Park that Car, Drop that Phone
In this week’s episode, photographer and writer Matt Mendelsohn shares stories from his exciting personal portfolio and discusses why you should occasionally sweep “the bottom line” under the rug and embrace a project simply because you feel it needs to exist.
About Matt Mendelsohn
In his twenty-three years as a photographer, Matt has covered the White House, crawled around in Egyptian tombs, and photographed celebrities like Jennifer Anniston and Nicole Kidman. He’s been the director of photography of a 27 million circulation weekly, the photo editor of the news section of the nation’s largest newspaper, and has photographed some 450 weddings in the last decade. Matt also worked for the United Press International. There, he covered the White House, the invasion of Panama and the fist Gulf War.
In 2001, Matt’s brother, Daniel, called with an interesting proposal: join him on a trip back to the family home in Ukraine and unravel a 60-year-old mystery. That project led to a five-year search, from Sydney to Stockholm, a quest that was documented in the award-winning and best-selling memoir The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million.
As a wedding photographer, “Photo District News” included Matt in its “15 hottest wedding portfolios in America” issue and Washingtonian Magazine described his portraits as “a breed apart.” The cover story he wrote in 2006 for the Washington Post Sunday Magazine, about his life as a wedding photographer, has become a widely reproduced and emailed internet sensation. Matt lives with his wife, Maya, and daughter, Alexandra in Virginia.
Photos by Matt Mendelsohn
The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million
Dr. Brauner, Sydney, Australia
Jack and Bob Greene, Sydney
Adam Kulberg and granddaughter Alma in Copenhagen
Auschwitz
Klara Frielich, Stockholm
About the Host- Travis Schreer
Travis is a wanderer who has a life-long passion for helping creative people realize their ambitions. While studying at the Kendall College of Art and Design and Eastern Michigan University, simultaneously pursuing a BFA in fine art and a Masters in creative writing, Travis rediscovered his fascination with photography and began working as a product photographer. After a brief stint studying poetry in Paris and years of developing his own artistic identity from the comforts of various midwestern cities, Travis packed his wool socks and moved to the chilly climes of Alaska. While there, he broadened his knowledge of the photography industry through his work for Alaska’s largest advertising agency and his involvement with several stock photography companies. It was also in Alaska that Travis photographed his first wedding alongside his partner, photographer Jessica Hill, and the two began to lay the groundwork for the company that was to follow. Then, it was on to Portland, Oregon where Jessica and Travis would put all of their brainstorming into effect and establish Jessica Hill Photography as one of the premiere boutique wedding photography studios in the area. Next time you’re in Portland, stop by Laurelhurst Park, where Travis can be found most evenings. He’s the scruffy guy playing with Collignon Quincampoix, the coolest dog you will ever meet.