James Gilles Coughlan captures "Slice of Life" in Canadian Streetscapes
Interviewed by Ricarda McFalls
From his early work as a portrait and wedding photographer to the street scenes featured in his current exhibition at OLT’s Janigan Studio, Ottawa photographer James Coughlan puts people at the heart of his art. Captivated by cameras and photography at an early age, James turned his passion into a lifelong professional career. More recently, he has reignited his artistic passion pursuing new themes.
Having spent much of his professional life in photo labs and staging subjects in portrait studios, James more recently took his creative practice outdoors and on the road. In his “Slice of Life” exhibit he captures unguarded moments of people in their everyday surroundings, primarily in Canadian cities. Born in Cornwall, James’ family soon moved to Ottawa where James built his life.
We recently met to speak about his career, the inspiration for his current work, and his path to Ottawa Little Theatre.
Tell us more about your personal journey from high school hobbyist to professional photographer.
I developed a keen interest in cameras early on in my childhood, but my interest in all aspects of photography really took off in my final years of high school. I had bought my first serious camera, a single-lens reflex (SLR) camera, a technology pioneered in the 1930s, popularized in the 1960s and 70s, and at its pre-digital peak in the 1990s. By the time I started college, I was always the guy in the group holding the camera and taking the photos.
Two events while completing my bachelor’s degree were influential in my path to becoming a professional photographer. First, I joined the school paper as part of the photography team. Then, a French Improv group asked me whether they could use photos I had taken of their performances as part of a promotional campaign for a major national improvisation tournament that they were hosting. At that point, I realized that I wanted to pursue photography in earnest.
Consequently, I went on to take a two-year professional photography course at La Cité, Ottawa’s French language community college, leading to a two-year apprenticeship with a photography studio. From there I struck out on my own in the portrait and wedding photography business. Within a decade and with the ascent of digital photography, I returned to college to update my skills in digital imaging. In subsequent years as the market conditions shifted my main income was working in and managing a photo lab, while still taking ad hoc assignments as a photographer.
Was there something or someone that most influenced your work?
Early in my career, the owner of the studio where I first worked as a wedding photographer had a strong influence on me. Working there also gave me valuable experience photographing and interacting with people.
Later, a post-graduate course in digital imaging had a significant impact on my work. In addition to gaining new technical skills, the course and its professors prompted me to rethink how I take photographs and helped me develop a fresh style. Today, social media provides further inspiration by exposing me to themes, techniques, and images that encourage me to experiment with innovative approaches.
People are clearly central to your work – what is your approach?
Yes, my strength is working with people for formal portraits or candid photos. In studio, when I can do something more artistic, I like to use only one flash, rather than the more traditional 3-4 flash set up, to get dramatic lighting and contrast between light and shadow. But lately, I’ve also started focusing (no pun intended) on street photography, taking photos of people outside in everyday situations, to get a “slice of life” moment. For those, I usually use a telephoto and try not to be too obvious so that I can capture a real, rather than posed, moment.
For this month’s exhibit, I am displaying my street photography taken in different Canadian cities. During my past few vacations, rather than taking traditional tourist-type photos (which I do, to have souvenirs of the vacation), I’ve been trying to also do more artistic photos, as well as street photography. Among my favourites is the iconic “Allée des artistes”, taken in Quebec City.
How did you first connect with Ottawa Little Theatre?
My husband and I have been OLT subscribers since before the pandemic. We had a subscription to another theatre but happened to attend a play at Ottawa Little Theatre and were so impressed by the production and performance quality that we ended up switching our subscription to OLT and have remained ever since! The Spotlight Gallery is also part of the experience and a wonderful outlet for creative exchange with Ottawa’s artists and patrons.