Dilshad Corleone

Although a relative newcomer to mobile photography, London based Dilshad has already been exhibited internationally in cities such as London, Los Angeles and New York. He pens a regular column for The App Whisperer, is a member of We Are Juxt as well as an Ambassador for Shooter Mag and earlier this year, he filmed an inspirational video promoting mobile photography for the Carphone Warehouse. A firm fixture on the mobile scene, expect to see a lot more of him in future.

“James Bond never shoots with a Magnum .45 gun.”

One of your biggest inspirations in mobile photography has been the great @koci but what is it specifically about him and his work that has struck such a chord with you?

He is, indeed. I really would not be able to pinpoint one specific thing about him or his work. For each time I watch one of his tutorial videos or look at his photos I am inspired in a different way: from his editing style, to his storytelling, Koci has a way of capturing the ordinary and making it extraordinary. My photographic journey has begun predominantly after watching one of his early videos on the streets of LA. I have to thank Richard Gray (@rugfoot), whose iPhoneography course I had joined at that time - it is because of him that I came across Koci.

For you, mobile photography is about story telling and you like sharing the story behind the image, so how do you go about telling a story with just one image shown on Instagram?

That's the real difficult part! In the beginning I would just super app everything, this made my life very easy. What I mean by this is I would concentrate on preying the streets for the characters that interested me (big bearded old men, hats, tattoos, strange peculiar faces). Once I managed to snap them, I would just destroy the background with heavy blurs and scratches and other filters. I think, by doing this, I actually managed to create a style that became fashionable on Instagram (lol), but I was doing it more specifically because I had the main character but not a suitable background… I went on doing this for quite a long time, however, change and experimentation is what gets me going, and I had reached the end of that period – by all means I still use heavy apping but not so much – so I started looking for new challenges; I signed up with the wonderful Sion Fullana (@sionfullana) and Anton Kawasaki’s (@anton_in_nyc) Storytelling Online Course. That was a great challenge! They really push you to the limit, and I have learnt truly a lot because of them! Absolutely worth it, just do it!

Having never before owned a camera beyond your mobile, you've mentioned maybe getting a dSLR – is that because mobile photography has hooked you into photography at all levels?

Yes! I want to learn, I want to shoot with everything possible! Mobile photography is fantastic, because it gives you the freedom to shoot at all times and to be connected with the world at the same time. And yet, I would love to understand and learn everything that there is to know about photography. I think my next move will be towards a big camera, who knows what the future has hidden for me…

Smart phones are perfect for street photography but you still manage to get yourself in trouble sometimes when shooting people who, shall we say, might not always appreciate it! Do you see yourself getting in even more trouble holding a massive camera in someone's face, or will it change what you shoot?

I don't really think I am a “massive camera” person. As I was saying, I really want to start learning how to shoot with a big camera, but I see myself using more a Leica M9 type of camera. James Bond never shoots with a Magnum .45 gun, he always has a Walther PPK: small and functional.

“I don't like coming back home without a cookie”

Diane Arbus once said that "taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies". Would you say you have to get "the cookie" whatever it takes: as your reputation for never giving up precedes you?

It’s really not because of my reputation precedes me that I need to get the cookie, or to prove to anyone that I can get the cookie. I need to get a cookie because I don't like coming back home without a cookie, and I will not stop until I’ve got one!

You're such a passionate mobile photographer and very humble about your talent and success. What would be the ultimate honor for you?

Humble? Why, thank you. You are publishing me, this is already a pretty big honor!