Ten questions for Stefan Waizmann, who since early April has been making his technical expertise available to our marketing department. Whether it be manuals, reference reports or articles, everything is run by him so that he can make sure the contents are impeccable.
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I always dreamed of being an astronaut and flying to the stars. But current spacecraft don’t journey far enough as yet.
When did you decide to become a photo engineer?
I trained as a banker, but right from the start I knew that what I really wanted to be was a photo engineer. But I completed the training anyway and learned a lot from it – although it didn’t sit terribly well with my physics background. So I decided to go back to school. I’ve now been an engineer for 25 years; but I still know what a profit contribution is.
What does your job at SVS-Vistek involve?
I provide the SVS-Vistek marketing department with support for markets and for technical applications. I bring to this remit my experience as a customer, engineer, and product manager. I’d like to help the marketing department ensure that our messages reach the right target audience.
Which projects are you working on now?
I’m currently revamping our camera manuals, and I’m writing an article about camera-burst mode.
For many years you worked in the technical support and product development/management divisions. What prompted you to join the advertising and communication team?
Contact with customers can be very exciting and satisfying. Marketing allows you to address many customers and to deal more precisely with current trends.
What do you miss the most about your former job, and which aspect of your current job do you enjoy the most?
I was involved with product design and development for many years. Now I’m doing something new. I regard marketing not merely as a one-way street from SVS-Vistek to our customers. Instead, I want to listen very carefully to what our customers want. Keeping your ear to the ground like this in the relevant sectors is very exciting.
Could you say a few words about current trends in the field of industrial image processing?
It seems to me that a number of trends are currently emerging. Deep learning will simplify numerous inspection tasks, and even give rise to completely new ones. The signal and cable dimensions of image processing are poised to become more standards oriented; plus automation is likely to find its way into the standards.
Which camera do you use for your own photography? To what extent did advertising and marketing influence your camera purchase decision?
I’ve been using Nikons, which I think are terrific, since I was a teenager. I currently use the D90. But I must admit that the best camera is the one that I happen to have at my disposal at any given moment – which is often my iPhone.
Which of the shots that you’ve taken over the years is your favorite?
I love portraits. In Munich, I once took a picture of a mime that’s hanging in my living room. It’s a black and white image printed on barite paper. Also a picture I took of an Afghan man smoking pot.
How do you spend your leisure time?
When you’re an engineer, you never really stop engineering and programming. So I’m working on a number of electronics project at home. I’m also quite fond of hang gliding and going on mountain hikes. Those are currently my favorite pastimes. Plus I’ve got kids.
Summer is nearly upon us. Could you share a few summer vacation tips with us?
Summers in Bavaria are so lovely, so I tend to stay here in the mountains, ride my bicycle, go on hikes, and do hang gliding. The virtue of all these activities is that they’re stress free – and there are never any traffic jams.
How many photos do you usually take while you’re on vacation?
I always take too many. But soon after I return from vacation I always reduce the number to less than 100.
Many thanks for the conversation.