Jan Gottweiss
Our interview with Jan Gottweiss, a photographer based in South Germany. With a sound interest in landscape, cityscape and street photography, Jan documents his beautiful surroundings using film. He has also created incredible videos which capture the unique experience of using film, focusing on the sounds and processes involved.
"I find a lot of beauty in the places around me."
What made you first pick up a film camera?
"When I was playing around with some vintage lenses on my digital camera I really started loving the imperfections and character the lenses brought to my images. From there, I just wanted more! So I bought my first analog camera and was hooked ever since.”
Where are you based and is there a large film community there?
“I'm based in South Germany (Baden-Württemberg) near Heidelberg. Sadly there is no big film community here that I'm aware of.”
What advice would you give to someone starting with film photography?
“Just pick up the cheapest film camera and stock and work your way up from there. Making mistakes is part of the fun, don't stress. Oh and always rewind your film before opening the back.”
What film camera could you not live without?
“It always seems to be the next one that's on my eBay watchlist. But for now, it's my Pentax ME.”
What are you passionate about besides film?
“Being a volunteer Firefighter and basically everything related to technology.”
Are there any quotes that you live by?
“I’m just a simple man trying to make my way in the universe." - Jango Fett. Yep, I'm a Star Wars nerd. Sorry about that.”
“I am super impressed by big and vibrant cities like Tokyo, London, or NYC. When exploring new destinations I am always full of energy and creativity. Due to the thing that must not be named, things changed a little bit and it's currently this one beautifully overgrown house in my neighborhood. I also find a lot of beauty in the places around me as you see on my channel.”
