I have to say that my present life – when photography is not only my profession but also my hobby – leaves me not much free time. Huge part of it I still spend doing all kinds of nonsense 🙂 that, nevertheless, helps me to relax and take a break. But rest of my free time I spend useful – I do my self-education, slowly but true and hard increasing my photography level. And now, on 14th of March, I finished “Interior Design Photography” online course by famous professional French photographer Serge Ramelli. I learnt this course not for free, therefore, I got the Certificate in the end and I’m very glad about and even proud of it! 🙂 So, now, I’m not only professional but also certified interior photographer! Welcome! 🙂 By the way, I have already started another course but by different photographer, American one this time. If Ramelli told about interior photography of different hotel rooms, the new course is about architectural and interior photography of houses. That means my training as a photographer continues permanently!...
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I guess many of you know such a famous platform for designers, builders, photographers and other specialists in home repairs and design as Houzz. A few years ago, Russian branch of Houzz opened. And I am the one of the interior photographers on this web site. Houzz gives their own award in different nominations every year. I’m pleased to tell that I won “Best of Houzz-2017” award in “Client Service” nomination. Frankly, it was a big surprise for me. I don’t mean that I’m not sure in the quality of my photographs or my services at all. Just the opposite: I am completely confident about it. But I didn’t expect that it will be appreciated on such a high level. As it appears, I wasn’t alone in it. 🙂 In connection with this prize awarded, there was one funny and very surprised me case. If you occasionally visit my site you know that I completed very big order for The State Russian Museum last summer. It was an interior and architectural photography. Some of these photos are presented in my portfolio on Houzz. So, it didn’t pass an hour after I have received a mail with congratulations from Houzz and I suddenly got a personal message on Houzz web site from one of the interior photographers. I can’t call him a colleague and you will know why below. First of all, it should be mentioned that this person is placed on the first page of Saint-Petersburg interior photographers on Houzz. Moreover, he photographed 46 different palaces and mansions in Saint-Petersburg as a professional photographer as he wrote me himself. And if you look over his photos you won’t doubt in his words. Simply put, he’s a very successful, demanded and I guess highly paid interior photographer. And this successful a Tom Shelby style cap carrier 🙂 suddenly wrote me a message where he doubts that I could photograph The Russian State Museum interiors and facades because I have such a low photographer level! “Why do you mislead a respected public?” he wrote. Like, ah-ah-ah, not good! And he virtually wagged a finger at me. I answered quite honestly as I always do that I never mislead anyone at all and even didn’t think about it. Then he like a Napoleon’s army general began to prance in front of me on a virtual horse of his success telling how many palaces he had photographed. I was impressed of course but still didn’t understand what he wanted from me and I respond it. For unknown reasons, he answered that I’m an anxious person and vanished in the air left me think...
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From 11 till 30 November 2016, there was “The Nothern Beauty” photo contest on the National Geographic Russia web site. The same name exhibition was organized according to the results. It included the works got to the final and took place in “The Gallery” mall in the center of Saint-Petersburg from 14 December 2016 till 14 January 2017. I am very glad to announce that one of the contest finalists and exhibition participants was my photo #6 from my recent “Farewell To The Summer” series. I guess that’s one of two my highest achievements as a creative photographer so far. I can also add another, much less significant but no less pleasant news for me. There’s international photographers web site called Viewbug that have a very respected jury include such grandees of modern photography as Tray Ratcliff, Scott Kelby, Peter Hurley, Alan Shapiro, Jerry Ghionis and many others. There different photo contests and challenges are regularly running on this web site. My photo #1 from the mentioned series won the “HDR Photography” photo challenge in December. Moreover, this photo also got the “Members Selection Award” in the same month. As for my professional interior photographer career, I also won quite famous and prestigious award recently, about 10 days ago. I even suddenly met envy from one of the Saint-Petersburg’s successful interior photographers! But I’ll tell about it a bit later, after a few days....
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On the edge of the twentieth and our centuries, there was not only a rapid development of computers, soft and digital photographic equipment but also one more important process: all mentioned technologies were becoming more and more affordable to the widest range of people. Simply put, hardware was becoming faster, soft – more powerful, digital cameras – more perfect and, at the same time, all this were becoming easier and cheaper for a customer. If in the early nineties photography was a laborious and difficult process for the chosen enthusiasts, now, after a little bit more than twenty years, almost every person has a camera (I can even say “every person” if include cameras in smartphones). Moreover, from a purely technical point of view, our modern cameras can take higher quality images comparing to the best photos of the film era. So why the world is not filled with photographic masterpieces? Why photos we bring from the most picturesque places visited during vacation do not arouse our friends the same overflowing enthusiasm as we do? The answer is very simple and I can put it in just five words: Because of photography, brain and eye. I am sure you didn’t understand what it means. But this is only because I deliberately turned my answer in Suprematism in order to intrigue you. 🙂 And now, when you are really interested in it, I will make myself clear with pleasure. 1. Reality and photography What photography is? You say the portraying of a three-dimensional world on a plane. Absolutely right. And what the beautiful landscape photography is? Certainly, most will converge on that it is a harmonious combination of elements of a captivating place. I agree again. And what is this captivating place in reality? Perhaps all that can be captured in a photo. But not only. When you are in some beautiful place, say, on the seashore at sunset, you’re not only seeing a sea, a beach, rocks, sky and almost red Sun. You’re also hearing gulls and the sound of the surf. You’re feeling a light breeze and warm sunshine on your skin. Finally, you’re feeling the sea and plants odours and maybe even the coming from the nearby cafe smell of freshly prepared fish, baked-on coals of fruit trees. And how can you portray all these things in a photo? That’s right: you can’t. And when back home you show your photos on the screen to your friends you unconsciously remember all the gamut of emotions which you experienced at the moment. The gamut caused by a view, sounds, aromas and tactile sensations. And if there was also...
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It’s been a long time without any news here! But there is a lot of it. Of course, not all of them are really interesting, 🙂 but they took a lot of time. Take moving to another city, for instance. It‘s such a sap for any spectator. But it takes so many time, effort and money from the participant! Nevertheless, I think more interesting fact is that I started my full-time work as a photographer in the “1000 and one slipper” company about a month ago. Moreover, it doesn’t mean I stop take orders for interior or any other photography. I became pickier – that’s true, but I still take interesting orders. Say, earlier, I would think about the order “20 quality edited interior photos took with the mobile studio light, the price for all work is $30”. 🙂 But now, the only wish I have concerning to such an order is to laughing out very loud and to write a couple of articles about how much and why the really professional interior photography does cost. Unfortunately, I have no time for art photography now. I have materials and ideas both worth to spend time and effort, but I haven’t time so far. Yet, I think that’s normal in the time of life change. Besides, I remember what was written on the King Solomon’s ring: “This too shall pass”. 🙂 But, to my mind, the most important from the latest news is my decision to change a bit the type of content. I will no more make the separate albums for any completed order. There will be just one general album with the best images from all of the orders. I think it’ll let the potential client to estimate my professional level and, at the same time, not to get tired of scrolling tens of images. 🙂 And here, in the blog, instead of the endless reports about what I shot and for whom (honestly, I doubt that’s really interesting for any person but me) I will write different interesting notes and articles (about why you should edit your digital photos, for example). So, as they say on TV: “Stay tuned!”...
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A couple of weeks ago, I was contacted by the YouPiter mini hotel owner (quite a symbolic name, isn’t it? 🙂 ). He ordered my interior photography. The task was to show the textures of shabby wood in furniture, natural plastering of walls and suede curtains and sachet on the beds. I was very surprised while watching photographs available at that time on the hotel web site because I didn’t see anything mentioned. Frankly speaking, I had a deja vu. It was like I see the photos of one seedy hotel in Novy Urengoy where I had to spend a few nights about a ten years ago. 🙂 One of the problems voiced by the owner, sounded like the rooms on the photos looks really worse than they are. So, we have agreed to ten photographs. But I always shoot more than it needs in order to get plenty to choose. Therefore, I have sent him 18 completed images. As a result, he liked my work so much that he bought all of them! 🙂 Moreover, by this moment, I have finished the shooting and editing of his second hotel photographs (but I’ll show them here a bit later) and he wants me to shoot the third one! 🙂 I’d like to add that in addition to the task, I have also tried, as usual, to make the photographs cozy. And I managed it brilliantly! 🙂 🙂 Well, of course it’s very nice when your work is not only evaluated by the dignity but also get admired! 🙂 You can see the rest YouPiter hotel photographs in the appropriate album at the Interiors...
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