So what are you up to at the moment?
I'm currently in Dubai as my family is now based here so I really wanted to take the opportunity to explore what the fashion industry here could offer.
And what sort of work have you had in Dubai?
I've been working for different brands, magazines and publications; creating imagery and working with some really talented people.
The most exciting part must have been your Vogue shoot. Can you tell us about it?
It didn't sink in at the time. At the end of the day a job is a job, irrespective for who it's for, and I was far more concerned with getting the job done well.
Initially, when I arrived in Dubai, I contacted some creatives and publications to let them know that I was in town and that I like to shoot. Vogue Arabia then contacted me asking if I would do some portraits for them and I agreed to it.
Next thing I knew, they drove me out into the desert to this luxurious resort to meet and photograph the designer Ashi. It was the 10th anniversary of his label Ashi Studio so he invited people to there to preview his new RTW collection. Vogue was given an exclusive interview with him.
Initially, I was to shoot a group shot of Ashi surrounded by models wearing his gowns and just 2 portraits of the models in his clothes. The tricky part was that I had to shoot at noon in 45-50-degree weather. I had trouble sleeping the night before wondering how I was going to light the shots. You see for a photographer, the sun at noon isn't at its most flattering as you get all those harsh shadows - they would work for single model portraits but not for the group shot. Everyone was feeling a hot - I had to do a good job and I had to be quick about it as the models were literally melting; I tried to delay the group shot to the end of the day just before the show when the light was about right. We managed in the end. I also tried to choose a location in the shade, with a very arabesque background and we got the shots. I met the editor of Vogue that evening who was really happy with the images and asked me to stay on and take more shots.
That moment felt a bit surreal.
Would say this was your biggest achievement?
It's a funny question because there's so much I want to do including more personal work but I think every time I get published it's an achievement. I guess you could say getting published in Vogue was one of them. I'm also proud of the editorial I shot for Nylon (US) which was all shot in Malta. I also shot something for Vogue Italia which combined fashion imagery and Persian culture making it into a fashion-documentary story. It's something I want to revisit in my future work.
I feel like I can't pin point one thing and say this has been my biggest achievement. I feel like if you love what you do, and you and your team have done a great job and enjoyed doing it at the end of the day - that's the achievement.
How did you get into photography in the first place?
It kind of happened accidentally but I guess I was always artistically inclined. My mother, Anna Galea is an artist specialising in watercolour painting. Our house was always filled with various paintings and sculptures and with books on the subject.
As I was growing up, she used to keep me busy by handing me some paper and crayons as she painted. I would doodle while she painted and we would do this for hours together.
When it came to further my studies, I read for a BSc in Chemistry and Materials at University of Malta. I was good at Chemistry but also loved art - I don't think I had any idea of what I really wanted to do but I went with the safer option on hindsight. After I completed my degree I was like, what now? And I realised that I really didn't want to work in a lab for the rest of life. I suppose you could say I had a mini life crisis.
By this time a foundation diploma in Design Foundation Studies at the Architecture department (UOM) had opened and I thought I would take this on until I figured something out. As part of the foundation course, there was a photography module -I know it sounds cheesy but I just picked up the camera and I knew straight away this is what I want to do. So, I persisted in making a portfolio in six months and I applied for a Masters Degree in Photography at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London. I knew that it was one of the best schools for the arts - I was convinced I wouldn't get in but I thought I'd try it anyway. To my surprise I was accepted and moved to London to pursue this.
Throughout my studies and just a while after, I assisted various photographers but in all honesty, I'm not a very good assistant - I'm bad at taking orders and I just want to do my own thing - so I decided to go for it alone and I have met some amazing people on the way.
What sort of style of photography are you into?
I'm a fashion photographer but in terms of style, I would say I'm still figuring it out. I am quite inclined to photograph fashion in a somewhat architectural way and I'm fascinated with shadows at the moment. I enjoy photographing women - not so much men. I don't mind of course, but I relate more to women so I find it easier.
What do you enjoy and love the most about photography?
I travel a lot so I get to see so many new places and meet so many new people. The other day we were just having a drink after a long day on set and I just sat there and realised how diverse the team was; Scottish, half Ghanaian half British, half Irish and half Indian, half English and half Australian, and me - Maltese. This is what's great about life and about this job. It's so diverse and we come together for the love of art and imagery and you get to experience so much through so many people. Creating on set - people coming together with different ideas - it's so satisfying to experience. I know I'm happy and doing what I want to do because I never look at the time when I'm on set -it just flies by and then it's a wrap.
On the other hand, I don't like retouching my work and if I do, I won't spend more than 5-10 minutes fixing an image. It kills me to sit on my laptop editing photos.
Do you have any future plans?
I'm still figuring out the market in Dubai whilst working for a few luxury brands and publications here. The plan is to chase the sun and spend winter in Dubai and summer in Europe. My goals are to keep evolving and to develop my style and grow as an artist, whilst working with as many brands and publications as I can. I'd also like to pin down my style a bit more and be known for it.
I want to ensure that my work remains warm and Mediterranean as it reminds me of home and it's what I'm comfortable with. I have some personal projects that I would like to pursue in Malta that are in the pipeline. In fact, I'm currently working on a project about the female body, photographing Maltese women in the nude outside in the Maltese landscape. Unfortunately, it's been really tricky to find Maltese women willing to do it because the country is so small, conservative, religious and everyone knows everyone; meaning not too many women are too keen about the idea. I find foreigners wanting to do it but I want Maltese women. The project is not about nudes but about the experience for Maltese women taking their clothes off outdoors, owning their bodies and feeling confident about it in spite of all this. The women I've photographed have found it to be a very liberating experience.
What would you say to anyone in Malta who wants to get into photography?
I think photographers in Malta need to believe in themselves more but at the same time be humbler about their work and put more research into what they're doing. Stop being concerned about what other people think and whether you're doing a good enough job; find your style and ensure that you happy with the end result. I understand that there are many insecurities about being a freelancer because you're ultimately working alone constantly revaluating your work and asking yourself am I good enough? When really you just need to go with your gut and believe you can do it.