an art on its own. It is all about arranging elements in a giving area in such a way that they create a composition which attracts the viewer and offer a new interpretation of a familiar scene. And colours that for me are tools to arouse emotions.

I find that photography gives me the ability to take a detail out of context which, when I succeed, gives it a new meaning.
I am very happy with every photo that expresses my way of seeing the world, which everyone sees a bit different as everyone brings himself to the frame.

I believe that our work is the outcome of all our life experiences as Ansel Adams said '... the pictures we have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved’

My greatest joy is travelling abroad, walking many hours each day and photographing. I prefer to shoot urban textures and architectures most, also like to shoot landscape & nature, but I feel that I have less to contribute there.

I never been good at technology and I don’t utilize my camera fully, but I feel that my strength is in composition, colours and the relations between elements in a confined space.

Recently I started taking lessons in Photoshop and I use it to some extend although I hope to be able to do more with it.

My main camera is Nikon D750 I use only 2 lenses, one is the Nikon 24-70mm 2.8F that I use for 80% of my photos and the other is Nikon 70-200mm 2.8F

I rarely plan what I will shoot, I travel in a city by foot and stop wherever I see something that I like (I am a very lucky person as Michal, my wife, has all the patience in the world for my photography). I do not try to document a place but to show it as I see it.

Picasso once said: 'I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them'.

I am quite influenced by my studies and reading of philosophy, and the issue of "do we see what we think we see". In the early 80s we published a book called “Mind watching”, which gave the most profound experiments in psychology. One of them was "I witness testimony" which shows that if you ask 10 people to observe a scene and ask them to describe what they saw you will probably get 10 versions of the scene. So, I feel free to present my work as I see it.

I tried to comply with the request to show my most favourite photo. I have several favourites and they of course relate to the emotions they arouse in me. So, I chose the first photo I uploaded to 1X.

'Urban texture – Amalfi coast Italy'

Taken in Maiori in Amalfi coast Italy in 2015. I love urban textures in old cities and the way the shadows and light interplay

I travel abroad 3 to 4 times each year, twice to the USA to my daughter in California (married to a professional still photographer) and then to my son in New York (Director of photography for films and TV. Was the DP of Orange is the new black and recently of The Deuce series). All I want is to be able to continue travelling and photographing what I have done till now but hopefully much better.

As a youngster at home I looked at my father’s photography albums and was very inspired. Most dealt with subjects like fashion, portraits, photojournalism, street scenes.

Photographers who influenced me, not in style but in appreciation of what is good work, are photographers like Man Ray, Annie Leibovitch, Robert Mapplethorpe, Steve McCurry, Robert Doisneau and many more.

I must say that for me 1X has some of the finest photographers I came across. I am very pleased to have access to such a great library of photographs. I enjoy looking every day at new photos uploaded on the site and relate to them. I learn a lot from the other photographers in 1X.
To me 1X is a home for my work and I hope to continue enjoying my good experience with 1X.

'Chasing the ball'

'Urban texture – Jaffa Tel Aviv Israel'

'Urban texture – Down town Los Angeles'

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'Bus – Abbot Kinney Festival Venice California'

'Atrani beach – Italy'

'Urban texture – West Ireland'

'Urban texture – Croatia'

'inner vs outer space – Tokyo Japan'

'Made in Japan – Tokyo Japan'

'Up up and away – Rishon LeZion'

'Urban texture – Herzliya'

'Shibuya Tokyo, Japan'

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