Getting to Know - Linus Moran Photography

Interview with: Linus Moran

Company Name: Linus Moran Photography

Location / Coverage: Dorset, southern England, UK and abroad.

How did your business get started and who works at Linus Moran Photography?

I launched my wedding photography business in 2010 after returning from living and working in Eastern Europe. I had a 15 year career working for the leading Fleet Street titles supplying news and features photography in the UK, along with running my own agency based in the Balkans.

We are a husband and wife team, with my wife Moni handling all client viewings, products and wedding album production.

Had you always wanted to be a photographer?

No — like some others I didn’t have a clue what direction I was heading in, and I didn’t feel that I shone in other subjects I studied at school. It was only when I started 6th form college that I opted to enrol on a photography GCSE, got the bug and started buying all the gear. I set up a B&W darkroom at home in the bedroom and built on things from there. Picking up a grade A led to me pursuing higher education and a full time career.

Can you remember how old you were when you took your first picture? What was it of?

My interest in photography started when I was 17 having picked up a girlfriend’s Practica she received for Christmas. This coincided with the great storms of 1987, so it was a great news job to start my career, documenting it’s trail of destruction.

Which areas of the UK do you cover?

Southern England, Dorset / Somerset, but will travel the UK and selected destinations.

What do you feel sets you apart from other wedding photographers?

The acquired skills and experience gained through working on the National titles. I’ve experienced all manner of situations / conditions and have never had the opportunity to not deliver winning imagery.

I’m the first to admit taking for granted what I learnt from Fleet St, preferring to say that the last four years has been the sharpest learning curve so far. Yet, it is experience that shapes me and in a way defines my approach and style.

How would you describe your photography style?

Documentary, natural and relaxed. Catching it how it is — this is where I am most comfortable. Treating every wedding like a news event, honing in on emotion, and capturing the connection between bride and groom, family and guests.

What packages do you offer and what are your rates?

My coverage starts at £995 for a simple limited hours digital service, through to £2.5k all inclusive of photofilm and Folio wedding album collection. Individual quotations can be provided upon request.

What is the best thing about your job?

People — meeting them and sharing and capturing their day. What an environment to be in with so much positive energy and optimism surrounding it.

Do you have a specialist area of photography?

People. Ask me to do a landscape and I’m lost. Put someone in that landscape and its completely different; things come to life!

Who/what are your influences?

My eyes — everything I see and experience. I’m not one to profess following particular photographers or artists. I think most people are capable of delivering the odd masterpiece, all deserving of appreciation. However, wedding photographers that I regularly keep up with are Neale James, Kevin Mullins, and Ed Peers, to name a few.

Do you have a favourite picture that you have taken (If you can choose!)?

This one…

What is your top tip for choosing a wedding photographer?

Research them well, whether it’s online or, better still, talking or meeting with them. For me weddings are all about connection, and strong wedding photography aims to capture this. It seems obvious to seek out photographers that you can identify and connect with.

This is not a reference to do with the photographer being in your company all day at the wedding (they are an employed service, not a buddy), more the case that shared character traits such as sense of humour, deliver a certain edge, often presented in the finished wedding photography.

Proven experience has shown me that connection has led to being more proficient in observing, anticipating and capturing events as they unfold, resulting in those classic images my clients love, often reflected in testimonials of “How did you get that?” and “we didn’t even know you were there!”

Random question… What was the best Christmas present you’ve received?

I’ve never been big on having a Christmas list as anything I want or need is often purchased as and when; I suppose that’s the result of being in a techie profession!

Small things and the thought behind them are what matter to me. So with this in mind, it has to be a present I got a few years back that turned out to be both the best and worst.

A CD of Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros. I love music (live bands were where I cut my teeth as a professional photographer), but had lost track of Joe Strummer’s career after The Clash, so this CD was a real joy to add to the collection. The downside was that Joe had passed away only days before.