As one half of EMPTY STRETCH, a collective discovering emerging photographers and publishing over 40 titles and a personal, nomadic inclination to capture the world through his lens (preference to his FUJI X100) we asked Jordan Swartz to TAKEOVER MUTINY for a few days with his latest imagery. Taken on his recent CROSS COUNTRY ROADTRIP during a few months on the road - his images are INCREDIBLY tactile and COOL with a 'wish we were there' sensibility.
We've been digging these all weekend + had to ask Jordan some questions on his work and downtime ...
What draws you to an image? I have actually had a lot of conversations the past few days about this & it's come down to that I don't know. When I'm taking photographs it is very much just a gut reaction of "this needs to be documented." I also have a rule that if I think I should take a photograph then I do, no hesitation no questioning. A lot of my work comes together in the editing stages. With other people's images, I'm a sucker for just a really beautiful photograph, the one that makes you stop just that second or two longer & gets your mind wondering & racing. Also a really good portrait will get me every time. I feel I lack in the portrait area of photographing, so a really beautiful one will make me good & jealous in a good way.

Where do you seek out/come across visual inspiration? The long answer is everywhere; photographically, movies are a huge inspiration & just wandering the streets & going places I have never been. Design wise, I got my eye & aesthetics from skate/ surf/ & bmx magazines & at the end of the day, that's still the style I like most. The internet is obviously huge in all of this, tumblr is great for finding new work & Empty Stretch is actually at the point where we have people contacting us for features, so we are getting to see new work all of the time.

Preferred camera? I shoot predominately with a Fuji x100 & it's my baby. It's built like a rangefinder but is digital, so there's less hassle. It fits in my pocket & it has been everywhere with me. One day I'd like to try my hand at 4x5 again, but I don't think I have the patience.


FAVORITE CITIES ... GO ! Favorite ones that I've been to: New Orleans, Los Angeles, Ghent, Koln, Berlin, Toronto, Chicago, Grand Rapids, San Francisco, Morgantown, WV., Portland, ME, Minneapolis, Yokohama. Ones I have yet to see: Vancouver, Barcelona, Tangier, Kanmaw, Moscow, Helsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, Naples.

DIGITAL or ANALOG (iNotes or Notebook)? Paper journal by far. I have a very strong love/ hate/ distrust of technology.

BLACK COFFEE or BLACK TEA ? Black coffee all day every day in a never ending cup.

BEER OR RYE ? Rye on the rocks, or scotch if it's been a good month, but I also will rarely if ever turn down a drink.

LAST BOOK YOU READ ? I'm about halfway thru East of Eden & it's so good, I'm trying to drag it out, I don't want to finish it yet. I don't remember the book I read before that, but the last book I read that fucked me up was "In Cold Blood" It had me unnerved for months & I ended up re reading it another 2 times.

WHATS ON YOUR BURGER ? Black bean / chickpea burger with caramelized mushrooms & onions, garlic kale salad, & shredded hash browns instead of fries.






PHOTOGRAPHER , JORDAN SWARTZ

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