Secrets of a Commercial Photographer, Break Your Expectations: Kazuha Matsumoto

As a commercial photographer, Kazuha Matsumoto, describes that he seizes the value of peoples’ everyday lives by seeing “love, relationships, connections and interactions with human beings…” Matsumoto reveals how you can make people stop when getting a glimpse of your work and what he perceives as a victorious shot.



Matsumoto makes himself stand out from a competitive field by avoiding conventional combinations as well as ideas, and sticking to strong and sharp photography with focus on simple lighting and composition.

“In the early phase of my career, I was interested in the creative work of videos such as PVs, but during my early 20s I was deeply inspired by the works of Kenji Aoki, one of the top Japanese photographers and strongly felt that there were great possibilities for me in the field of still photography. Since then, I’ve been ambitious to express myself in still photography.”

Since Matsumoto has found his passion, he has created a simple strategy for himself which is to always be in search for expressions and ideas that immediately catch people’s attention, by grasping scenarios that make you stop when you’re browsing magazines or walking on the streets. “I am trying to attract people with a cut or story, like a scene from a film.”

Matsumoto explains that you know when a shot is victorious “when I work together with various people and the synergetic effects from the teamwork creates incredible works that breaks our expectations. When the satisfaction of clients and myself correspond each other and makes the photography more impressive.”

“Due to the nature of a commercial photographer, I am basically working in the studio and shooting subjects that are provided, however, I am always keen on finding something that I can express or deliver. Location shootings are conducted as necessary. You must have a standard techniques, but photography is liberal so when you quit theory intentionally, you can get your own original expression and also new expressions. It’s inspiring when I can take a photo that is beyond my own expectation and when my satisfaction for the works meets the satisfaction of my clients.”

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