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When a photographer pulls out a camera, there’s guaranteed to be one of two reactions.
Some will happily say yes to having their photo taken, while others will turn you down, maybe even going so far as to joke ‘taking my photo might break your camera’.
So, what happened when photographer and filmmaker Matt Beaver approached a bunch of cowboys and protection athletes at a recent rodeo in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales?
“A lot of them were keen to do it,” Matt said.
“And the ones that weren’t, you’d sort of say ‘you’re brave enough to jump on a bull, I reckon a camera wouldn’t hurt you’ and then they’d have a bit of a laugh and say they’d love to have their photo taken.”
The resulting images were a showcase of passion, grit and the diversity of both youth and longevity within the rodeo game.
“I had this idea that I wanted to shoot these very dimly-lit, moody studio portraits, but with some interesting characters in the photos,” Matt said.
“I got to meet all the cowboys and they didn’t disappoint.”
While the cowboys may have been taken aback to see themselves in such a way, Matt wasn’t at all surprised by how the photos turned out.
“I knew exactly what they would look like, but what surprised me was the interesting people I got to meet,” he said.
“I find it fascinating going and meeting new people and just jumping into a completely different culture, or sub-culture in this case.”
This drive to experience and capture all of life’s diversity is reflected in the raw, authentic imagery Matt shares and the clients he works with.
“I tend to use my camera as a passport to meet interesting people and gain access to interesting places,” he said.
“My camera has allowed me to meet the most fascinating and inspiring people, and visit some truly amazing places.”
With so many kilometres travelled and too many photos snapped to count, it’s hard to pinpoint a favourite place, but Matt said any broadacre crop at sunrise is a scene he particularly enjoys seeing through his viewfinder.
“I particularly like shooting with farmers and people who are working on the land,” he said.
“I’ll spend a bit of time talking to them, getting a feel for who they are and then frame a picture around that.
“By just connecting with people on a shoot, working out what they’re doing and how important it is to the world, I can showcase that for other people to give an insight and get a picture of.”
Alongside the stories he hears are the pearls of wisdom and off-the-cuff remarks that make people of rural Australia so interesting.
“I’ll often get home from work and say, ‘you wouldn’t believe what I heard today’; they’re so good,” Matt said.
“The best on-farm remark I’ve heard was in response to better yields and commodity prices after the pro-longed drought period – ‘farmers have been eating baked beans for a while, about time they eat some king prawns’.”
If you’d like to see more of Matt’s work, check out his Instagram @mattbeaverphotography
