Tell about yourself:

My name is Isak Engstad Fjeld (20) and I come from Furnes near Hamar. I spent 3 years at Hamar Cathedral School where I studied media and communication before a year at Hamar University College where I studied English for a year. I'm obviously interested in photography, but I'm also passionate about sports where I actively follow both football and hockey + some motor sports.

I started photographing on the rally track with a small FinePix camera for approx. 12 years ago, before I gradually upgraded to newer and stronger cameras as interest increased. However, I didn't start exploring so many other genres until I started Media and Communication at Hamar Katedralskole, where I got an insight into everything from studio to advertising photography. It was only here that I began to realize how many endless possibilities there are within the subject and my interest was fully established.

What I like best about photography is that you can never be unlearned, as the technology changes all the time. In addition, there is always room to learn a new technique, as everyone has their own way of using their eyes and their experiences. I like being able to convey a story, a moment or a mood with photos, as well as playing with all things creative.

What were your expectations to start at Elverum Folkehøgskule?

My expectations for the folk high school were to find a place where I could explore the subject, as well as develop myself within photography via study trips, things that happen at the school and being able to develop projects with constructive criticism from a very skilled photography teacher. Those expectations were met and I feel I have learned a lot in six months blue. new techniques in Photoshop/Bridge, new ways of thinking about photography, as well as a whole lot of technical stuff.

From the social side you quickly learn to spend time with many different personalities and people - a good and enriching experience you need everywhere!

What is your best experience on the line so far?

For me, the little moments you get here mean the most. Everything from the small moments where I feel mastery over something I have learned or worked on for a long time, to the moment when we suddenly saw a shooting star in the sky to a slightly more internal experience of a double bus at a lightpainting project in Budapest. Of the slightly larger experiences, there is a lot to choose from, but there is one experience that made a strong impression on me personally – the experience of photographing an elderly street musician in Budapest. To respectably capture the mood and his personality in a series of pictures gave me something very special.

What does a typical day at Foto/Experiences look like?

A normal day at the photography course is very varied, but a typical week of course subjects is about learning a bit of theory, before we do a photo task that the whole class helps to give feedback on. The beauty of the lessons here is that the teacher is very good at accommodating everyone's needs and skill level!

My impression of the photo line is also that it becomes what you make of it yourself. A nice metaphor is that you can either go for a walk to pick up a bit of knowledge here and there, jog, run short distances or sprint a marathon to get the most out of it. I personally sprint marathons to learn as much as possible, before watching movie marathons in the evening to relax 🥰

Plans after the school year?

That's a good question, but I'm hoping to get into a degree in photography.