Behind the Lens, with James Scicluna
A stop, a flash, and a freeze in time. Data; pixel after pixel, therefore byte after byte form a puzzle, and what a beautiful composition it becomes. Taking the details into consideration of such fine art, how can we simply disregard the creator, and artist himself?
Seriously, if you haven't uttered, wondered, considered, questioned, or demanded "James may you take us a photo?" within the past few months at St Aloysius, then get out of this school, you aren't an Aloysian. Or at least, don't deserve to be. Question me, say as you please. However James' brilliance does not simply shine through his academics, but also through his marvellous artistic talent of Photography at each and every SAC-related event, as he captures the smiling faces, be it talent or pleasure, at each Aloysian event.
I was given the opportunity to interview James, for an inside view on his talent and career. As an amateur photographer, I am usually his shadow at SAC events, and can simply aspire and aim to become as brilliant as he is.
The interview began with the phrase, "Well, that was a funny story", as he recounted how he began to explore photography for the first time. He began to explain the he had always loved art at school, and was always top of class. What happened next foreshadowed his life at SAC; his science subjects took over his life, and he was forced into putting his arts aside, the way he did in Secondary. On the side-lines, his father practiced photography as a hobby, but put his passion aside for a while as life became a little more hectic. But it was not too long until his adventurous brother, Andrew, dug up the archives and found his dad's old camera. After a little while of experimentation, Andrew wanted his own new camera, when James cunningly intervened stating that if his brother were to buy a camera, it would only be fair for him to have one too.
And so the dream-team set off with their magical fantasy of becoming professional photographers, and of capturing the essence of life itself. But only one sibling survived the dream; Andrew shortly gave it up after a while, and went straight back to his guitars. However, James remained adamant. He missed his art, and to him, the discovery of photography was a means of creating art in an instance. "A photograph is like taking a quick painting", James stated passionately, as his wish to start art once again was being fulfilled in an instance, and as the beauty that surrounded him was being framed efficiently, giving him just enough time to focus on his studies as a science student.
As his passion for his newly found interest developed further, he started attending sports matches as a spectator to capture the players in their element, the first being football games, due to his love for the sport. He stated that it was a social thing, as he enjoyed meeting new people this way. His passion then ventured into the world of Waterpolo photography. However, this wasn't easy to begin with. James went on to explain that he had opened his photography page as a result of needing a permit to shoot at Waterpolo matches, and therefore needed something to show in order to become an official press photographer. And so the birth of 'James Scicluna Photography' had taken flight.
Although, landscape photography had always prevailed as his favourite thing to shoot, as he went on to describe that it is cathartic, in one of the most indescribable ways possible; the purgation of emotions through art, or any extreme change in emotion that results in renewal, restoration, and a blissful sense of calamity, our level-headed science student stated. But landscape photography with James Scicluna isn't always as blissful as it seems to be; beauty comes with a price, as one loses themselves in admiration. He told the tales that took him near and far from its apparent safety, to even cliff edges in some cases. He went on to explain that he often loves to wonder off to capture nature's beauty, and more often than not, gets lost in controlling distractions. He once got lost in Gozo as he wondered off to capture the final bit of the sunset, and as he walked and walked, he got lost amidst rubble walls in complete darkness and without phone reception. And just as he thought things couldn’t get any worse for him, his tripod fell and got stuck in a rockfall. Well, that must have been one lucky day.
His attraction to trouble in landscape photography went further than expected, amidst the peace and bliss he seems so fascinated by, as he even managed to take photos in the depths of a blizzard in Madonna Di Campiglio, as well as getting stuck in a storm in Sicily. I guess this photographer wouldn't need to pay an eighty to satisfy his fetishes - they seem to surround him, apparently.
The self-taught photographer explained that photography to him is a learning phase of trials and errors, as he experimented in styles, techniques, and compositions. Acknowledging the fact that it's been four years since he first started shooting, he states that he is still in his learning phase. "As a person who may come about as one who doesn’t express as much emotion, I often find photography to be something wonderfully expressive", James stated as he described that manual photography genuinely manages to capture the photographer's emotions and touch at times, and that the pre-automated settings often times seem fake.
Life as a SAC Council photographer; most definitely crazy, and I for one would know. The number of times our poor James was called up on an urgent matter of taking a simple photo is simply incredulous. However, he appreciatively finds this chaos fulfilling. He breaks into silence; "James, is everything ok?", "I'm just really happy with my Photographer hoodie!", and I could have sworn there was something more than a sparkle in his eye. "It's nice to be appreciated, although I'm never in any of the photos."
But when it comes to his duties, James is the perfect definition of OCD. His high expectations in the turn-out of his work is both a blessing and a curse, as he strives to ensure that he'd give the utmost to satisfy our facebook cover photo and profile picture 'white girl' needs.
Being the official SAC Soiree 2015 photographer was his dream, as well as his nightmare in an instance; the pressure didn't bother him, however his tradition of venturing backstage to unwind a little, and interact with the cast had shortly after been disrupted, as over 600 of his photos were deleted on the opening night. Luckily, the way Soiree brings us together, Aloysian solidarity prevailed with the helping hand of a friend, as the photos were shortly afterwards retrieved. But as we all know and appreciate, the end result has been more than satisfactory, as James constantly strives to prove.
But this isn't always a bed of roses; not only does James cope with the commitment of being the official SAC photographer, but also juggles the demands of being a science student. When there's a will there's a way in matters of passion, and James is the breathing truth that there is always time for things we love, no matter how busy our schedule seems to be. Yes, a handful too many sacrifices are made, he stated as he went on to describe his routine, as he would not rest his head against his pillow after events, until all is shots are edited to perfection. Now that is determination!
"Your first 10,000 photographs are always your worst!", he exclaimed with a spark in his eye, as he quoted Henri Cartier-Bresson. You could sense the feeling of a drive of passion and motivation. "It’s a learning curve", he advised, "the more mistakes you make, the more you'll eventually learn". James simply wishes to inspire people in their art, as it is only a blessing to feel as passionate as he does with his.
Never fear, all aspiring photographers, for you can never learn enough. And in a flash, a world was captured and portrayed through the eyes of James Scicluna, for a picture may speak a thousand words, but nothing speaks louder than passion.
“Which of my photographs is my favourite? The one I’m going to take tomorrow", -Imogen Cunningham.
Zoë Louise Gatt
All photographs used in this article are the property of James Scicluna. ©
https://www.facebook.com/jamessciclunaphotography?fref=ts
