Edward:  Welcome to Connex 247 family Mark! Tell us about yourself

Mark:  Thank you and thanks for showing interest in me! I live now in Lagos, on the Algarve in Portugal. I am English though and was born in London, UK, where I lived until I moved here just over 8 years ago.

My “day” job is running a small holiday village with my photography becoming an increasingly strong secondary activity.

Edward:  How do you define your style and how did you become interested in a career as a photographer?

Mark: I would not really call it a career at the present as I only shoot for my own enjoyment and hopefully to provide images of use to the model. However I am intending to see if my photographs can be of more productive use in the next year or so.   I guess if I have a style it is to try to capture the seductive or sensual side of the male.

Since I almost always use the stunning locations I have to hand here on the Algarve, it seems a natural thing to do. I also find there is an abundance of male images “in control” of their environment and I like to see images where the male is perhaps in harmony with the elements or at least affected by them.

Edward:  Tell us about some of your current/future projects

Mark:  I have just finished shooting a wonderful model from the Netherlands –Chiel Ebbelaar – who I found to be very inspirational to work with and I am hoping to repeat that experience soon as we were not able to complete our “wish list” in the week he was here. We are hoping to do a small series of images based on Greek Myths but I have do a bit of research first and acquire some better styling skills or a stylist!

Edward:  Do you think that digital era really helped the photographers concerning aspects like quality and technology?

Mark:  I dabbled in photography in the pre-digital era and of course it was far more time consuming and expensive to learn from mistakes at that time!I think the digital era opens up photography to people with less technical knowledge (like me) and allows for more experiments away from the norm. Of course digital enhancement and modifications of the image have created a whole new genre, though my personal taste is to prefer images that are not distorted greatly from the shot taken.

Edward:  In a society we live IMAGE is worth more than a THOUSAND WORDS? Why?

Mark:  Marketing is so sophisticated and there are so many subliminal messages within some images that a lot can be “said”. However I also think we have so much information and entertainment to hand these days that our attention span is getting less and subsequently we are less inclined to read, especially longer messages.  However the advent of the internet and the digital age plus phone cams, etc has also led to perhaps an overload of images so I maybe we are also getting desensitized to images as well!

Edward: I’m sure you might have some unusual/funny backstage stories. Share some of them with us

Mark: I was amused to find myself the subject of some tourist’s cameras when shooting on location in a local village however I guess the most surprising event came when we chose a very high rock for a model to stand on for a shot, at the edge of the ocean.

He climbed up one side of the rock, discarded his towel and then I moved to the other side to take the shot to find a very surprised and somewhat disturbed fisherman staring at a very naked model. I am not sure that he went on to catch much that day but I think it could have led to a new slant on the fisherman’s tale “it was this….. big…..”

Edward: There must be special moments when you feel that you have  captured a perfect picture... Share this passion with us. How does this special moment happen?

Mark:  Most of the time I work with models who have traveled here to stay for a few days or a week, so in most cases I get to know them quite well before a shoot. In a few cases I feel a strong empathy with a model and usually then the shots have a special feel to them. If a model has trouble showing the sensitive or sensual side of his personality and then succeeds, it is a hugely satisfying and special feeling, both for the model and myself.

I call those special images the “wow” shots and of course they don’t happen on every shoot. Also I have come to realize that sometimes the shots that made me go “wow” do not have the impact with other people that I hoped for and some others that I thought were more ordinary meet with more response.

Edward:  What would u say is the key of the success? In your opinion, what are the upside and downside of a modeling career and photographer´s career?

Mark: I don’t think I am qualified to comment on either as a career but as an interest or pastime for a photographer the upside is meeting some great guys and when all goes well, seeing their pleasure at the end product and for myself, capturing their beauty.

From talking to my models, the downside is of course the fickle nature of the industry and the fact that they need to have resilient egos to take all the inevitable knock backs. For those interested in the creative process there can be a lot of satisfaction.

Edward:  Mark, thanks so much for sharing your story with us.  Please, give some hints for the models and leave your info contact.

Mark:  For new models I would say always check thoroughly that you like your photographer´s style of work and don’t expect them to change their genré for you! Maybe contact past models before committing to a shoot. Even if you are very result oriented, try to enjoy the journey while thinking of the destination nonetheless.

Anyone interested can see more of my work at my web site www.markleightonphotos.com and if they wish, can leave me a message there. Any models interested in visiting Portugal for a joint shoot and holiday are particularly welcome to contact me!