Indie Spotlight: Tony Pulokas

Each month, we’ll highlight one indie photographer whose body of work deserves special recognition. Please enjoy their photography here, and make it a point to enjoy the rest of their work on their website.

This month we’re featuring Tony Pulokas.

About 15 years ago Tony’s philosophy was to take very few pictures when on a vacation.  He thought it was better to enjoy things in the now rather than worry about saving them for later.  However, about this time he began to be intrigued by the manual SLR cameras that some of his friends had.  When they let him play with these toys, he discovered that you could create some very intimate and creative views of the world.

He soon got an SLR of his own, and photography became quite a hobby.  However, things really took off about five years ago when he finally dove into the world of digital photography.  Digital really made it possible to try endless experiments with the camera.  With digital, he also got involved in sharing his photos on Flickr.  This has probably been his biggest inspiration.  If you look for them, you can find so many amazing photographers on Flickr, and it’s fascinating how each has a style of his or her own.  Tony loves to view others’ work, and it challenges him to try some of the approaches that they’ve used and to always improve his own vision.

At this point Tony’s former attitude toward photography has been turned completely around.  He now find the camera to be a primary way in which he connects with the natural world.  He finds it helps him to explore, searching for hidden views and subtle points of beauty.  He notes how the gradual change of the seasons affect the photo possibilities.  Taking pictures of the plants, animals, rocks, water, and weather inspires him to learn more about them, and vice versa.

It might seem like the camera is a tool for simple literal recordings of the world.  But Tony finds that it can also have endlessly creative uses when he plays with the mysterious world of reflections, intimate macro details, or the different kinds of blur.  It’s a challenge and it’s his fun.

Check out more of Tony’s favorite shots here.