Throughout the years, I've been inspired by a pot of people but there are a few that stand out.
The first one that has left his mark on my work is the Bulgarian photographer Krasimir Matarov, working under the pseudonym Krasi St M. I especially admire him and his work because he started from scratch, just like me.
Krasi is originally a Russian language teacher and up till 2012 he was just a hobby photographer. He said (we actually know each other) that he learned editing before anything else, even before owning a camera. His career took a turn when he won the 2013 Sony World Photography Awards in the Open Nature category. The winning shot was this one:
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| Fig. 1 a screen grab from the BBC news website Krasi used as his cover photo in 2013 |
After the victory, Krasi switched jobs and became a full-time photographer, tutor and lecturer. I've always been interested in his career path, mainly because this is the desire of most photographers - getting famous and making money from what you love. Krasi started with macro shots but it soon became clear that landscape and travel images are his true element.
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| Fig 2. Krasi St M – Kardzhari dam, 2018 |
What I admire about his style is that he manages to discover the unseen angle or setting in even the most banal of locations - such as this one, known as 'the photographers' turn' in Bulgaria, a favourite place for photographers to try their hand at landscapes.
Krasi manages to create a dreamy-like atmosphere and his images just draw you into the scene, make you crave to be there, see the place as he did. This is exactly the same thing I am aiming at. I love the way he manages to capture the subject, such as this image of Chinque Terre (not sure which one of the 5 villages is this, though)
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| Fig. 3 Krasi St. M - Chinque Terre, 2018 |
His images are always dramatic, almost never plain or dull. Unfortunately, our approaches differ in two ways - travel duration. For example, Krasi can afford to spend a week or two at a certain location, just to be sure that he has got the perfect shot, whereas due to travel expenses, I cannot afford to do so (and that goes for almost any location, I'm afraid). He also climbs mountains and sleeps in a tent (and totally lack that adventurous streak).
Hence, sometimes I just need to visit a place several times to get the desired effect. For example, this image of the 'photographers' turn' is good but it is nowhere near the one Krasi created, in terms of impact:
The two boats do make something of the image and emphasize the curves BUT apart from that the weather was not on my side.
I admire Krasi for his stunning landscapes but sometimes despise the over-editing in some of them. He often stacks images to create a more stunning view (some of the most amazing works in his portfolio are actually made of 4 to 10 different exposures post-processed in a hundred and one ways for maximum impact). To me, this kind of over-editing is indeed eye-catching BUT somehow the objectivity of the image is lost.
Especially in what I am trying to do, this kind of landscapes will not work well - when you advertise tourism, you should at least try to stay closer to the actual place (which is one of the reasons I do behind-the-scenes videos) so that people see I have my way of portraying things but they are there, they exist and have not been photoshoped into something different.
I agree with Krasi that toning the images sometimes results in better impact and when it comes to capturing customs or the character of a particular event, he is definitely someone I look up to.
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| Fig. 4 Krasi St M – Yordanovden, 2017 |
This image portrays an amazing ritual that marks the beginning of January. In Kalofer, a small mountain town in Central Bulgaria, they have the tradition of ice horo which means that all men from the town dance in the ice-cold (and as you see, often frozen) waters of the river that runs through the town . His images of the ritual last year are one of the best I have ever seen portraying it. He toned down all tones except the blue to emphasize the cold and manages to get a shot of the dancers entering the icy waters of the river.
I admire Krasi's ability to capture the air of the ritual, no matter if it is something indiginous and authentic, such as this Bulgarian ritual, dedicated to Saint Haralampi:
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| Fig. 5 Krasi St M – Untitled, 2018 |
This is a ritual done in Bulgarian churches once a year (I don't know much since I found out it existed from this image) and Krasi managed to capture the mood in the church during the ritual without looking like an intruder. This is an ability I am also trying to master.
Krasi is especially good at creating iconic images, that capture the characteristic features of a particular place, person or area, such as this Mongolian eagle hinter:
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| Fig. 6 Krasi St M –Mongolia, 2017 |
I also aim to create images that would wow the viewer. In this one there are a lot of elements - good composition, interesting subjects, and a touch of action. Such images tell a story so I definitely look up to Krasi for inspiration though we may disagree on post-processing (especially on landscapes).
Still, he is not the only one that inspires me but I'll talk about this in a follow-up post.
References:
Krasi Matarov’s Facebook page
Figure 1 – MATAROV, Krasimir - Untitled, 2013
Available at: https://www.facebook.com/KrasimirStM/photos/rpp.374656352553372/1954188034600188/?type=3&theater
[accessed 10 April 2018]
Figure 2 – MATAROV, Krasimir - Chinque Terre, 2018
Available at: https://www.facebook.com/KrasimirStM/photos/rpp.374656352553372/1954188034600188/?type=3&theater
[accessed 10 April 2018]
Figure 3 – MATAROV, Krasimir - Kardzhari dam, 2018
Available at: https://www.facebook.com/KrasimirStM/photos/a.600574433294895.1073741825.374656352553372/1900995666586092/?type=3&theater
[accessed 10 April 2018]
Figure 4 – MATAROV, Krasimir – Untitled, 2018
Available at:
https://www.facebook.com/KrasimirStM/photos/a.600574433294895.1073741825.374656352553372/1852494461436213/?type=3&theater
[accessed 10 April 2018]
Figure 5 – MATAROV, Krasimir - Yordanovden, 2017
Available at:
https://www.facebook.com/KrasimirStM/photos/a.600574433294895.1073741825.374656352553372/1774221942596799/?type=3&theater
[accessed 10 April 2018]
Figure 6 – MATAROV, Krasimir - Mongolia, 2017
Available at:
https://www.facebook.com/KrasimirStM/photos/a.750552084963795.1073741840.374656352553372/1444946392191024/?type=3&theater
[accessed 10 April 2018]
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