WhiteWall Art Market: Photographer's spotlight - Thilo Ross
Thilo Ross has high expectations for the quality of his final images. This standard begins with the selection of a motif and ends only with the mode of presentation. The result is always the same: "The WhiteWall photo lab knows exactly how to produce a picture perfectly."
"Categorically the acrylic glass mount is an absolute WhiteWall highlight," says the photographer, who personally prefers the solid wood frames with passe-partout mounting. "It is refined and particularly accentuates large format images."
In addition to the quality of the products, the photographer also highly values WhiteWall's optimal marketing opportunities: "I can in good conscience have my clients order images directly through my gallery page without constantly having to check if the quality is up to par or not. The service has been optimally organized, and the lab is always available and competent in their guidance and customer support."
As a photographer, Thilo Ross has been dealing with the composition of public space since 1990 and especially with its photographic documentation. In 2003 Ross switched not only from analog to digital photography but also from industrial photography and graphics to commercial, commission-based photography. Ross's works focus on social documentation and architectural photography.
""Since the early nineties, photography has become a more inherent part of my daily life," Thilo Ross explains. "At the start, I only intuitively documented my environment and things that excited me visually or that I had created myself. Now I work increasingly more conceptually, even through intuition has become the emotional foundation of my search for motifs." The photographer's mandate is to stimulate his viewers emotionally and visually – and his works definitely deliver.
Interview with Thilo Ross
How did you hear of the WhiteWall photo lab? When did you decide to produce and display your works at WhiteWall?
I am familiar with LUMAS's products and came across WhiteWall about three years ago while doing my own research on providers of photo lab services and on special backing materials. Reports in professional photography magazines tipped the balance. I started producing my own works here in 2010. The comparison with other producers proved to me that WhiteWall is truly user friendly, and it doesn't just promise museum quality – it delivers.
What do you think of WhiteWall's homepage and the order process?
The homepage is clearly laid out, and the design is inviting. It is fast, professional, and uncomplicated to use. Through the way the photographer defines his works, someone placing an order can find the product he wants quickly – if he was successful in making up his mind. Compared to other shop portals, which are sometimes sluggish and unclear, WhiteWall is very cleaned up and flexible – not to mention that this isn't about bulk processing or ordering – which I really appreciate!
What qualitative standards do you expect from a photo lab? What quality criteria are most important to you?
Secure shipment and packaging, trustworthy proofs, guaranteed durability, optimal mounting, high-quality final products, fair price-performance ratio, well functioning upload process – those are the main elements. Above all the upload process for image data, which at 21–39 megapixel can sometimes be enormous, is absolutely stress free at WhiteWall.
Which presentation format best accentuates your work? Why?
I can't answer that specifically since it depends not only on the motif but also especially on the image's "final destination." Depending on where it is to hang, how much space it has, if it's hanging in a series or alone, the criteria may speak for various kinds of finishes.
Categorically the acrylic glass mount is an absolute WhiteWall highlight. But here again, it's great quality aside, it is important to know where the picture will hang. Across from a window, for example, the image will function more like a mirror and won't be any fun until someone closes the blinds.
Personally I favor the solid wood frames with passe-partout: it is refined and particularly accentuates large format works.
What makes WhiteWall different from other photo labs?
There are only a few remaining photo labs and a lot of printers. WhiteWall is simply specialized in images and knows what it takes to be great: from the tools available to photographers to the significant soft proof, which by the way is available extremely quickly, from the printing to the framing, mounting, etc, as well as shipping and other services for the photographers and customers.
WhiteWall is reliable; here there's no worrying about variations in colour. You might think that black-and-white is a simple procedure, but it causes problems for most printers. The printer makes you decide what colour fault you can best put up with, which is to me completely unacceptable. At WhiteWall…no problem, which I like!
Would you recommend WhiteWall to other artists?
Basically I will continue to recommend WhiteWall with an emphatic YES not only to photographers but also to those who just love photography. WhiteWall can do a lot very well. It is a reliable partner in the arts, and I can recommend its photo lab without reservation.