What do you do when you’re stuck in a rut and feel that your work no longer represents you or what you stand for? Photographer Filip Cederholm experienced that recently. So he decided not only to do something different, but also to use his creativity to make a difference.
Before changing his path, Filip Cederholm from Sweden had a successful career as a commercial photographer with many big international and Swedish brands on his list of clients. But after spending years zooming in on people’s faces to remove pimples and wrinkles, he started questioning what he was doing. He asked himself: could I do something else? Could I use my creativity differently to make a difference?
And so he started the far-reaching ABC project, which has been his main focus for the last couple of years and concentrates on charity work instead of commercial photography. Quite recently he did a charity project called “Not a walk in the park” along with Swedish explorer Johan Ernst Nilsson.
Johan and Filip’s goal was to raise money for anti-poaching. To do so they went on a 400 km long hike through the Serengeti National Park. The aim was to take pictures that would in turn raise awareness. The money they made would go to rangers, enabling them to continue their work against poaching.
The walk through the park took 15 days, but Filip decided to stay even longer to scout the location for his ABC charity project. While doing so, he ended up staying with the Masai tribes in Tanzania for a week. Along with him was his Profoto B2 250 AirTTL which he used to take portraits of the tribe members.
“I have to say, I didn’t really have any challenges while shooting there because the B2 is such great gear. It’s super compact and you can easily bring it with you, even to a location like this,” he says.
Being a successful commercial photographer in the past, Filip was used to shooting mostly in studios, which often means using a lot of equipment. But changing his path and his way of shooting made it impossible for him to carry a lot of equipment on his journeys.
“Before the B2 I used bigger generators that were much more complicated to carry with you. So to actually have professional studio equipment with you on location is very pleasant.”
“I just love how portable it is. You can hold it in your hands or have it on your back and play with it. You can also use it against the sun. If I had used a speedlight, I would have had to max it out and then wait for the flash to recharge to take the next picture.”
Besides the Profoto B2, Filip used an Umbrella Deep White M and an OCF Softbox 2′ Octa for the portraits in the village. “I love the umbrella because it is so easy. And I love the fact that my kit is quick to assemble and disassemble,” says Filip.
Filip’s journey will not be over for a long time and he continuously strive to develop both as a photographer and as a human being.
“I believe what I’m doing today has a larger impact on the planet than what I did ten years ago. And I do believe that what I will be doing in ten years will have a greater impact on the world than what I’m doing today.”
Follow Filip’s work at his website and learn about the ABC project here.
Read more about the gear he used here:
