Nathan attributes much of his creative expression and love of photography to his parents. He was fascinated with his mother’s collection of images captured during countless family road trips. Add to that his father’s collection of photographs taken during his tour in the Vietnam War. As a result, Nathan’s creative work carries a heavy sense of familiarity, nostalgia, and connection. It was during his first family trip to Tasmania that he found himself wanting to get involved in documenting the experience and the art of image making.
Nathan vividly recalls the first photo that made him realise the power of the craft - a shot of a street artist completing a work. Nathan was in Year 9, around 14 years old, at the time, and believes that was the turning point in his photographic journey. Nathan’s first digital camera was a Canon 1000D - he has since turned the disused body into a pot plant in his backyard. Nathan humbly describes himself as a self-taught photographer who also appreciated the handful of arts-based teachers from his secondary school, who pushed him in the right direction to take up the craft.
It’s fair to say that Nathan’s family inspiration and his desire to make something of photography drove his success. Nathan recalls being told by a career guidance teacher that his photos weren’t good enough. Regardless, he pushed ahead and commenced with the Photographic Imaging College to study the craft in greater detail for two years. He discovered that the travel demands of commuting to a new college location in town opened up his awareness of all that Melbourne had to offer. Melbourne is a vast, multicultural, and diverse city with numerous historical and culturally significant areas. During his course, Nathan discovered a wide range of photography styles and was encouraged to fully explore the craft, taking his camera wherever he went. He still carries a camera wherever he goes and will walk into the CBD of Melbourne with the basics - keys, wallet, phone, and, of course, a camera. It’s an excellent approach to exploring any location, free from distractions and carrying only the bare essentials. It’s an approach that I often take to my street photography.
Nathan is currently working as a volume photographer for Arthur Reed Photography, which is a renowned school and event photographic team. Past The Camera Life guest Mark Hoot’bloofd works alongside Nathan at ARP - it was Mark who recommended we get Nathan on the show. Thanks for the excellent recommendations, Mark!. Nathan is one of many creative photographers who also generate income with volume photography work throughout the peak seasons of the year. Nathan is often required to travel to both city and regional locations for events and school jobs. The journey to and from opens up the opportunities to capture the light in new ways. As a result, Nathan has discovered many amazing back-road locations around Victoria and Australia.
During his time on The Camera Life, Nathan discussed his work and his love of road trips to new locations around Australia. He would live out of his car, with mattresses in the back, and simply go where the road led. As part of the creative process, Nathan would create purposeful projects to photograph unique locations and events, while also spending time learning the town's history from residents. For Nathan, it’s more about the trip and the incidentals along the way, over the final destination. While Nathan shoots with a Canon 1DX and a Fujifilm, he’s not a technical photographer and is happy to work with whatever camera he has with him at the time. Even if that camera is his smartphone, it’s an admirable approach to a craft where all too often, gear limitations inspire deeper levels of mindfulness and greater levels of creativity.
Nathan has been working on a personal photography project to reignite his passion and create a mindful and expressive body of work. Nineteen-Nineteen is a self-imposed project to develop a collection of images taken from the 19th of one month to the 19th of the next. He discovered that the project heightened his passion for photography and encouraged him to try something new each month. The project is now in its third year, and Nathan finds it a manageable process that allows for creative freedom.
“Nineteen-Nineteen is a series I've been focusing on, which has brought me back to my roots of photography. The purpose of this project was to continue to photograph everyday sights and continue to train my eye. Just like I did back when I first picked up a camera. I started this project on the 19th August 2022, and coincidentally, I went to make a post on Instagram a month later on the same date, which has led me to run with the name Nineteen-Nineteen. Since that first date in August 2022, I have continued to share what I have photographed in a month from the 19th to the 19th.”
If you’re unfamiliar with The Camera Life Podcast, be sure to take a look at our YouTube channel for the latest episodes and, of course, our back catalogue of weekly shows. Our shows are also available on popular audio podcast platforms. If you like what you see, please give us a thumbs up, subscribe to The Camera Life, and click on the bell icon to receive notifications of upcoming shows. We host two shows weekly, the first being every Thursday at 9am AEDT (Australia), where we interview amazing guests. The second show, The Random Photography Show, airs every Monday at 7:30 pm AEDT. The Random Photography show is a little random, a little loose, and a lot of fun! Be sure to check them out.
Find Nathan Online:
Website: https://nathanccp.myportfolio.com/work
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nathanccp
