Matt Preston and his wife Deborah are two energetic English global nomadic travelers, who love sharing their travel tips and experiences with others through their Travel with a Mate website . We caught up with Matt to discuss his thoughts on travel and his new photography book: “Portraits of Asia.”
Like us Matt, you and your wife travel the world together. What impact has this had upon the strength of your marriage? What do you think the biggest challenge has been traveling as a couple?
Photo: Matt and Deborah Preston
I believe all relationships work best when there are common goals. Things you both enjoy and can work on together. These can come in many different forms, but the easiest is travelling. Whenever we are away we not only enjoy the places we visit, but we also enjoy the time we spend together. We get to meet people together and really feed of each other’s experiences which is great. Extended travels always make us stronger.
What has been your most memorable travel experience?
We’ve had so many. Japan is still a big highlight for us, even after all the other amazing travel experiences. We even got married overseas in Hawaii and honeymooned in Canada travelling from West Coast to East. Still Japan is at the top of our list. The food, the people, the culture, even the trains! We’re actually learning Japanese so we can visit again soon.
You’re a travel photographer by profession, is this why you started traveling to begin with and is this how you support your travel adventures?
The travel buzz has always been there along with my love of Photography. Thanks to the support of my wife, both areas have been transformed into a career and a way of life. I’m very lucky to be able to travel the world and take photos I’m very proud of.
You have just completed a travel photography book “Portraits of Asia” What was the inspiration for this book? Why Asia?
Asia has always been a fascination of mine. So much history, art and culture. Over 80% of the world’s population live in Asia. I’ve always been interested in
photo-Portraits of Asia: Matt Preston
portrait photography too. The many nuances of facial expressions, the narrative of a human and their surroundings. Combining my love of portraits with the cultures of Asia was something I’d always wanted to do. The experience of travelling around Asia for over 3 months, and meeting so many amazing people from all walks of life was one I will always cherish. The book is the result of these human connections. I’ve very pleased with it and glad I am able to share the photos with the world.
What are you looking for when choosing a subject to photograph? From this how do you select which ones will feature in the book?
Good question, there are so many different reasons. Sometimes a scene presents itself to you and you are able to calculate just how to get the shot right. Other times the shot happens in the blink of an eye and being there with my camera ready at just the right moment is what makes it possible. Meeting adults and children from villages and cities alike, sometimes you create a connection with them. Have a conversation often with broken English and sign language. The environment in which to take the portrait opens up thanks to these connections. Portrait photography is often about the photographers connection to the subject. You can often see this connection in the photo.
As for selecting which photos should enter the book, it’s often a question of flow. Photos on their own as prints are solo works of art, but in book format there is a need for each photograph to compliment, or contrast with the previous and next. A book of photographs should be a journey, much like the journey I was actually on when I took the photos!
Who has been your most interesting subject to date?
I’ve often been asked this and every time I say without hesitation, the village girl in Sa Pa, North Vietnam. She was clearly the leader of her young friends, following us as we trekked through rice paddies and bamboo forests. She was an interesting character, older than her years and rarely smiled or laughed like the other girls with her. I managed to get a shot of her that sends shivers whenever I look at it. Such an intense stare and such a powerful portrait. It is still one of my favourite photos.
Portraits of Asia: Photo- Matt Preston
What’s the best advice you would give to someone, setting out on their first travel adventure who knows little about photography?
Be creative. Anyone can take a snapshot, but creative photography comes from finding new angles, new compositions and new subjects. You don’t need the most expensive SLR camera going. I’ve seen some very impressive and creative photography taken with a simple compact camera. Great photography comes from two things, the subject in front of the camera and the subject behind it. Every camera has it’s strength and it’s weaknesses, learn to make the most of them.
Why travel?
Because if you’re standing still you’re not living. There’s an infinite number of experiences you can have on this big sphere of dirt we call Earth, but only a finite amount of time to experience it. Make the most of your time.
Photo: Portraits of Asia- Matt Preston
Photo: Portraits of Asia- Matt Preston
Tell our readers, how they can get a copy of “Portraits of Asia” and how they can benefit from your years of experience traveling the globe.
Our book is on sale from the Travel With a Mate website. Its very reasonably priced, and will no doubt bring back a lot of wonderful backpacking memories if you’ve travelled in South East Asia before. And if you haven’t been yet, I’m very confident it will make you want to go soon!
