Trent Mitchell is an Australian-based photographer focusing on people, movement, water and light. In this short film he talks about his experimental pursuits with the medium of photography. The film documents the creative process Mitchell takes to achieve his latest bodysurf series: Inner Atlas.
Can you tell us some insights into your creative process?
The biggest part of my creative process is surprisingly doing nothing. I fight hard to “denoise” my life so I can gain the time and space to let creativity flow. I value this space and time very highly. It’s when I find my moments of clarity, purpose and motivation. These are things that can’t be forced, bought or borrowed from other places. They have to come from within and allow the space to reveal itself at the right times. From this space I find ideas and take action. I find motivation within action itself and gain momentum from writing things down, practicing technical things, drawing, conceptualising and generally being hands on. It’s after all of this time and small actions I’ll then pick up a camera and really chase a concept. After a phase of shooting, say it could be six weeks of shooting, I’ll just shoot and shoot and collect my pictures. When this energy has passed I’ll look at the work as an entire project and assess it after a period of time. If it’s working I’ll jump back into that space of doing nothing and start the cycle again to see if I can really dig into the concept that bit deeper. I’ll keep pushing myself until I reach a level of contentment to feel like I’ve finished. Projects could take a few months or a few years to complete. For me the creative process should be felt and seen in the results. That’s the type of work that inspires me to keep at it.
Why is it so important for you to live close to the ocean?
As I mentioned previously I love “de-noising” and to me the ocean is the best place on earth that I can do this. There’s a science behind why it feels so good to be around the ocean and in particular water in general. The findings are that we become calmer, more connected, creative and more loving. It’s in this space that I’m at my best and it’s a space where I really can go deep into my process, literally becoming immersed in my subject every time I create photos. Apart from the day to day benefits of living by the sea, it largely informed my life. Every person that is in my life today shares the same connection to the sea that I do. It brings meaning and purpose into life and it’s all positive. What is not to love?
What makes Australia so special for a photographer?
The complete freedom and safety to travel without question, the light, the landscape, the people, the places and the spaces. They all combine in the right ways for me. Australia is a land of contrast, cliches and an extensive coastline without limits. It’s like one huge playground with no shortage of subjects to interact with. We really are lucky here in Australia. I feel like there’s a lifetime worth of exploring and discovery to be done here. I’ll never get sick of home.
What are you currently working on?
I’m sure this isn’t surprising at all. I’m working on a new series that celebrates our interconnectivity with nature, both here on earth and beyond. It’s about the energies and metaphysical connections we feel with each other, light, heat, water and the lunar world through natural phenomenon on earth. I’m not sure how it will look yet, I’m in the thick of it right now. Just testing, testing, testing.
