http://adamkola.com/
1. What magazines did you work on/with through the years?
The first magazine I had a photo printed in was British magazine Unity, it wasn’t even a skate shot that went to print either. I was arriving into Manchester to go skate and it turned out Britney Spears was in the immediate area due to leave her hotel, one of my friends was quite ‘the fan’ so we waited for her to make an appearance in which I got a half decent paparazzi styled photo but as her tour bus drove off my crazed fan mate had dashed off and was skitching on the side of the bus as it departed the area, making a much cooler photo.
When I got the photo developed my photography teacher at the time told me he could of made me a lot of money from the shot, missed out on that one!
Since Unity I believe my work has been featured in the following blading publications (in no particular order), Daily Bread, Be-mag, Amateur, Roll2Soul, Arrogance, Freenation, Rolls, Abec Fanzine, Clac, One, Kingdom, WheelScene.
2. Why did you quit working for USD?
I didn’t quit. As a complete surprise I was e-mailed stating that I had been fired and had 1 week left of work. It didn’t really end too amicably and the whole issue has only just been resolved recently. I haven’t spoken to anyone at USD since the week of my dismissal.
Blading isn’t booming and unless you change your strategies and marketing to keep with the time, you will fall behind. I tried a lot with various ideas and input but to not much response.
Sales weren’t that hot in the UK, and my job was to be a Sales Agent, so if business is down you have to act.
3. Name three bladers that you like to work with the most ?
Ooh that’s a hard one. I think my all time favorite would have to go to Oli Short. We somewhat helped each other come up through blading and Oli always knew how to make a great photo, there’s attempting and landing the trick and then there’s doing it for a photo. Oli knew exactly how to be at any point of the trick to make a great image.
Secondly Jeff Stockwell is an amazing skater to shoot, he’s just pure skill and can literally land a trick every time. It’s amazing achieving the image first go but you know with Jeff you can potentially tweak the lights and he won’t shut down. Although i know that can be frustrating!
Thirdly I think Richie Eisler. I first shot with him around 2001, so we have known each other for a long time now and since his move to Europe we have been able to shoot alot more. Again, the man is outstanding when it comes to lacing a trick and makes it look effortless.
Most bladers i shoot with are just great at rolling though and so talented that it’s an amazing experience. From our hometown heroes like Leon Humphries, Albert Hooi and Nick Lomax to overseas shredders Brian Shima, Rian Arnold, Alex Broskow, Billy O’Neill, Chris Farmer, Dominic Sagona, the list goes on. We have some serious rippers pal!
4. Your current camera setup?
For digital I’m on a Canon 5D Mark 2 body. Then for film I’m still using my trusty Bronica ETRsi 645 with either Kodak Portra, Fuji 400PROH or Ilford black and white. Then I use pocket wizards for my flashes, which have changed a lot over the years, but right now I’m on a very simple Vivitar set up and if I need more boost i have some Bowens Strobes.
5. If you could change something about today`s blading media – what would it be?
That there was more of it, especially with regards to photography. I’ve seen a slight influx of older bladers getting into film and relic cameras shooting the lifestyle, but I rarely see bladers going out specifically to get a photo. Granted we need both. It just seems that the majority of people are way more into shooting moving image over still.
Although on the flip side to this with the internet being so powerful we have no way of monitoring what is released. You just have to trust the blader, the media outlet and the brand, sadly there are some atrocious minds and ideologies out there. Social media is a powerful tool and it can be utilized massively to reach out to a wider audience, I`m actually in the process of building a new blading site right now filled with exclusive content but I still feel that a physical copy of a DVD or magazine is needed. How would you of ever found out the names of tricks if it wasn’t for magazines?
I just put on a Valo5 premiere and if it wasn’t for the release of this actual DVD we wouldn’t of had 100+ people gathering at one of the coolest bars in London. You just don’t get that from the web.
All in all I think we need an increase in quality content.