Tristan Kress
Gelsenkirchen
IG: @gelsenfoto // Prints: thisisgelsen.de
all images this page courtesy of Tristan Kress 2023
Hello Tristan, it's great that you're taking the time and have agreed to share with me about your photographic work. Your images can currently be found mainly on Instagram in your feed @gelsenfoto, and they delve deeply into your hometown of Gelsenkirchen. How would you describe your pictures?
Hi Sebastian! I'm really excited about the opportunity to talk about my photographic work and your interest in it. I would describe my photos as a melancholic yet always benevolent perspective on my hometown.
We live here in the poorest city in Germany, with numerous and profound problems that are evident in the urban landscape. I try to counteract the pessimism and negative perception of the city and the region that is inevitably generated on a creative level through my photos. Of course, my photos won't change the often depressing local reality for many. Nevertheless, it's an attempt to show that even here, one can experience moments of beauty, even if it's just a sunset that happens to cast a lovely light on a rundown building. It's often not what the majority would label as aesthetic, but that's exactly what appeals to me in my photographic work and in exploring the city. Anyone can photograph the Cologne Cathedral.
So, you're painting a portrait of a city that is much more profound than what meets the eye at first glance. I find that very intriguing and fascinating. Many of your pictures capture the soul of the urban space in low light. How did you come to focus on photographing mainly at night, and what attracts you to images during twilight or darkness?
Actually, I don't primarily photograph at night or in darkness, and the impression in that regard might mainly stem from my first magazine, which exclusively features nighttime photographs. Nonetheless, there is a special allure to these conditions. In nighttime photography, it's easier to evoke a sense of isolation or loneliness, a feeling that often accompanies me during my nighttime strolls and consequently is frequently reflected in the photos.
I love exploring my surroundings at night because many places take on a completely different character than during the daytime. Certain subjects that might have gone unnoticed in bright conditions come alive and reveal their full potential at night. However, I fundamentally believe that you can create good photos under various lighting conditions as long as they align with my photographic intent. For instance, a sooty, dirty, rundown building facade, something we often encounter in Gelsenkirchen, can become an intriguing and evocative photo subject on a gray, cloudy winter day, even if the conditions don't conform to the typical "photographer's weather."
You could say that you seek your subjects in places where many people wouldn't initially expect to find compelling images. However, your photographs feel familiar precisely because they shed new light on everyday scenes. This is particularly evident in your magazine "45N8". Could you tell me about the magazine? How did it come to fruition, and what challenges did you encounter during its creation?
The easiest part of the magazine was actually taking the photos. When you're out and in a good "flow," many images come naturally because I feel like I discover interesting subjects at every corner. The challenge was to come up with a concept and title for the magazine. I didn't want to force anything, and above all, I wanted it to feel genuine and unpretentious. As you mentioned, a significant portion of my photos are taken at night, and I greatly admire the nighttime photos of photographers like Greg Girard and Todd Hido. So, it was probably natural for me to steer the magazine's concept in that direction.
The most difficult part was the precise selection, organization, and post-processing of the images. This process took several weeks and many hours of work and was the most strenuous aspect of the entire project for me. Once the concept had a name and all the images had been post-processed, selected, and thematically organized to my satisfaction, the team at This Is Gelsen helped me with the final design and realization of the magazine. Without their support, given my circumstances of having a full-time job (photography currently being an ambitious hobby) and two young children at home, this photobook would likely have remained a personal dream of mine. So, now it hopefully serves as a solid initial foundation for whatever may come in the future.
How did it come about that you take pictures with an analog film camera? What makes the analog process so special for you?
I started out with digital photography, and around two years later, in early 2020, I stumbled upon Willem Verbeeck's videos on YouTube, which led me to analog photography, much like many others, I suppose.
In broad terms, I would also align with his perspective. Analog photography, for me, represents a more deliberate form of capturing images. The limitation of film capacity forces you to be frugal and to carefully consider each individual photo. Additionally, film's grain imparts a specific nostalgic atmosphere, a vibe that I often find missing in most digital photos. However, I wouldn't take an absolutist stance claiming that film is the holy grail of photography. Undoubtedly, digital photography has its well-known merits as well.
I can understand this fascination very well. May I ask you about a few technical details of your photography? Which cameras and film do you use? Specifically, I'm curious about your night shots – do you use a tripod, or do you actually capture handheld in such low light conditions?
I've captured most of my analog photos using the quintessential classic, a Canon A1. However, over time, I found myself desiring a bit more technical comfort, which led me to acquire a Canon EOS 1N. This newer camera allows me to use modern EF lenses with autofocus. As for film, I'm relatively flexible. Certainly, for atmospheric night shots, Cinestill 800T is a natural choice. Nevertheless, this film is quite sensitive, and in my opinion, it doesn't offer much latitude during exposure. Additionally, it comes with a higher price tag, and it's not particularly usable in natural light.
For me, Kodak Gold is the ultimate all-rounder. It might not provide the dynamic range of Portra 400, but its price-to-performance ratio is unmatched. Given the current, sometimes astronomical prices, this is a decisive factor for me. Recently, I've also used it extensively for my night shots, and I have no regrets. Of course, I used a tripod for these shots, but that's usually the case for nighttime photography, even with more light-sensitive films. Not only do I lack a steady hand, but I also prefer a high depth of field for my subjects.
During my recent vacation in Taiwan, I tried pushing Cinestill 800T to 3600 and had it developed accordingly. However, I was only partially satisfied with the results, as many of the images lacked detail in the darker areas.
Tristan, we've touched on the topic already, but I'd like to delve into the subject of your choice of subjects again. When you roam through Gelsenkirchen or photograph in other locations, what are you looking for? What scenes do you seek out? What do you pay attention to in terms of composition?
Without wanting to neatly fit into a specific genre or impose any blanket label on my photography, I would describe my images as something akin to melancholic New Topographic photography.
In terms of practical execution, even though I'm familiar with most of the city, during my outings, I usually don't pre-plan specific landmarks or buildings. Instead, I typically decide in advance on one or more neighborhoods I want to explore in detail during a tour, and I let what I photograph unfold spontaneously. Of course, it's nice to have interesting lighting and/or weather conditions, but I don't consider those factors mandatory when taking photos.
In selecting subjects, I'm often drawn to things that appear to have fallen out of time. It could be an old, cliché-laden miner's house that hasn't been renovated in 50 years, or sometimes entire streets in Gelsenkirchen. These are places that have likely seen better days, but they touch me emotionally in a certain way. I would say that each photo I take of Gelsenkirchen is a small reflection of my perspective on the "bigger picture" of this marginalized city: undoubtedly influenced by a good dose of realistic resignation, often dreamy, but ultimately always benevolent.
Regarding the composition of the photos, it's important to me to prevent as many distracting elements as possible from entering the frame in the first place. Whether it's rows of parked cars on the roadside or pedestrians. Though when it comes to the latter, I'm often just too shy while photographing to be tempted to intentionally incorporate them into my photos either compositionally or even narratively.
Motivation for photography can indeed be quite diverse. What drives you to seek subjects in all kinds of weather and at any time of day? Is it the photographic process itself or the artistic urge to create that motivates you?
T: My primary drive in photography, I believe, is the desire to document my local surroundings. This was already the underlying motivation when I purchased my first camera in 2018, as mundane as it may sound. The "slow and more deliberate" process of analog photography is more of a secondary and welcomed means to an end in that regard.
Outside of photography, what inspires you and how does it influence your photographic work?
T: I recently watched Andrei Tarkovsky's "Stalker." I know the film is quite old, but visually, I've rarely been so impressed. Those rugged, apocalyptic, and yet dream-like settings have greatly inspired me and left a profound impact. From an aesthetic perspective, it's absolutely unique and incomparable to anything else I've seen so far.
Apart from that, I'm currently diving back into old PS1 and PS2 games, mainly the ones I played during my childhood. This has become my personal form of escapism, although I doubt it has any direct impact on my photography.
On the musical front, the work of The Caretaker has greatly influenced me in recent years, particularly his main opus "Everywhere at the end of time." His music revolves mainly around memories and the loss thereof. It's quite possible that this has also had a certain influence on my style of photography and choice of subjects.
Where is your photographic journey headed? Are you further developing your current series or do you have other projects you're currently working on?
Actually, the focus remains on my hometown. I hope to gather enough material soon to finally publish a proper photo book. That's one of the reasons why I post so infrequently online. I prefer to save most of the good photos to publish them in a printed, collected form, rather than simply feeding them to the Instagram algorithm.
The idea for the photo book is quite well-developed, but I don't expect to have enough photos by the end of the year to further solidify its implementation.
In the long term, I also aim to publish my numerous photos from my stays in Taiwan in print, but that's more of a distant goal. To step out of my comfort zone, I'd like to create and edit some smaller videos in the future. However, at least currently, due to time constraints, the main focus will continue to be on analog photographs of my hometown.
Thank you for the great conversation and the glimpse into your creative work.
Make sure you check out Tristans work on Instagram where you can find even more stunning photographs of this emerging artist and if you happen to be interested in buying some of his prints you can find a high quality selection over at “thisisgelsen.de”.
All Images courtesy by Tristan Kress — all copyrights reserved