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Springboard to Creativity: A talented 22-year old Creative, reveals his tips on how to stay motivated and inspired to create.
As part of the launch of Picseed, we want to share with you a series of interviews called ‘Springboard to Creativity’ sessions. We aim to inspire and motivate you to create. The sessions delve into the stories of creatives practicing in the area of art and design.
Picseed app helps you find inspiration based on your creative interests. Capture, collect and share your work simply and beautifully.
Today, we are going behind the scenes of Aidan Broletti, a talented and successful photographer, videographer and graphic designer. We find out about his creative practice and learn about what motivates him to create even outside of his 9-5 job. Aidan is a 22-year old Dublin based Creative and globetrotter wannabe.
It’s a pleasure to have such a talented mind to kick off the first ‘Springboard to Creativity’ session. Tell me about your practice. How did your journey begin?
I would describe myself as a creative. I prefer not to stick as just ‘Graphic Designer’ or ‘Videographer’ because sometimes you could be put into a category. I do a lot of video work for the company I work with in my 9-5. I try to be a little bit more creative and work on more abstract ideas as a whole. As to how I got into that and where it started - I began doing photography when I was in 6th year in secondary school and I got really into it. I was never brought up doing it. I was interested in photography.
But it wasn’t until I was in college that I got interested in video. I picked it up and ran with it! I spent my entire college years just doing video work and then I was introduced to graphic design in 3rd year. I was actually quite late into the game. I wasn’t brought up doing creative work, I just kind of fell in love with it. I got a job in a global company after I finished college and have just been doing it since then.
What type of video work did you do in college?
It was mainly highlight-videos on events going on around campus. The first one was a Christian Union Gospel Choir. They wanted me to record a 3-hour concert. I was really nervous. I was like ‘please pick me, please pick me’ – thinking there would be hundreds of people queuing up for it but there was nobody so I went there with my camera. It was good! I did about 100 different highlight videos a year over two years. I was doing lots and lots of it for free and that kind of kick-started me. From there I started doing freelance work. A lot of it was highlight-videos. Then I started moving into live streaming and then short films.
What projects are you currently working on?
I traveled to Thailand two months ago. I have wanted to go for a while. I wanted to do self-portrait travel. It’s really big on Instagram at the moment but I have always wanted to delve into it. I know perhaps it’s not the most original concept but it’s definitely something I believe I can put my mark on - plus I find it fun and interesting. I travel with my girlfriend most of the times and we photograph each other (I need to get better at giving her credit). I believe the editing process is where the magic happens.
She’s like your assistant photographer?
Yes [laughs] but I do the editing process behind it which I enjoy. I bring it into Photoshop. I find it’s a balance between adding elements in Photoshop but it’s still being slightly realistic but without being too abstract.
‘Obviously coming back from Thailand, the scenery in Ireland is beautiful but it’s not like Thailand. The landscape in Ireland is a challenge in itself.’
I also got bitten by the travel bug. I went to Paris there a couple of weeks ago and I am going to the States soon with work. I will try to do some shoots around that as well. I try to get different travel opportunities wherever I can. And when I’m at home, I try to choose different places where I can shoot new work.
Describe your routine and what gets you into a creative mindset.
I’d say I like to keep myself motivated. Currently, I am into Podcasts. I listen to a tonne of motivational podcasts. They perhaps go in one ear and out the other. I listen to that when I’m working to help get me into the right mood to just go and do it.
‘I have a routine of getting a cup of coffee which starts my productivity even if I’m not tired. The idea of me sitting there with my cup of coffee makes me feel like I am being a lot more productive.’
[Laughs] That’s entirely in my head. It helps me to focus my energy. I finish work in my 9 to 5 job and go home and sit there with my coffee working on editing photographs for a couple of hours.
Then, when I’m out shooting, I always try to frame something in my head before taking lots of photographs. I walk around trying to find different angles.
‘I scout out where to I’m going on Google maps looking at various photographic locations that are a bit unique because I don’t like to take the photographs in the same place that everyone else does. I want the image to be a bit different.’
That’s my one pet peeve - when you go to different tourist locations, like in Thailand or Paris and everyone is taking photos in the same place - I know I am a tourist as well!, but I just try to find a new angle on that to make it different.
Are there any particular materials, equipment or tools that you like to use? What’s in your creative kit especially if you are going abroad?
I would like to say it’s vast and you have all this technology like go-pros etc. but realistically I simply use a DSLR. I just stick with that. I use one lens. That kind of confines you a little bit but also forces you to find a new perspective. If you have one lens and you can’t zoom in, you have to find a way of getting closer or a new way to frame it. Whereas, if you have so many different things, it can be a bit overwhelming. I find a lot of people get drawn into the technology and they forget about their actual subject. So it’s pretty basic using a DSLR, Photoshop and Lightroom.
I understand that - with boundaries comes creativity.
Yes, it’s a bit of a challenge too - don’t get me wrong. I went over to Thailand with 20kg of equipment. [Laughs] Yeah, I brought along numerous different lenses and Go-Pros but when I got there I just thought, ‘what am I doing carrying all this around with me’, because realistically I am just going to use this one camera and one lens. So I left all the rest in the hotel. I still had to bring it around to different places but I made the decision there and then and I think it’s going to stick with me.
What motivates you to create?
I’d say it’s a mix.
‘What motivates me is a mixture of people I look up to but wanting to inspire other people too.’
I was probably not as motivated right up until college. That’s when something just clicked. But every single night and morning I feel there’s a sense of urgency. It’s like ‘oh no I need to be doing something to advance myself.’ That mindset is something I’ve always just had. But I always find myself looking to others for motivation as well. I look up to people on Instagram. I’m big into the fitness industry and I look up to them for different things like work ethic. So there are lots of people that motivate me but it’s also self-motivation that helps keep me trucking along.
What does success look like to you?
‘I would say success is being able to do what I love without worries about money or things like that.’
It’s not necessarily working for the biggest brand in the world. It’s doing what you want and having fun creatively.
What is your greatest achievement?
Being a 20-year-old, straight out of college and getting a job as a creative, is my greatest achievement.
Have you collaborated with any other creative and if so can you describe your experience of it?
I collaborate a lot with people in work. Outside of my 9 to 5, I have definitely reached out to people. I am still finding my feet in the creative scene on social media, so I have not completed anything yet - but I have upcoming collaborations that I am very excited about. It’s just trying to find the right time. That’s the only thing is having the time to do it.I’m thinking, with your girlfriend, it’s like collaboration in itself. She is behind the camera taking some photos for your self-portraits.Yes, actually [laughs]. I probably don’t give her enough credit for that. It’s probably the biggest collaboration. I love that!
How does that work?
She’s into it...I was going to say she is probably into it just as much as me but probably gets fed up of it every now and then. But it’s good. We both enjoy traveling and taking photographs. She comes from a science background but she has definitely learned how to use the camera. She enjoys the process of seeing the photograph taken in a place and seeing what can be done when you add it to Lightroom and Photoshop.She sees it taking life, especially after posting it. Like when I put it up on the ‘Gram’ and seeing it getting likes, [laughs]. She sees the whole process. That’s collaboration. I get asked a lot of questions from people and they are asking ‘who is taking these photographs?’
Who’s the person behind the camera – it’s the unsung hero.
She’s the unsung hero there is right [laughs]. I didn’t stick it on a tripod or put it on a timer.
Who inspires you to create?
I go through phases. For example, there’s Offset in Dublin every year. I go through a phase of following these people religiously and think ‘Oh my God, they’re who I want to be’ and then a month later it’s someone else. I would say at this moment in time, I’m into creatives on Instagram. There is a cool trend at the moment where they create all these images and content that are entirely out of stock images. They are quite abstract. There’s another group called the Art of Visuals and there’s a lot of people on there who do a lot of sharing and collaborating. It’s very interesting - It’s the whole idea of creating something entirely from your laptop sometimes using stock images and photoshopping them. There’s still a lot of work you have to put into them. It’s still like 8 hours of work just to get one image. That really motivates me at the moment. I would like to get into that but I still enjoy going out and traveling, getting fresh air.
Do you post images up in the ‘Art of Visuals’ group?
I tag them in it. It’s a big group. That’s the motivation as well to be more part of that group. Getting feedback from the group, sharing and getting to know people by networking. It’s a world-wide group but I definitely like to be a part of that.
Do you find that if you have a project on your mind that you want to research, sometimes ideas just come to you when you don’t think about it? Does that ever happen to you?
I feel like inspiration works in the backend of your brain. You don’t really realize until that moment that you kind of go ‘Ahh’. Like when I came into work earlier this week, I just thought of something and I wrote it down. I literally hadn’t thought about it for months. But something just clicked. It seems to just work in the background.
What superpower would you like to have and why?
[Laughs] I kind of always wanted to fly. That’s real basic of me. You could apply it to modern day traveling. Because of the expensive flights as a limitation, I could fly everywhere with my DSLR.
Are there any challenges that you have encountered when creating your work?
Yes, lots of challenges. It goes part in parcel with what I was saying – to be able to get to a place where there are no boundaries and being able to do what you want.
‘But the challenges drive you to aim for more.’
There are always challenges coming from clients, who you work for, software and other things like trying to take a photograph in a particular place. For example, when you go to different places, there are always tourists there. You’re a tourist too. But you just have to wait for them to move out of your frame or..pro tip, you just clone them out of the background anyway.
Or have the patience of a saint.
Yes, to have the patience of a saint and wait for the right time. It’s small challenges like that that make it more rewarding. I really enjoy taking the extra bit of time to make an image stand out, if it were easy then I wouldn’t enjoy the process.
How do you share your work with your audience? Do you have a particular preference for a platform?
Currently, it’s Instagram. I feel like that’s where everything is going at the moment. I’m really enjoying Instagram stories. I’m getting great feedback from doing all that. Before that though, it was Facebook. It depends on what’s big at the time. I was always into Facebook. I’d set up my Facebook likes page in college and invite all my friends. But I think Instagram is a lot better because you can find people you wouldn’t have know through Facebook. You can’t find as many people on Facebook as you can on Instagram that share your interests. That’s probably the one I’d share most on. But I’ve always been a key person for teaching about keeping all your platforms up to date. So whether that’s on your website, YouTube, Twitter etc. I’ve probably fallen down a bit on Twitter over the past few years as it’s declining a bit but Instagram is the main one.
Do you interact with your audience for feedback on your work?
Yes, I try to ask for feedback all the time on Instagram and use it to talk to people. You get their DMs there too. It’s something that people don’t see but you’re reaching out and networking with other people.
‘Even if nothing ever comes of it, you can reach out to people you have never met. People who live in another country and you’re talking to them like they are someone you know.’
What tips or advice do you have for other creatives starting out?
‘In terms of photography and video, it’s learning the basics first.’
It’s very easy to get carried away with the latest technology like gimbals, drones etc. Videos nowadays all have the flashiest transitions, LUTs, colour grading, etc. I use that myself but I try not to get to carried away with it or rely on it because I try to keep the story at the forefront. If you use too much of it, people who are a lot more experienced will just see through it. They will see you haven’t mastered the basics.
‘You can get lots of positive feedback from people but if you’re hoping to get into the creative industry, you have to remember that creative professionals will also be looking at your work and they’ll be able to see through that.’
What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned from creating your work?
‘I’d say the biggest lesson I have learned is to not to put things off.’
I’ve gone through numerous phases of just putting things off. Like I would think, ‘right I’m going to have a productive Saturday morning. I’m going to sit down and do lots of work’ but unless you set an objective or goal, that work never happens. You could sit there refreshing your feeds but unless you have something to work on, you’re not doing much at all. I learned that lesson in the past year.
‘I’ve decided to make To-Do lists on my phone. I make lists each day and that makes it a lot easier.’
If I don’t get the work done that day, I don’t go to bed at night [Laughs]. It’s one of the most basic things but it makes it really easy to stay focused. It’s all about goal setting. If I think ‘if I do this it will make me more successful’ but you have to break it down into smaller, easier steps.
Managing user-generated content was a main concern when designing the application’s data model.
Initially, we were going to use technologies such as MySQL, JSON and PHP to achieve this. The diagram below illustrates this concept.
However, when it came to file storage we researched the latest cloud storage technologies decided to switch to Firebase services for file storage, authentication and any other data-related functionality. The reason behind this choice lies in familiarity with the languages its employs (namely Javascript and JSON), ease of use and clarity of its documentation. The image below shows the updated connections of Picseed app to external services (i.e: Firebase and Picseed server for content retrieval via Tumblr and Behance APIs).
Feedback from our users is extremely valuable to us.
Each month, we meet our users to test the latest features of Picseed. Our focus group meetings are a great chance to get to know our users. Their feedback help us refine the app’s experience to suit their needs.
Are you a creative person? Would you like to test Picseed? Get in touch or fill out this form and you’ll get access to the app before it reaches the public. We’re looking for more testers, both remote and based in Dublin, Ireland.
