Matt Bishop

Landscape Photographer

Matt Bishop, grew up near Melbourne on the south coast of Australia, moved to Europe to explore culture and the great outdoors outside of Australia, and it all started with a climbing holiday in Switzerland. The European Alps impressed the young Australian so much that he now carries his camera with him on many journeys.

Today he resides in Rome, Italy, where after more than 20 years his passion for landscape photography has gradually evolved into a profession. At the same time, photography, which Matt Bishop does on a part-time basis, is a balancing element in his life.
As a surgical assistant in the operating theatre of a Roman hospital, there is a lot to see that needs an opposite pole to be mastered. For Matt Bishop, taking photographs is the impetus to express himself, to communicate how he has felt what he has seen. Even as a schoolboy in Australia, he was impressed by local painters and later especially by photographers who were committed to the landscape. However, it is hardly a matter of presenting the found landscapes in a factual and clear way.

In the meantime it has become a sideline to lead regular workshops and to introduce other photographers to the world of landscape photography. Recently he expanded his skills into video documentation of experiences out on field within the Youtube community, and hosts the podcast “Landscape Photography Vlogcast”, together with Paul Thomson and Tom Peters. Matt become an official “Pentax Photographer” for Ricoh Imaging Europe with refined knowledge and experience photographing landscapes in Italy and Patagonia where his workshops there are gathering unique attention and is as well an important discussion partner in the group of Pentaxians.

Matt Bishop with his project: ›Patagonien‹

For Matt Bishop, landscape is a strong trigger of emotions, of a deeply felt connection: he describes his impression of the Swiss Alps as ›mesmerizing‹. In Italy Matt concentrates his attention on discovering new areas to explore, documenting unique wilderness locations scattered through the Apennine Mountains that forms across most major territories in the Italian Peninsula. Many of these areas have been given little attention to tourists and photographers alike, and under the correct light epic photographs can be captured. With his photography of landscapes and journeys he developed his own emotional world, which 'hit the heart' of many viewers through their eyes. In this way, many questions about his special way of working came up in exchange with the viewers.

›Patagonien‹ as a very special workshop concept Matt Bishop had already made many trips, which he had reported about via Instagram or on his website. However, there was one trip that had made a particularly deep impression on him. In 2009 he had been with his wife at the southernmost end of South America: Patagonia. At that time, he had fully immersed himself in the landscape, the people, the attitude towards life and had experienced a deep connection with this landscape. He had hardly taken any photographs. It was clear to him that he had to come back to capture his experiences in fascinating photographs.

Many years later, a friend from Argentina, a tour guide with an own agency, contacted Matt to ask if they would like to develop a joint workshop concept based on Matt Bishop's passion for the country and for photography: On the one hand, the workshop participants should get to know the country, the culture and the people better. On the other hand, they wanted to visit selected places to experience the rugged mountain world, the special vegetation but also the isolation in this landscape. Because what shapes the people and their lives can be directly derived from the conditions of the landscape: The force of the weather changes, the inaccessibility but also the sublime nature that arises directly from it. »I feel that I have a true spritual connection with this land and its culture and want to share this with other photographers.«

Matt Bishop has been offering these workshops for several years and was surprised by their success himself from the beginning. The core of these workshops is to capture the special quality of the photographic experience.