The Interview Series: Jan Felber, who works with his own company as a Photograper in Germany

My Interview series continues with Jan Felber , who works with his own company Felber fotografie in Germany.

I interview people I have come to know through Corel forums, and who are fellow beta testers of and fellow CorelDRAW Graphics Suite users. And some of us have met in real life.

Your Name: Jan Felber
Website: www.foto-chemnitz.de


Style & type of work you produce? 

Modern and creative photos in the field of weddings, industrial, panoramamic, nude and a lot more. Always looking for the perfect motive (but so far I have not found it yet).

You like myself is a user of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite. What was it that made you discover , and drew you to CorelDRAW Graphics Suite?

It was about 10 years ago. I asked my colleague for a photo-editing program. At that time I worked as an electronics technician. He said: ”Yes, no problem”. The next day he gave me a pirated copy of Corel Draw 9. That was the beginning.

In 2006 I started my business as a photographer and bought my first commercial version of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite X3.

Which Programs do you use, Corel and none-Corel programs?

In my usual work flow I first edit my photos with Adobe Lightroom. I always shoot in RAW-format! After working in Lightroom I retouch the pictures in Corel PHOTO-PAINT. Unfortunately PHOTO-PAINT lacks important features for a photographer. Therefore I need a variety of different Plugins, or sometimes even GIMP. Especially for panoramic photos I use ”Autopano Pro” an ”Autopano Tour”.


(Edit note by Stefan Lindblad for those who dont know about Photo-Paint: Photo-Paint is the image editing program included in the CorelDRAW Graphics Suite. For many years the sole contender to Photoshop. Allthough Photo-Paint does have a RAW lab, 48 bit/16 bit, its perfectly okey to work with RAW 48 bit using Corel Aftershot/Bibble PRO like an Adobe Lightroom user, and from there bring images into Corel Photo-Paint. In the same way Photoshop is also used for illustration & graphics so is Corel Photo-Paint.)

Would you recommend CorelDRAW Graphics Suite?


A few years ago: Yes.
Today I would probably not. Because there is no more serious development on Corel PHOTO-PAINT. Many people do not even know of the existence of Photo-Paint – they only know CorelDraw (I work very less with this vector editing software). Adobe Photoshop is the much more professional tool for a photographer. But on the other hand, CorelDraw Graphics Suite is less expensive, and in some areas even better than the ”industrial standard”. Its the best alternative to Adobe!


What, more importantly, made you begin working with the work you do today? After all you could have made a career as a hairdresser or something in that line instead, like any other human being.


I started out as a electronic technician, education in it, and worked there fore some years as such. But it was boring and therefore I used the chance in 2006 to start my own business. I have learned everything autodidact in the photo-field. I turned my hobby into a profession!


What is that you like with your work? 


Varied work! With each new job, a new challenge. Its not boring.

In an interview in the Digital Artist Magazine, who interviewed me a few years back, I was asked what I would like to see in future versions of CorelDRAW Graphics Suite. Is there anything you would like to see? 

Development for Photo-Paint! Currently it looks like Corel want to bury Photo-Paint and replace it with Paint Shop Pro.


Do you drink coffee or tea in the morning? 


Yes (If possible, my morning starts at 11 am). A spoonful of instant coffee in a coup with 50% water, 50% milk and a little bit caramel syrup.


That sounds brutal to me! Jan, instant coffee cant be considered coffee even 😉 But I forgive you… My brother tried to convince me that instant coffee was the thing. I called him barbarian, any comments to that 😉


Thank you for your forgiveness! Everyone knows that we Germans are brutal barbarians 😉
Seriously, I use only the good Nescafe. And there are much more coffee flavours in the instant coffee – more than in yours – because they use very high temperatures and pressure to extract all the good things from the coffee beans while production. So believe me, your brother is right…

Haha, no Jan, my brother right? Scary thought…


What do you think is important to think about running your own business or in your line of work, to think about. Is it discipline or and something else? 


The most important thing is motivation. If you work with fun, the rest comes by itself.

Jan Felber in action


For someone just starting out, what do you think they should think about? 


One should have lot of patience. In the beginning it can be that you will not earn much money! A good website (advertising) is very important.


Is there any big change in how and what you worked with when you first started out. Have the business changed in any way? 


Initially I made every job I got. Now I specialize in business photography and can select the best job.


Thank you Jan!


You’re welcome.




Stefan Lindblad, januari 2012
Copyright Jan Felber & Stefan Lindblad