Stephen has taken him around the world in a career that melds artistic and commercial photography. At the Fifth Avenue Apple store in New York City, a packed-house audience was presented with an overview of his career and a number of gems for aspiring photographers. PetaPixel rounded up several pieces of advice that anyone can take from Wilkes, especially those looking to break into the field.
It is common advice, but it bears repeating. He would never shoot a project completely on one roll, for it would get damaged and he would lose everything. He would have his assistants stop him from shooting when he was in the middle of a roll to change out for another. His point that digital removed the hurdles is a positive and part of why he made the change. You should take advantage of your phone.
People think that film is the only way to get started in photography, but he encourages people to use phones. It isn't about what process you use, but developing your eye and continually finding a way to be alive visually, to be conscious, to be present It is almost passe to carry a camera around all the time, but Wilkes suggests looking at the camera many already have in their pockets. The new phone has a number of improvements for taking photos and videos. It was when digital photography was capable of shooting at night that he realized how far technology had come. He doesn't just mean DSLR and mirrorless models. When you are present and always looking, you discover things.
One of the main reasons he switched to digital was the improved resolution. A lot of examples can be found from his "Day and Night" project, which combines photographs taken at a single location over an entire day. One image, taken on Thanksgiving in New York City, shows the famous parade put on by Macy's on the left-hand side of the image, which depicts the morning hours. When you zoom out to look at the entire image at once, you can see a tiny detail, but it makes you feel like the whole thing is being told.
Stephen Wilkes took the photographs.