Meet Alex Michael

One of the reasons I wanted to start this blog was to share stuff with others what I found interesting (if you care or not is beside the point) so that’s what this post is.

Just over a year ago, I stumbled across a bloke on Flickr called Alex Michael. Alex is a London based photographer and the owner of Studio Infinity ( Studio∞) and already at only 19 years of age is devolving a thriving photography business and has developed his own clothing line to run alongside it.

 ©KJ Photography 2013. All rights Reserved 

I asked Alex a few questions to gain a little insight into the man behind what will no doubt become a very successful business in the near future.

What was the reason you got into photography?

The reason I got into photography was when my design lecturer asked us to get a camera to gain research for our projects in the form of images. I used my mums pink Nikon compact camera for about a week to gain research. While I was using it I noticed things that I wouldn't have noticed when walking around without a camera. Things such as arguments between family members and the emotions that are more visible through capturing a still image. I figured that I could show my view of life on earth through the viewfinder of a camera as an extension of my eye

What was the first camera you owned?

 From that initial week of using the Nikon, I bought a Pentax KR.  I popped it straight into M mode and learnt how to control the camera with manual settings to control lighting on the earth and framing the shot. After using it for a while I felt confident that I could earn money from taking photos for people.

So what kind of jobs have you taken on so far ?

 I did some work for the 'Suzy Lamplugh Trust', a charity based in London. I photographed a charity event at the white lodge in Richmond park. For this particular job I offered my services for free and from that they offered me two more jobs. For the second job I was asked to photograph around 18 headshots for the company. I bought a studio lighting kit and quickly got the hang of using off camera flash using strobes. I was very confident on this job and they were very happy with my results. The final job I did for the charity was an event in the Waldorf Hilton hotel in London where the comedian Jo Brand was hosting the night doing stand-up comedy and giving out the rewards to volunteers of the trust. [Ed- there’s a testimonial from the Suzy Lamplugh Trust at the bottom of the article]  

 ©KJ Photography 2013. All rights Reserved 

 Who inspires you ?

Jared Polin of 'FroKnowsPhoto' has inspired me the most because of the story behind his company and why he started to teach people around the world using YouTube as his main outlet. Also Adam Lerner and Greg Cazillo

Do photo-sharing sites such as Flickr, and PhotoBucket make it harder to stand out as a professional photographer?

No, I think that if you have a good portfolio offline its better than having 1000s of views on a few photos that have been posted online, and the online community means that everyone can find something they like. And even with the millions of images online a good Pro will still stand out of the crowd.

Who would be your dream subject?

If I could photograph anyone I’d like to do a portrait of the queen.

Where do you want to be in 18 months time?

In around 18 to 24 months time I want to expand my business across the UK and USA. Set up my studio in London and New York. In 3 years I want to travel the world and document the way of life of the population living in each country. I’d also like to publish a book with roughly 2000 portraits and street shots, showing the world as I see it through my camera .

Below is the testimonial Alex received from the Suzy Lamplugh Trust

We worked with Alex several times in 2011 and were really impressed with the way he worked. He was our photographer for two major fundraising events for the Trust and came into our offices to take photos for our new website. (Due to launch at the end of 2012) His photos were professional and high quality; he was also very respectful to our guests- especially the shy ones!
Alex was friendly, professional and efficient, we couldn’t have asked for more!

Amy Hannagan, Suzy Lamplugh Trust

Alex’s contact details are found below, and links to his websites including his clothing line, well worth checking out, I think its awesome he has this much drive at 19 and  If he carries on the way he is going now, he will without a doubt achieve his goals.

Alex Michael

Studio∞

Contact Studio∞

Some Of Alex's Work

Clothing Line

0779 44 53 061

All images used in this post are done so with the copyright owners permission, and all rights remain with them.