Goodbye Xperia Z1

Prints available on demand (info@benheine.com)

Prints available on demand (info@benheine.com)

Interview for Russian Photo (*)

Ben Heine at Tour de France Photo © Thomas David 2013

(Русская версия)

Russian Photo: How long have you been taking pictures? 

Ben Heine: I started drawing 20 years ago and started taking photos some 10 years ago.

Did you study photography professionally? 

Not really, but during my Journalism studies, I did have to manipulate cameras and learn a bit of analog and digital photography.

What is your profession? 

Now, I'm doing creative projects as a freelance artist and selling prints during exhibitions etc... This is my main source of income right now, but I'm planning to find another job soon because it's hard to make a decent living in the art industry.

You create truly unique pictures. How come such ideas? 

I've been working on graphic projects for many years. Mixing drawing and photography really came naturally.

You are called the master of photo manipulation. Do you agree with this? 

No, I don't, I think there are plenty of better people doing photo manipulations. I'm doing something different. I'm better at finding ideas and concepts and I love mixing mediums. Spending days on the same image (drawing or photo) to improve it and making it look good can be really annoying, I'm doing this only because there is nobody else that could do it exactly the way I want. I generally prefer the first steps of the creation process: finding ideas...

Pencil Vs Camera 64 - No More Routine

How much time does it take to create one work? 

Several days or several weeks, depending on the image complexity.

How difficult is it to combine photos and sketches? 

It's easy for me, I'm working like a robot, seeing pixels, lines and shadows instead of the whole drawing or photo. some of my pictures look like drawings because I like to edit them this way (view some before and after versions).

Which brands of photo cameras do you use? Do you teach master classes? 

I currently use Canon and Samsung cameras. I don't teach master classes, but I do some workshops and conferences from time to time.

Is it possible to combine originality and professionalism? 

Originality is the most important for me, then if people like it, I try to make a business out of it.

What can you advise to beginners who are looking for your style? 

Don't try to imitate any style, your creations should be a complete reflection of yourself only. With experience, you'll learn who you really are and you'll then be able to express what you really want.

What is the secret of your popularity? 

I'm not sure I'm popular. But I know that I'm always trying to be sincere with other people and true with myself. I'm also always trying to give the best I can and to be be innovative and generous in my art. I want to share love and energy. Hopefully the persons who view my works can feel it.

Have you visited Russia? Are you planning to visit our country? 

Not yet, but I love Russia and Russian culture. I've learned Russian language several years ago (see a small hand written note here below). I hope I can visit your country soon and organize an art event or exhibition!

Ben Heine autograph in Cyrillic alphabet for "Russian Photo"

(*) Russian Photo is a 10 year old magazine dedicated to photography. It gives information about art events and exhibitions, interviews of masters, photo tutorials, camera reviews and trends. Read the above interview on Russian Photo website at this link.

© 2013 Ben Heine

Pencil Vs Camera - 38
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(See it on Flickr)

A cute Danboard I drew on a tiny piece of paper because I don't
have one. I love this little robot. I took the photo a 200mm lens...
Please, see the whole "Pencil Vs Camera" album

This piece is dedicated to the
character itself and to Anton Tang.

(The above photo has been shot with the Samsung NX10)

© 2010 - Ben Heine

Tribute to Danboard

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Be My Friend

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(See it on Flickr)
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I don't have a Danboard, so I just drew one
on a tiny piece of paper. It's a cute subject :)

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Detail:
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Scale:
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Something in Common
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(See it on Flickr)

Another Danboard I drew on a small piece of paper. It's actually the same drawing and same paper than PvsC 38, but it's another photo; I placed the little robot in a different environment... I used a 200 mm lens.

I titled this picture "Something in Common" because in French "leaf" and "sheet" are both named "feuille"... I also wanted to suggest an opposition between technology (the tiny robot) and nature (the leaf). Nature is everywhere, the robot is a fictive representation. Magritte might have said: "this is not a robot", it's only an image of it... =)

(All the above photos have been shot with the Samsung NX10)

© 2010 - Ben Heine

Elvis Presley

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(See it on Flickr)

This is my circlist portrait of Elvis, the King of Rock and Roll. I've always admired him. I wanted to make something unusual and give him the aspect of a solid and invincible robot... but not a real "terminator" because he was especially a romantic man and a cultural icon with one of the most beautiful voices ever...

Please enlarge to see how it's done. I've only used circles of different sizes and colors on a black background. The whole portrait took me several days of intense work. The original image is big (10000 pixels wide). There is no trick, those circles aren't placed automatically, I've positioned each circle one by one (and I've left the yellow background unfinished on purpose). I'll soon post a YouTube video showing all the evolution before arriving to the final result. I'm now going to start a circlist portrait of Freddie Mercury.

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Making of:

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Details:
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© 2010 - Ben Heine

Big Brother

(Speed Painting)
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This is my first attempt to make a digital painting of a robot.
This is a speed painting that took me some 20 minutes
of work. I made the first sketch in about 2 minutes
in Alchemy and then went on in Photoshop CS4

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© 2009 - Ben Heine