An Exclusive Interview With
TIM TADDER
BY CATALIN CROITORU
From the moment I opened the PDF containing the brief from Marcelo, at Jane & Jay for the launch of Astronauts Company, I was all in. The creative was a perfect fit for the type of projects where my creative collaborating thrives. In one word, brilliant, the over-arching concept of the smoke inside the suit aligning with the traditional practice of stoners “hot boxing”, was hysterical and visual as hell.
Tim Tadder © All rights reserved.
“Quite frankly, it wasn’t my goal to be the best advertising photographer in the world; my goal was to create great art that people wanted to look at, and that was my guiding beacon”. – Tim Tadder
So happy with the results of this very complex project! We were tasked with the difficult job of creating images that embodied the excitement and joy of indoor skydiving. If you have ever seen images of indoor skydiving it is very difficult to capture the essence.
The images never seem to truly show the movement, the boldness of the skills of the flyers, or the rush. Indoor skydiving takes place in an acrylic tube, where air circulates from below a flyer and exits the cylinder at the top. The space itself feels like a set from a sci-fi movie, so the potential to make great content exists.
Tim Tadder © All rights reserved.
Tim Tadder, is an experienced advertising photographer with a niche in sports & fitness productions. Considered as one of the most influential photographers worldwide, as a producer of T.V. commercials and worldwide ad campaigns for the most powerful brands in the world, he relies heavily on building epic storytelling through motion + still photography. The art of sports photography brings a complex set of skills that derives from many years of experience.
It’s an enormous pleasure to feature an exclusive interview with Tim Tadder on Lens Magazine and hear about his approach to advertising photography and what led him to be one of the most successful influential photographers in the world.
TIM TADDER
Tim Tadder is an advertising photographer based in southern California, specializing in creating dramatic photographs of people, sports, action, and concepts. Tadder uses location photography combined with lighting effects to create truly unique images.
Tadder is an internationally acclaimed photographic artist. In 2015 Epson, the world leader in photographic printing technology, recognized Tadder as one of the top influential photographers, producing a T.V. commercial and worldwide ad campaign featuring Tadder and his work. Most recognized for his highly inventive conceptual advertising photography Tadder has been ranked in the top 200 photographers worldwide by the prestigious Lürzer’s Archive Magazine 8 years running.
In 2012 Tadder created a viral collection of images that was ranked by Time magazine as one of the top internet sensations of that year. The collection made news worldwide and became the top trending feature on Reddit for two days.
Tadder’s work hangs on world leaders’ walls in politics, business, art, and sport, having been commissioned to make personal portraits for notables like President George W. Bush, Bill Gates, and Manny Pacquiao. In 2010 he was commissioned by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to make a collection of portraits then used in an art installation at the home of Bono. Other note subjects include the NFL’s best, Tom Brady, rap icon Ice Cube, the world’s best swimmer Michael Phelps, and countless other influencers. Tadder lives in Leucadia’s sleepy beach town with his wife, two children, and
a dog named Bailey.
An Exclusive Interview With
TIM TADDER
BY CATALIN CROITORU
Lens Magazine: Hello Tim, please tell our readers about yourself, your background, and how you started with the advertising photography field.
Tim Tadder: I was a photojournalist working in the newspaper industry freelancing for several different news outlets. I started looking for alternative ways to generate more income as a photographer.
I found that advertising photography really checked a lot of those boxes for a higher valuation placed on your time as a creator. I started to create a portfolio that aligned with advertising photography portfolios. I marketed myself in southern California and left photojournalism in 2006, becoming an advertising photographer shortly thereafter, ultimately leading to a distinct style, and the rest is history.
L. M.: Your work is mainly focused on sport & fitness photography, and you are shooting campaigns for the largest brands in the world, including Nike’s Project: “Sculpt Icon Clash,” Adidas campaign: “NINJA & ADIDAS.” among others. What drew you to focus on sport?
T. T.: My background is in sports, and sports has always been part of my day-to-day and my overall life. When I was doing photojournalism, my work was around the sports world. Personal interest plays a significant role in what you point your lens at, you have to love what you shoot, and I found that with sports. Sports became very interesting and enamoring for me. My future became aligned with sports in general, and from there, it moved on to concepts, and that’s where it all began.
“You accumulate different pieces of equipment in your mind that leads you on your journey, and each assignment adds a little bit of a screwdriver, a nail, a lesson that makes you a more prolific craftsman. It’s the journey that makes you the valued craftsman that you become”. – Tim Tadder
L. M.: Let’s talk for a moment about the more technical aspects. Are you using speed lights at the time for your shooting? What technology/software/camera gear do you use to keep focused on what you do best in your photography?
T. T.: I don’t use any speed lights.
I use large light sources and massive amounts of lights in all of my work in order to capture the most straightforward concept. From a stylistic standpoint, the amount of light that I use gives the images a certain depth that is unique.
I use massive Profoto systems; sometimes, I’ll use 10 lights on one person.
L. M.: Among your many outstanding projects, which one is your favorite?
T. T.: That’s impossible to answer. For me, it’s the one I am working on right now. I try to seek creativity among all that I do rather than cherish one moment of the past or evaluate one project against another. I enjoy certain projects more than others, but it all comes together as your body of work.
L. M.: What has been your career path? How did you get from being an aspiring photographer to actually doing it full time for a living? Do you remember the first large-scale project you received?
T. T.: The first large-scale project was in 2007, a global campaign for Gatorade. It was the campaign that put me on the national stage and really made people know my name. It referenced for five years that a single campaign absolutely changed everything and propelled my career stratospherically without any question.
L. M.: Your photography work was published on the cover of important magazines worldwide and received enormous exposure from the world’s most notable brands. How does it feel to be in that position (with a very respected name in the commercial – Advertising industry)? Did you reach your goal in the field?
T. T.: I think I have reached my goal in the field. I’ve never dreamed this far. I don’t have any huge egotistical desire to be anything more than a good father, a good husband, and a good artist. Quite frankly, it wasn’t my goal to be the best advertising photographer in the world; my goal was to create great art that people wanted to look at, and that was my guiding beacon. It wasn’t about being the best; it was about being a great artist and trying to be distinct, different, and inspiring. Not to try to be anything more than inspiring.
My career is a testament to that; my future is to stay true to inspiration and to inspire people.
L. M.: You were steady and developed your photography work for years; what were the “downs” and the “heights” of this career? What was the most challenging moment of all?
T. T.: This past year has been the most challenging with the pandemic. Before the pandemic, I had more momentum than I ever had before. My business was exploding and expanding.
The demand for my work was extremely high. Then, the pandemic hit. I dealt with the struggles of that, and it was incredibly challenging. It’s changed me dramatically, in my perspective and my business.
This business highly depends on word of mouth, people talking about you, and when you’re completing a lot of great projects, then a year passes, and you’ve lost all this momentum, and it’s hard that energy takes a lot of time to generate. It’s been hard to re-focus.
L. M.: Tell us about the challenging part of Advertising photography.
T. T.: The most challenging part of advertising photography is people you work with from the agency side can be pretty ruthless. It can be extremely challenging at times because they’re in a difficult position; the agencies are overworking their talent, producers, and there’s a high level of stress in their jobs. You can definitely feel that in your work.
L. M.: What is your best post-processing tip?
T. T.: Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should do something. People make the biggest mistakes in post-production by over-doing it.
L. M.: What do you feel the moment you are pressing the shutter release? What are you “hunting”?
T. T.: I’m looking for a moment.
If you see the perfect moment in your camera, you’ve missed it. You have to anticipate that moment. If you see what’s happened, the camera has not captured it. That’s the significant part about motion. Motion is the progression of action. As a hunter, if you see the shot, you’ve missed the shot. You have to know when to pull the trigger and when to anticipate that moment. As a commercial and advertising photographer, I am selling someone’s vision and dreams.
In my own art, I try to communicate awareness.
L. M.: Whose work has influenced you most? Are there artists that have inspired you and your work?
T. T.: Numerous artists have inspired my work. Early on, it was the work of Galen Rowell, who was an adventure photojournalist and a climber. I was doing a lot of mountain climbing at that time and really identified with his bold use of color in his vision.
As a photojournalist, I fell in love with the work of William Allard and David Alan Harvey. Later, as an advertising photographer, I became enamored with Howard Schatz and his bold use of graphic composition.
Now, at this stage, I don’t look at other photographers in that way anymore. I let my vision and instincts guide me and see where that vision takes me.
L. M.: What is the one thing you wish you knew when you started taking photos at the beginning?
T. T.: This is a journey, and I don’t regret any of the lessons I’ve learned along the way. There’s never been an “Aha!” moment—like I wish I would’ve known that. It’s been like a craftsman buying tools—you accumulate different pieces of equipment in your mind that leads you on your journey, and each assignment adds a little bit of a screwdriver, a nail, a lesson that makes you a more prolific craftsman. It’s the journey that makes you the valued craftsman that you become.
