Oleg Ti is a fashion, beauty and advertising photographer from Moscow, Russia. He has photographed for multiple major brands in both Russia and the USA. About five years ago Oleg started hosting photography workshops around the globe, including New York City, Los Angeles, London, Dubai and other major cities. He also shares his outstanding photography and lighting knowledge through his articles, some of which can be found on his blog.
Oleg’s photography is very captivating thanks to the bright colors, bold compositions and sophisticated lighting. He admits that he loves creating artistic images which reflect his own perception of women’s beauty.
Oleg currently lives and works in New York City, but travels around the world for workshops and ad campaigns that he shoots.
When did you take up photography?
The start of my photography journey began about 10 years ago when I bought an amateur digital camera. I started taking pictures of my friends and half a year later I got my first client. The very same day I bought my professional camera.
How do you get inspired?
I think the more you look around and search for inspiration the better – I buy magazines, go to exhibitions, read photography books. I attend relevant events and meet people from the industry as much as I can. I think all the visual (and not only) information finds its place somewhere in my brain and helps my creative vision when I need it.
RELATED: 8 Tips for Finding and Keeping Inspiration for Retouchers and Creatives
What is the process that goes into the creation of each image/project?
I shoot two types of projects: personal, when I am creating an idea by myself; and commercial, when I am getting an idea from a client. I love it when my clients, models and MUAs bring ideas to my shoots, but at the same time I have to say that 95% of the ideas for my pictures are mine. I like to draw sketches of concepts, lighting setups and props so when I plan for a shoot I just go through my sketchbook and get inspired.
Of course the team is a key to success so I try to work with different creatives in my test shoots so I can choose the best for the future projects.
Do you retouch your images yourself or do you outsource?
I send all of my pictures to a retoucher only for the technical corrections such as skin, dust, etc., but I always do the artistic post-processing by myself. It is easier for me because I don’t know what I want the image to look like before I start retouching it.
What are you looking for in a retoucher?
The retoucher and I should think alike. I can’t teach them what to do, I can only find the retoucher who best understands my needs and matches best with my style and vision.
If you could go back in time to when you were starting out as a photographer, what would your best advice to yourself be?
When I started working as a photographer I used to make a lot of mistakes due to the lack of knowledge, and the best advice I could give myself would be to try and see those mistakes, understand why they occured and find a way to avoid them.
You can see more of Oleg’s work on his website www.oleg-ti.com and follow him on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
See Our Artist Spotlight on Ionut Matache