Summary

Episode Promotional Partner: Kreatures of Habit

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Ben Watts is an accomplished photographer who is originally from London, took a leap to Australia, and another one to the Concrete Jungle. Chances are, you've probably seen his work before! Ben talks about making it when moving to new and unfamiliar cities. In it, he mentions how he was able to dedicate 100% of his focus as an accomplished photographer, sometimes at the detriment of his personal life. But through his work ethic, he transformed from being a photographer's assistant to now, a fully-fledged photographer for large clients like Nike, Kodak, Ralph Lauren, and more.

BEN WATTS, BORN IN LONDON, ENGLAND IN 1967, WAS A STUDENT AT THE SYDNEY COLLEGE OF ARTS FROM 1985 TO 1990. HE STARTED HIS PHOTOGRAPHIC CAREER IN AUSTRALIA, FIRST WORKING AS A PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT, BUT SOON TAKING ON COMMISSIONS ON HIS OWN, SHOOTING FOR AUSTRALIAN ELLE AND VOGUE, AMONG OTHERS.

FASCINATED BY AMERICAN HIP HOP CULTURE HE CAME TO NEW YORK IN 1990 AND STARTED DOCUMENTING URBAN YOUTH, HITTING THE STREETS AND CLUBS OF THE CITY IN HIS ATTEMPT TO CAPTURE HIS SUBJECTS ON FILM. HE MOVED TO NEW YORK IN 1995, AND HAS SINCE SHOT ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS FOR NIKE, JOCKEY, POLO RALPH LAUREN, MILLER LITE, KODAK, ROXY-QUICKSILVER, THE GAP, SONY MUSIC, CAPITOL/EMI, LOUD RECORDS, TOMMYBOY RECORDS, AND APPLE, TO NAME A FEW. HE IS A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR TO NUMEROUS MAGAZINES, INCLUDING NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE, GQ, INTERVIEW, ROLLING STONE, VIBE, TRACE, DETOUR, RAYGUN, ESQUIRE, ELLE, AND TOKION. HIS WORK HAS ALSO BEEN PUBLISHED IN VANITY FAIR, HARPER’S BAZAAR, OUTSIDE MAGAZINE, TRAVEL & LEISURE, AND CONDE” NAST TRAVELER , AMONG OTHERS.

WATTS HAS CONTRIBUTED TO SEVERAL GROUP EXHIBITIONS IN NEW YORK, INCLUDING “ART IN PHOTOGRAPHY” HE LIVES AND WORKS IN NEW YORK.

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