Traveling in Style
drawing, while attending Cornell University,
she became interested in color photography
and started shooting with a 4 x 5 camera. Later
she studied under Paul Jasmin at the Art Center
College of Design. “[He] showed me the impor-
tance of photographing what you love and be-
ing moved by your subjects,” Antola says. “He
made capturing beautiful images seem so ef-
fortless and he encouraged his students to let
their creativity flow in an organic way, finding beauty in simple nuances.”
After graduation Antola moved to Paris where she shot small travel and
portraiture assignments for clients like Condé Nast Traveler, W, Vanity Fair
and Departures. Her big break came in 2005 when she was hired to shoot the
American Express Centurion Card campaign. The assignment took six weeks
to complete, with destinations that included Morocco, Argentina, and Turks
and Caicos. That same year, she also landed on the radar of Travel+Leisure.
“Jessica sent me a promo in the mail that had an image of a hotel room in
Paris,” Lawson says. “The shot really caught my eye. It was such a wonderful
travel moment, I had to know more about her.”
Aside from her photographic talents, Lawson also liked that Antola is flu-
ent in French from her years spent living in Paris. “If I have any advice for
would-be travel photographers, it’s to learn another language,” Lawson says.
“It really opens doors and helps inform your work immensely.”
It would be another year or two before the photographer got an assign-
ment from Travel+Leisure, which Lawson says is a normal timeframe when
it comes to working with new photographers at the magazine. Most of
Antola’s briefs for the publication have been in French-speaking places, such
as Paris, Martinique and Montreal.
Antola’s list of clients now includes Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, To wn
& Country, Outside, National Geographic Traveler, Saveur and Food & Wine.
But she always makes time for her personal travel work, which she says “
allows me as an artist to channel my inner explorer and anthropologist.” She’s
currently working on a long-term project documenting the traditional garb
of ethnic minority groups. Having photographed the clothing of people in
West Papua in Indonesia, Myanmar, Senegal and Northern Vietnam, she’s
currently planning a trip to Ethiopia.
Shooting her personal projects as well as studying literature, art, music,
film, history and architecture all inform her work as a photographer. “Style is
intrinsic and should evolve naturally, reflecting who you are and what you find
interesting,” she says. “These non-photographic influences help to articulate
a visual language, giving images a unique and personal depth and meaning.”
—Meghan Ahearn
Top: Antola photographed
two girls in the Ha Giang
Province, Vietnam, for
her personal project
documenting traditional
garb. Bottom: An image from
Antola’s book Caribbean
Hideaways.
What’s in Your Bag?
Cameras: A few Canon 5D Mark IIs
Lenses: 50mm; 24-105mm
Other equipment: Canon flash; 5-in- 1 reflector/diffuser;
basic grip; MacBook Pro; LaCie Rugged Hard Drives; small Profoto
Acute 600 ws battery operated strobe
additiOna L gear: Lead bags when shooting film
“It is such a hassle to convince airport security in places like
Myanmar, Syria or Indonesia to hand check 200 rolls of film as they
try and force you to put it through the X-ray,” Jessica Antola says.
“In addition, when traveling with so much gear in countries that are
not always photojournalist friendly, discretion is key.”
