Website: mattmasson.co.za
Email:[email protected]
Bio:
Matt Masson is an International Wedding Photographer based in Cape Town, South Africa. Matt specialises in creating high-end images for his clients whilst maintaining a natural and fun experience for the client. He was recently ranked as one of the top 5 wedding photographers in Africa according to the Admired in Africa Awards 2016. Matt loves teaching others about photography and helping photographers grow their businesses.
Q&A:
Photography Genre: Wedding & Lifestyle
BlackRapid product of choice: The incredible BlackRapid Double Breathe strap! I use this on every shoot – it’s super versatile and comfortable. I can shoot 12-hour weddings with two cameras on me and not have back and neck pain the next day.
Hometown: Cape Town, South Africa
Resides: Cape Town, South Africa
Career Highlight #1: Deciding to pursue photography full time!
Career Highlight #2: Booking and shooting my first international wedding.
Career Highlight #3: Making the move through to Cape Town to grow my business.
Favorite place on earth? Definitely Cape Town. Its one of the most beautiful cities in the world and I love being able to call it home.
When did you realize that you wanted to be a professional photographer? When I was varsity, I realised that I wanted to turn it into my career. I was shooting professionally in varsity but I hadn’t really considered going full time until the end of my degree.
Who inspires you? My wife. She is a dedicated, resilliant and intelligent woman – she literally inspires me daily.
What camera do you use to capture most of your work? I use two Nikon D750’s for all my work. This camera is by far my favourite offering from Nikon – light, excellent quality, shoots in darkness. Will honestly be shooting with it for the next 5 years unless they upgrade it.
If I could photograph anyone in the world, alive or deceased, it would be… Easily one of the hardest questions! I’d love to photograph Nelson Mandela – super typical answer but I think that would have been one of the best conversations ever.
What do you do when not taking photos? When I’m not shooting, I’m mostly doing bus dev! I have a huge passion for business so its definitely a passion as well. I love series, movies and spending time with friends.
Age you took your first photo? What camera did you use? I was about 13 when I took my first photo. As a proud millennial, my first experience with a camera was digital. The first camera that I used was a HP Photosmart – one of those 3megapixel automatic cameras. Weʼve come a long way since then!
One piece of advice for someone at the beginning stages of their photography career? Shoot a lot more than you think you need to shoot. Go and take 100,000 photos. This is easily the best way to learn and grow in your abilities.
How do you “Live The Moment”? My passion is people, not the product. This lets me enjoy every shoot!
