If you have visited the Homewood campus in the past 25 years, chances are you’ve encountered university photographer Will Kirk ’99. With his signature beard, Chicago Cubs cap, and ample camera equipment slung across his back, Kirk can be hard to miss.
Still, he has perfected the fine art of being practically invisible while capturing engaging shots of the vibrant research and scholarship happening across Johns Hopkins. We caught up with Kirk recently to ask him about best practices in photography and his tenure at Hopkins.
What advice would you to give to budding photographers?
Shoot, shoot, and shoot some more. When I was starting out that is all I did. It’s also important to seek out constructive criticism; don’t be afraid to show people your work and get feedback. Also, be aware of everything that is in the frame, not just the subject. How does the subject interact with the background? For portraits, I generally don’t want the background to distract from the subject, so I’ll choose a background that isn’t too busy. The background can be a part of the story about the subject though, so sometimes it should be more prominent.
In either case, the background is an important choice early in the process. If I’m shooting events, I try to capture audience reactions as well as the speaker’s mannerisms. If the subject is a still life or something like a landscape or architecture, I walk around it for a long time to make sure I know all of the angles. Background matters there, too. If I’m shooting a classroom or a research lab, I try to be a fly on the wall so as not to interfere. My goal is to capture students learning—that look of fascination they get.
How do you make sure you have the right lighting?
Sometimes you just have to work with where you are. With other shoots, you can have more control. I prefer sunny days because the interplay between the light and shadows is more interesting than the gray days, but cloudy days are often easier. Noon is when I don’t like to shoot because of the light coming down on people’s heads and removing the texture that gets revealed with the raking light of a morning or late afternoon sun.
What are some of your favorite places or events to shoot?
Oh wow, that’s a hard one because there is so much variety. I would say I like to shoot the outdoor pre-orientation where incoming students go camping, hiking, and kayaking. And of course, I never get tired of shooting Commencement— everyone is in a great mood. On a few occasions, families have hired a mariachi band for their graduates. I really enjoy those days when I can get to campus early and walk around as it comes to life for the day and continue to capture the daily life cycle of university life.
Photo by Will Ki
Photo by Will Kirk
Photo by Will Kirk
