Poby Reveals His Experience Photographing The World’s Most Decorated Olympians
“If you look at the photos I took of Michael Phelps for the Visa Gold campaign, his expressions reflect why I was hired throughout the massive 3 year campaign. I didn’t just capture the usual, heroic underwater shots, but also a deeper, more thoughtful side of him.”
Action sports and advertising photographer, Poby, reveals, what it was like to work with 2 of the most decorated Olympic athletes, Michael Phelps and Julia Mancuso. Poby’s spectacular work and scrupulous eye for detail are rooted in his contrasting passions for art and competitive sports. His childhood was defined by intense water polo training and playing jazz piano, as well as a curiosity for building underwater camera housings. Poby’s unique talent for blending traditional art and competitive sports creates striking visuals, which ran in some of the most popular TV commercials in the States.
Thank you so much for joining us! How did your unique style lead you to working with Michael Phelps?
M y heart was always in competitive sports and the arts, but the two worlds never blended. After 5 hours of water polo training, it was difficult for me to play jazz piano, or work on a painting with shaky hands. I was 24 years old and already photographing the Olympic games and world championships, when I decided to study graphic design and arts in Düsseldorf, Germany. This insight enabled me to look beyond merely glorifying toughness of sports in my photographs. I started focusing on more sensitive aspects, such as the athlete’s preparations and emotional journey during highly competitive events. If you look at the photos I took of Michael Phelps for the Visa Gold campaign, his expressions reflect why I was hired throughout the massive 3 year campaign. I didn’t just capture the usual, heroic underwater shots, but also a deeper, more thoughtful side of him. In Photography I had found the medium for blending my two lifelong passions; the toughness of sports with the more playful side of arts.
Tell us a little more about how you got get the perfect shot of Michael Phelps for Visa Gold. What was it like, working with him?
Since I used to be a water sports athlete for team Germany, the photo shoot with Michael Phelps was a highlight in my career. Of course we treated the session with utmost respect to make sure everything worked out perfectly. The set was his home pool in Baltimore, where he normally trains. I brought in twelve 2000 Watts studio lights, and a film truck with personnel to safely illuminate the pool. Michael said “Listen, if I go into the pool for just a photo shoot without training, I’ll get cold quickly, and I can’t afford to catch a cold. Just tell me how many times you need me to repeat the moves, and I’ll deliver.” Phelps swam four half lapse of each discipline, which isn’t much, but because it’s Michael Phelps, all shots came out perfectly. The shot of Phelps was to be used for a very high resolution ad campaign. I couldn’t simply use a camera that shoots 10 frames per second. It takes a while for a high resolution camera to digest the large amounts of image data. I had to work with only 1 frame per second, so I had to capture Michael at the absolutely perfect moment as he was speeding by.
SNOW magazine’s 2018 winter issue released a few days ago. Your cover shot is gorgeous!
Thank you! I captured olympic skier, Julia Mancuso, at the “ice Q” gourmet restaurant, which was the spectacular shooting location for the James Bond film, “Spectre”, in 2015. Seven days of fast paced action went into this unusual, and adventurous photo and film shoot in Austria. I normally don’t go on set without a crew, but for this journey with Julia, we had to move swiftly to cover five cities within a week. We only spent 24–36 hours in each location and the photo and film content had to be perfectly captured, edited and delivered along the way.
How did the story “Hip Tips & Tales” with olympic skier, Julia Mancuso, come together? What was it like working with her?
Olympic athletes are generally on a very tight schedule. Between moving from their sponsored car, to preparations, meditation, and the training event, they never get a chance to experience all the sights and luxuries of their destination. For the first time, Julia was able to absorb Austria from a different angle. She experienced a medieval castle, historic cities, the modern, “Spectre” focused James Bond museum atop snow covered Gaislachkogl summit, and she even climbed up a snow covered summit herself! Julia is a multi athlete, so there is never a “No” for her. She conquered technically challenging slopes, and it was still April when we took the shots, so the snow was slushy and difficult to work with. But Julia has an amazing capability of throwing herself into the scenario, and taking directions extremely well under any circumstance. She was fantastic to work with. Of the many top athletes I photographed in my life, Julia is one of the most balanced. She is superb in her sports on the highest level, and knows how to live life in the most fun ways.
What is your most recent project you worked on? What is the story behind it?
A huge campaign I recently shot for, which is also currently running, is for USA Swim. The campaign encourages children to pursue sports, alongside school studies, and swimming is the featured example. The message is not for kids to have to be training for a lifetime career, but just get used to having fun in the water. We filmed a TV commercial with 15 kids and 6 Olympic athletes, followed by a photographic campaign based on the same shoot. One of the photographs ended up getting animated into a looping video using the Plotaverse software. They wanted to replace the still image on their website with a Plotagraph to get more attention on the campaign.
How did you approach photographing the Olympians during their everyday routine?
Having trained water polo for the German team throughout my youth, it’s very easy for me to connect with famous athletes. Some people are shy, or overly respectful about approaching celebrities. For me, talking to world class athletes comes rather naturally, and I sometimes lean towards a boisterous approach. I crack a few jokes and quickly find something to chat about, because I know what it’s like to win, or fail or train 5–6 hours a day. I can empathize with the athletes.
A big and exciting project was the the Visa Gold campaign. They had booked me for the summer and winter Olympics, photographing the Visa athletes everywhere from Munich to Monaco, to the USA, including Hawaii. I was hired to accompany the athletes and capture material from their daily routine. What this really means is that I couldn’t just get myself involved, but I had to rely on my experience to capture the athletes in the right moments. The snap shots had to be grand enough to fit the prestigious campaign. Turns out that they were so happy with the photos, that some of them were animated for TV commercials, broadcasted during the Olympic games. A variety of techniques were used to bring the photos to life. But that was before the Plotaverse motion art software was on the market.
What advice would you give a young aspiring artists for developing their style and career path?
The technology behind cameras is rapidly evolving. Anybody can take beautiful pictures, so you want to be able to offer clients an alternative. Combining my two very different passions for sports and arts has created my signature style. You have to have a deep love for what you do to get out of bed every morning. Nurture your sense for detail. Go out every day with a new way of looking at things. Never rest on your skill set, but be open to learning new methods. Always be on standby and ready to deliver.
You are known in the Plotaverse motion art community as one of the very first users of the Plotagraph technology. How did you come to use it and how is it benefitting you?
Two years ago, when Plotagraph was still in development, a fellow photographer showed me a small article about this new software that could animate a still photo. I found out later from the co-founder of Plotagraph, now Plotaverse, Troy Christopher Plota, that I was one of the first, if not the very first person to purchase the software. I didn’t even know much about it, but it made sense to me. I’m always up for trying something new. You have to be open to acquiring the latest in technology to stay on top fo your game. After 30 years as a photographer, we can’t afford to say, ‘this is too new for me, I’m not really into it’. I use Plotaverse to blow life into action shots with a realistic appearance. A photo that’s set into motion with Plotagraph pulls the viewer into an endless loop of that captured moment, creating a hypnotizing, zen-like effect. The photo is no longer a snap shot, but a looping Plotagraph. It feels like you’re drawn into the matrix with a hyper slow motion replay of the captured moment, and you’re in the middle of it, standing still in time. A company I recently shot for, ended up replacing their originally planned 3D composition with my Plotagraph. USA Swim had me animate the shot of the boy falling into the water to add enticing, dynamic content on their website.
Is there a particular person that made a profound difference in your life to whom you are grateful?
I get inspiration from a variety of people. Anyone from friends, family to a random friendly stranger brightening my day with exceptional courtesy. I met so many inspiring people who are dedicated to living their lives in a different way. It can, but doesn’t always have to be a celebrity or high performance, gold medal winning sports hero. I try to take a little bit away from all the different positive influences.
What are 5 things you wish someone told you when you first started and why?
At 21, I was the youngest intern at a big sports picture agency in Germany, and the youngest photographer shooting world championship events. Perfect shots were always expected. Anything less than perfect was treated like a crisis. When you shoot for big ad campaigns, you really have to know what you’re doing to capture the perfect, high resolution action shot. Failing is not an option when you work with a $500k production and 20–70 people on set. You can never be too prepared. Arrive earlier than everybody else. Know the set with an eye for detail. If you’re overly prepared, you won’t be nervous. Surround yourself with capable people. Your shots are only as good as your team.
If you could have a private lunch with one of the world’s most prominent or influential personalities, who would that be, and why?
I am not trying to live my life like anyone, or follow any footsteps, but a person I can see myself get along with is Sir Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group. He is shaking up the ways companies have been doing business for so many years. He has flipped conventional strategies upside down and creates such a variety of new approaches. He is a fascinating person, who adds an interesting train of thought to the most common processes and turns them into something hip and new.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
@Poby, plotaverse.com |@thePoby, Instagram |@Peter Poby, Facebook
Thank you so much for this inspiring interview!
