Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Freddie B.. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Freddie , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I have always used the camera as a way to capture moments in time I wished to preserve, not only as a way to reminisce and savor that moment at a later time, but a way to share these moments with friends and family. This was most prevalent when I traveled abroad as a solo traveler. During these travels, I used my camera to capture the “moments” I treasured and the beauty of what I saw, be it landscapes, architecture, wildlife, seascapes…virtually anything and everything that “moved” me and elicited within me a sense of awe. The turning point in my artistic photography journey began when I retired from the workforce in 2016 and desired to bring how I viewed the world and all within it to more than just family and friends, in addition to having more control over how I captured images than just letting the camera auto mode take a “picture” of what I pointed at it. So I began attending workshops and taking online courses on how to use my camera outside of the “automatic mode.” Once I learned the various technical aspects of how to capture images in the “manual mode”, i.e. aperture, ISO, shutter speed, “Rule of Thirds”, the “shaping of light” etc., a whole creative world opened up for me, where I had the ability to translate what I saw and “felt” when I viewed my subject through the lens of my camera to those who I shared the final image with…the camera became my “voice” – thus began my journey as a fine art photographer.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

In mid-2013, I decided to break loose from the bonds of the automatic camera mode as to allow myself the freedom to control what I create from what I viewed of the world through the lens of my camera – the creative freedom to fully express my artistic visions and to “speak” through my images.

Being an Aspie (High-functioning Aspergers), I have challenges with my social & communication skills so my camera is my “voice” and where I am most comfortable…a means for me to share the beauty of the world around me and those within it.

After retirement in July 2016; after nearly 30 years of a career that was my “life”, I set forth on my photographic journey to capture such images to evoke emotions, cause reflective thought, and to cause one to gasp from the sheer “depth” of what I create; for this is the photographer I aspire to be and anything less, for me, will not be acceptable.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

To see viewers of my images “feel” the emotion I was attempting to capture and convey with the image – to have them “moved by what they see in my image.

Since I began my aspirations of taking my photography to the next level, I dreamed of becoming a member artist of an art gallery to where a I could display my fine art photography to share my “voice” with those visiting.  This dream came true over a year ago when I was invited and accepted as a member artist of the coop art gallery, Avenue West Gallery in Spokane Washington.  Every month, the art gallery holds two different art gallery receptions, “First Friday” and “Second Saturday” and it is during these times that I have the privilege of witnessing first hand the emotional response to my images by those viewers of them, and to know that I was successful in conveying through my images what I “felt” at the time I captured them.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

For me [as someone with high-functioning autism], communicating and expressing verbally what I feel and desire to express can be challenging. So photography is a medium for me to visually express that of which I desire to share…it is my “voice.”

Contact Info:

• Website: [email protected]
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/freddiebphotography