Questions From You
Bastiaan Woudt
For this edition of the newsletter, I invited you to submit your questions for a Q&A. The responses were diverse and thoughtful, covering topics ranging from technical photography choices to creativity, inspiration, and my approach to work. I selected a range of questions from all the submissions that, together, provide a broad view of how I think and create.
The first five questions are available to everyone. The full set of ten questions and answers is reserved for paid subscribers. I hope this format provides an open glimpse as well as a deeper layer for those who want to explore further. 1. What is your favorite camera and lens for your work?My favorite camera brand is Fujifilm. I switched to Fujifilm when they released the GFX, a medium-format camera that met my needs perfectly and delivered the same quality I had experienced with my Phase One system. In terms of focal length, I mostly work with 80mm and 120mm lenses in medium format. 2. Why do you do what you do?Creating images and being creative every day—whether that’s taking photographs, making books, or producing videos—gives me so much energy that I want to keep doing it for the rest of my life. The magical moment of turning nothing into something continues to fascinate me. That act of creation keeps me engaged and curious, and I expect it will stay with me until the very end. 3. Who are your biggest influences, and who are your favorite photographers at the moment?When I first started photographing, my biggest influences were Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Bill Brandt, and Paolo Roversi, and they still influence me to a certain extent today. They are photographers who changed the course of photography and fashion imagery and were successful in presenting their work as art. I still enjoy looking at their dynamic sense of composition and analog aesthetic. In recent years, I have found myself looking more and more to other forms of art for inspiration, especially painting and architecture. I express my creativity through photography, but that doesn’t mean I need to be inspired only by photographers. I often prefer to draw inspiration from different art forms and translate those ideas back into photography. 4. At what point in your creative journey did you realize that you had “made it”?I don’t think you ever truly feel like you’ve “made it,” and that’s probably a good thing. There’s always a sense that you’re still on your way, still learning, experimenting, and trying new things. If the question is about recognition, a turning point for me was getting my first gallery show. That moment brings acknowledgment from different sources: magazines, curators, and institutions that want to exhibit your work. It shows that your work is strong enough to exist at that level. However, I have never felt that I have arrived or made it. The moment you feel that way suggests an ending. For me, there is no endpoint. You keep evolving and improving. In that sense, I don’t feel like I’ve made it, and I don’t expect that I ever will. 5. Do models have creative input when collaborating, or do they follow certain cues?I enjoy working with models who contribute creatively and approach the shoot as a collaboration. It is important to me that we arrive at something together. I am not the type of photographer who simply dictates what needs to be done and insists that there is only one way to do it. I am always open to suggestions and different perspectives. While I usually know what I’m looking for, I like to leave room for coincidence and the contributions of those around me. This includes the entire team: makeup, styling, and the model. I especially appreciate it when a model shares her own ideas because those moments often lead to results I could not have imagined beforehand. Continue reading this post for free in the Substack app
© 2026 Bastiaan Woudt
|
