Spotlight: Eric Carroll Photography

There are many ways to tell a story and I think photography is a beautiful storytelling medium. I recently fell in love with Eric Carroll's photography and asked him to answer a few questions about his work for I Believe In Story. Some of his prints are featured below, but be sure to check out his store to see the other photographs he has available. (They're even more stunning in person.)

I discovered Eric Carroll's photography from following him on Twitter. I was familiar with Buffering, the digital series he is a part of (his character, Alex Brody, is hilarious), and was surprised to find out that he is also an amazing photographer. Eric's photos capture some beautiful, natural moments in the LA area, a space too often attributed with the rushed lifestyle of Hollywood. As I've mentioned, Eric is also an actor and this balance between two passions is something I truly admire.

How did you get started in photography?

I started a t-shirt company called 40-Love with my friend Mike Tobias. We needed some promo shots of models wearing our shirts and had a really difficult time finding a photographer to do so. So Mike and I bought a camera, and I gave it a shot. After hearing a few people say, "Hey Eric, you should continue doing photography," I took their advice. I started practicing, learned about lenses, studied free online courses and here I am today.

In your opinion, what makes a good photograph?

There are so many different opinions on this in the world of photography. For me personally, I think a photo is similar to a poem or a scene from a film. A good photo needs to be about something. A good photo expresses a feeling or an emotion, sometimes an idea. A lot of photographers today try to convey so much with their photos, but I think it is such a harder task to show just one thing, and express something. Simplicity at it's finest. But that is the beauty of photography, there are no real rules to it; express something and make someone feel something from looking at your photo and you've achieved success.

29 Palms (above) is my favourite photograph in the store. Could you share the story behind it?

"29 Palms" was one of my favorite songs when I was younger. It's a song by Robert Plant from Led Zeppelin. Now that I live in LA, I finally got to visit the actual 29 Palms out in the desert. That place is truly magical. I went with several friends and I think we all felt different leaving it, like something had changed in all of us. For me, it was a feeling that I had finally arrived in the place and time that I'd dreamed of for so many years. It was so inspiring to be out there.

Who are your influences? Is there anyone or anything that inspires you to be creative?

A major influence for my photography is Ansel Adams. His photography would inspire any artist in their respective field. For me, music and film are also huge influences. Listening to music creates images in my mind and I try to re-create them with my photography. However, at this point in my journey, my friends and family are my biggest influences. They are so hard working and struggle day to day as I do, and we pick each other up and keep moving forward. I'm grateful for that.

If you could choose one of your photographs to represent yourself as an artist, which one would you choose and why?

This is such a great and difficult question to answer. I think my photo entitled Misty Ocean (above) would be my choice. I was out doing some long exposure shots in Malibu that day. I had my tripod in a "secure" spot when a massive sneaker wave came up and hit me and ruined the shot. Turns out that shot was one of the best pictures I've taken. It was an accident, or so I thought. I also got into photography by accident, or so I thought. Now I'm grateful for all of these experiences and challenges, cause they make you grow and develop.

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You can purchase these prints (and more) from Eric Carroll's photography store: http://ericcarroll.storenvy.com. Follow Eric on Twitter (@EricRobertC) to be updated when new prints are added to the store and receive discount codes.