Sarah Elisabeth Blais enjoys watching TED videos on the inner workings of the brain, surfing atleast once a year down south, listening to minimal techno and disco music and boating to the Pine Islands in Georgian Bay. She has been shooting under the name THIRTY9STEPS with partners Hannah Sider and Gabriel Graham, as well as collaborating with other artists in Toronto to build her experience in fashion photography and recently video.

Your works portray an image that you like to leave out one part of the planning in a shoot, as a strategy that forces innovation. Would you like to comment on the same?
Even if I did plan out the perfect shoot – the possibility of someone not showing up, or a prop / model – something not working – becomes a piece of wood in a game of Jenga. I found if you pulled out one piece in this “conceptual tower” – it would seem to always fall down, or at least teeter – this kind of stress clouds the vision of possibility. If there is a way to build the structure within the shoot with the pieces that exist, rather then rely on your idealistic state of mind, I find at least the ability to flex and be open to what the process can show you – allows for new ideas to filter through.
One of my teachers, Grahame Lynch once told me,
“Everything I do or think about before actually starting the work, is just conditioning me to start…getting over the problems with inertia is a big issue, but just start and let the idea and your work evolve together.” .

How did you teach yourself photography and what was the first object you shot?
My older brother wanted photos of him wakeboarding – so he showed me all the technicalities to take action photos in a moving boat…the zoom lens, high shutter speed etc. I continued shooting throughout elementary and high school…I had a bit of an obsession with putting things together to create a vibe or mood that I felt while listening to a Radiohead album or the experience of diving into a cold lake.It wasn’t until university where I got more serious about learning, and developing those emotions through photography and art. The rest was truly trial and error –never getting too comfortable in what you know, but always asking what else is possible. 

“Creativity to me is taking what you’re given, and looking at all the possibilities.”

Your works have been published in numerous magazines like Odd Magazine, Dress to Kill Magazine, to name a few. How does it feel to have achieved so much in life?
I feel as though it is just part of the journey of life. I’m happy that some of the work I’ve created has communicated ideas to people without words – I think there are so many experiences we can’t quite verbalize that go ignored. There is a need for connection or validation that visual and/or audio communication can reach out to. I love viewing something that seems to speak to me without telling me exactly what to do.

Have you, at any point of time felt that in commercial photography, you need to sacrifice your creativity to meet the demands of your client?
Well – to some degree. Creativity to me is taking what you’re given, and looking at all the possibilities. How can you satisfy expressing something real, as well as create something that is within the client’s guidelines – creating value for both parties involved. It’s always a challenge – but I wouldn’t describe this process as a sacrifice.

“You never know what’s going to happen tomorrow – so be prepared for anything – and anything will be possible.”

What does Sarah love doing when she is not clicking pictures?
Whatever is going on around me. I love chopping wood and cooking dinners at the cottage with good music on,drawing freely, collecting things that have been lived in without knowing where they’re from – or whose lives they’ve changed…snowboarding and jamming, researching the unknown.

Looking back at your work, which of your pictures make the strongest impression on you and why?
I’d say a photo I have of my grandma reading one of my old playboy magazines. It kind of captures who she was before she got dimensia. She just was acting for me in the moment – but then when she actually let herself focus on what she was looking at – I took the picture…it captures her playfulness mixed with a bit of shock – she takes her scotch with water and no ice.

People like to talk about their 'lucky breaks' but I think it's more hard work and passion that leads to a breakthrough to becoming a professional photographer. When was your breakthrough?
I have put a lot of time in the past few years conceptualizing and executing creative based on experiences I’ve had – things I’ve seen, and things I’ve felt. I met make up artists and models along the way as I built my portfolio – created a network of friends and artists that I liked working with. There was a point when I quit my job at this local board shop and had more opportunities to shoot – while becoming hungrier for work. Things started happening more frequently around then.

The professional photography market seems to be moving away from image and book sales to photographic workshops and eBooks. Have you found this to be so with your business?
Yeah definitely – I mean fashion and photography print magazines still exist – and the look of a printed editorial can’t be replaced with anything. But a lot of e-books and online fashion magazines are starting to look into more interactive editorials – GIFS and video aspects to the shoot. This just means adapting to what the world market is demanding – I’m open to it.

“I love chopping wood and cooking dinners at the cottage with good music on,drawing freely, collecting things that have been lived in without knowing where they’re from – or whose lives they’ve changed…snowboarding and jamming, researching the unknown.”

Which has been your most challenging shoot till date? Could you share the memories with us?
There was this one week when I used to work with partners Hannah Sider and Gabriel Graham under the name THIRTY9STEPS. We were in between what felt like a million projects, and Hannah and I were still in school. Last second, we agreed to create a fashion video that would be screened at this fashion week party in Toronto, showcasing pieces from a designer we knew. The concept was thrown together – and the footage/photos we got were loosely connected to a narrative. I found the biggest challenge, and most rewarding part of this process was the editing portion. It was hours of making connections between abstract shots to communicate something so visceral – It was challenging due to the environment of our situation – but to this day I can still connect to the feeling of the piece.

Do you have any suggestions for the young budding photographers of today?
Yeah – you never know what’s going to happen tomorrow – so be prepared for anything – and anything will be possible.

	Quick8: Your Favourite Camera: 5D Mark II Your Favourite Printer: My Quill and Ink Copier Your Favourite Shoot: ODD Magazine Editorial Your Preferred Location:  Outside Favourite Photographer: Les Krims and Helmut Newton Most memorable story:  It was raining on a day I had planned an outdoor fashion story – so my muse (Anastasiya), and I split $20 at a thrift store to purchase roller blades, a goof troop hat, and some wedges – we came up with the story of a girl that secretly rollerbladed with her top off in parking garages – she became kind of like this vulnerable and insecure character battling between stereotypes of sexuality, the playfulness of childhood, and her own identity – it ended up being an interesting piece. Current photographers you like: Camilla Akran, Tim Walker, Jamie Nelson. Toughest day at work: :I find the toughest days at work to be the days where you loose a connection between yourself and the moment. Where you let all the definitions and structure get in between what is really going on. Those days leave me feeling disconnected to the passion I have with photography, and the magic that exists within art.

More Photos by Sarah Elisabeth Blais / Fotosocial