Guardian of the past

Or what happens when you decide to edit an archive shot with the idea of showing that you are a better editor than your pervious self, and then it turns out that you have chosen a completely different shot from the same day.

The story behind the shot:

Most photographers know where this place is - the flooded church at Zhrebchevo dam. As you can see, the shot is old - from 2016 and the church is surrounded by water (now it rarely happens). 

As for the weather - it may not be visible on the pic, but the rain there was almost a torrent (this photo taken with the photographer hiding under a large umbrella).

The story of the place:

Besides a beautiful place for photos with a little spooky look, the Flooded Church, or the St. Ivan Rilski church, as it was its name, was once a place of worship for three villages - Zapalnya, Zrebchevo (which gave the dam its name) and Dolno Panicharevo. The chucrh itself was erected at the end of the 19th century and could have been rescued during the construction of the dam. But they wouldn't (not the villagers, the government). In 1962 the water flooded the three villages, and the church remained at the end of the dam, half-flooded in winter by water, and on land during the summer. It is on the edge of the dam, and it was once on a hill above the villages.

Today, thankfully, probably due to the great media interest in the place, restoration (or conservation, I'm not quite sure) of the temple is under way.

A little more information and how to get there on the Culture Crossroads project page

11 years in the domain

Поздравът на Еос.

Един прекрасен изгрев (изгреви снимам рядко, защото много мразя да ставам рано) осветява Егейско море. Заснех този кадър преди 11 години, кой би помислил, че с него ще започне един проект...

Историята на кадъра може да бъде прочетена тук:

http://patepis.com/?p=68126

Пак там може да се прочете и началото на историята :)

It's been exactly 11 years since I took this picture. When I had no idea what to do with my first camera but had amazing luv with weather. It was how the Culture Crossroads project

started - with this image :) 

Greetings from Eos.

A beautiful sunrise (I rarely take pictures of sunrises, because I really hate getting up early) lights Aegean Sea.

The story behind the shot is available on my blog.

http://bistrastoimenovaphotography.blogspot.bg/2016/09/crete-chasing-minoans-part-two-iraklio.html

Part one here:

http://bistrastoimenovaphotography.blogspot.bg/2016/09/chasing-minoans-part-one-pireaus.html

FMP - final - title change

The initial title of the project was connected to the two iconic bridges that flank the downtown – the Lions bridge (lavov most) and the Eagles bridge (orlov most). However, taking pictures at the latter (the eagle one) proved to be next to impossible since it is a really busy transport artery and standing in the middle of it at any time of the day to take pictures equals suicide. I did try though but it proved to be fruitless - traffic starts there as early as 6 a.m. and I live at the other end of the city so cannot physically get there earlier. At night, the place is usually a protesters' favourite so it is totally not advisable to be around at that time.

I tried to reach the place several times and even considered standing in the middle of the crossroads or getting up at the crack of dawn to get it right but no ideas proved OK in the end. I needed conistency in my work and most of the images were taken around noon (maybe not the best of times for photography BUT one of the best times for architecture since the shadows are minimal).

I was in two minds about the title from the start. ‘Sofia - Between the Lions and the Eagles - echoes of a lost city’ seemed too long and bulky to me, now good enough for an exhibition title. Plus, given the Bulgarian audience that was the main target, it also seemed too banal (that phrase in Bulgarian is very commonly used and not always with the best of connotations).

During the final preparation process, I decided to use the motto of Sofia as a title – the words “grows but never ages” are written of the town’s coat of arms and are used to symbolise the constant change in the urban environment. Sofia has seen many disasters – from natural ones to numerous invasions – but has always survived. The development of the urban environment shown in some images (all images are old but some show areas that have been completely transformed) convinced me that this is a good title since it is meaningful to Bulgarian people and it is short enough to remember (unlike the working title which proved too long).

The connection to the city of Sofia and its motto will also allow me to exploit this theme in the future as I can possibly seek some support from the municipality or some other governmental institutions. It is easy to remember and even easier to reproduce since the motto of Sofia is common knowledge. 

Creating a video instead of a workshop

Since my attempt at being a lecturer failed I had a presentation no one saw so these days it occurred to me that that presentation should be made some use of it and create a video presentation to upload on my YouTube channel and thus attract some attention to my own work.

Since the presentation was in Bulgarian, the first video is in Bulgarian so that people from my own country have some fun with the 12 myths about photography (that was the topic of the presentation). It happened to be quite long - 30+ minutes - and even though it was total fun for me to create it and most people liked it, I decided to create and English version and there to split the 12 myths in 12 separate videos.

Here is the original video in Bulgarian (so far being one of the most popular videos on my channel):

I decided, for the sake of keeping and attracting more people to my channel, to post the 12 videos in English (they are all done and ready to be uploaded) in 12 consecutive weeks. I also upload the videos to my Facebook page so that more people see it. The first one went live just today and I will start uploading the rest in mid-September.

Here is the first video from the series:

Project development - creating a website

Throughout the previous modules I kept talking that I will be launching the project website soon. It felt a bit like being a politician making promises during election time but with a lot of things to go around and only 24 hours to do them, I simply had to prioritize here and there. The busy period of the year for me in academic respect didn't help much either. 

Being a resourceful Eastern European, I am used to counting on myself to do the tasks at hand and in this case that meant that I will be designing my own website. It wouldn't have been the first time. When I was at high school, I was taught how to write html codes and I was fairly good at that. However, my life took a different turn so I cannot say I am a computer programmer. Besides, creating a website from scratch using html takes a lot of time, much more than I was prepared to invest in the whole endevour. 

Hence, I resorted to a tried and tested method. At university, they taught us how to create websites using website builders and I created my first photography website using www.webnode.com back in 2014. It wasn't rocket science and looking at it now I think that it isn't quite good but at the time it was quite the breakthrough since it was the first time I felt like a 'professional photographer'. 

Now, once I had to do a website for Culture Crossroads, I decided to create a bit fancier website, something that is much more up to date and modern-looking. So I switched to www.wix.com instead. They have much more variety in terms of available themes and give quite a lot of freedom in terms of design. What is even better for someone on a tight budget as me - they have much more free options than Wordpress, for instance. 

So it took me quite a while to think of a way to present my project. The cover page was easy to create since I knew exactly what I wanted to show. The motto of Culture Crossroads The Balkans Zoomed was invented by my mother (who is always fascinated with any kind of photographic work I do and at the moment was watching how a website is created). 

Next thing I needed was an 'about page' and explanation about what the project actually is and that was also relatively easy to do since I already had the text written down. Here is a screen grab of the about page:

It took me some time to figure out how to present the six categories and then I came up with six thematic galleries - one for each category. The idea of the galleries was to have the images and some information about the thing in the picture and, ideally, a link to the blog where things would be explained in detail (which is yet to be sorted out since writing takes a lot of time):

I also plan to add a map of the places I visit and a list of the things by country but that is yet to be done since I have to figure out how to do it (which means that I have to do it myself ). 

What delayed the project for so long was my desire to launch both my personal website (also created with WIX) and the project website at one and the same time. It turned out that my photographic website had a lot of things to be sorted out before the launch so that I wanted to do things right. My personal website was also created alongside that of the project and it was a much more complicated deed in terms of design, content upload, texts, hyperlinks etc. 

Unfortunately, for the time being, I cannot afford to pay monthly subscription fees so I will be sticking to the free versions for some time (just in case I have some other ideas and decide to change something).

Critical contextualization of my WIP - looking for style part 2 - food for thought in food photography

To create images of food I needed some inspiration about how interesting images of food are actually made which meant that I had to keep researching. This time, again, I was referred to people I should check out. The names were two and the books these people created did captivate my attention and gave me food for thought when it came to contemporary food photography (pun intended). 

The first one was the book Feast for the Eyes The Story of Food in Photography by Susan Bright. It is a collection of some amazing and really creative attempts to get out of the box and depict food in something other than just a white plate and a tabletop. The book is mostly about the history of contemporary food photography and features a lot of artists with their iconic and thought-provoking images. 

As it is with any collection, some images 'speak' more than others so I went for the more conventional styled images of the lot. I had to work with screenshots of the book's pages since it is unavailable online and it would take more than a month to reach Bulgaria (if someone doesn't steal it in the process) so there was no point in ordering it at this stage. 

Irving Penn's images (the image below - fig.1) were the first one that caught my eye exactly because they had something distinct that my images of food lacked - a signature style. He deconstructs the usual food and shows it in a quite unimaginable way. The first image that caught my eye was the one on the left - the deconstructed image of a salad with all its ingredients laid side by side but without mixing them into the dish we usually consume. This technique is really catchy so I totally intend to try it out on some of the Bulgarian dishes, just to see what happens. 

When I had to research his work, it turned out that I am already familiar with it, even though I had no idea about that (and I by no means consider myself an expert in contemporary photography artists). There is something about Penn's style that definitely makes me look twice and think what is actually on the image. 

The depiction of the classic combination of soft cheese and pears is not only novel as a kind of presentation but also looks quite tasty. I love his uncluttered presentation that draws the viewer's attention to the food in the picture and the simple and unornamented cutlery that does not look set up. After all, in real life most people use simple cutlery without any ornaments on it and eat in plain white plates and bowls. 

Fig 1 - Irving Penn's images in the Book:
Salad ingredients, New York, 1987
Ripe Cheese, New York, 1991

Some of his images even show food as something totally different from what we are used to seeing - like this deconstruction of French cuisine (fig. 2 below) - with its signature ingredients - frog legs, snails and I don't really know what the rest is, maybe an oyster (but that's something I've never seen in real life so it's just a guess). French cuisine is considered refined and the top of the top - when I look at this picture, however, I see the animals behind the dishes and it is a bit (in the case with this particular image - even a lot) gross. 

Without the whole flavour of refinement and the aura of French gourmet, these ingredients look like animals normal people would never think of eating (unless there is a famine). 

Fig 2 - Irving Penn -  “Eat This!,” Vogue, May 1989

When it comes to deconstruction, Penn's work is probably one of the most interesting to see since it had been created to intimidate and attract the eye, yet provoke some reflection on the things people saw. Working for Vogue, maybe that was his way of creating something novel out of a mundane and highly exploited subject (such as food). I must admit, it definitely works and inspires. 

As far as I know, no one in Bulgaria has tried out his approach to things and many of the Bulgarian dishes can be broken down to some basic ingredients that could be photographed in a similar manner, at least for the sake of showing what exactly goes into the dish. The plain white background is a bit dull to my taste but it can easily be changed into something else. 

Penn inspires me to experiment - if he could do this back in the 1970s, I think I can do something too in the 21st century. However, he was not the only one that I was referred to. 

The book Real Food by Martin Parr was also pointed out to me as showing the very opposite trend. While Parr tends to totally take food out of context - in many of his images he even refuses to present it cooked, Parr did the total opposite and entrench food within its cultural, historical and human context, showing meals just after someone has had a bite or at street stalls across the world. It is indeed 'real' food - not the polished compositions of food stylists or the detached and almost laboratory images Penn created for Vogue but a real-life bite that the viewer would like to have. 

Some of his images even have some documentary qualities - capturing candid moments (fig. 3 and fig.4 below). This type of approach - showing the unaltered reality of food and food consumption - is no doubt a good idea as many of Parr's images are definitely mouth-watering as the viewer just feels into that eater's place and can almost smell the delicious flavours. 

Fig. 3 - Martin Parr - GB. Scotland. Largs. Nardini's Cafe. 1999.

Fig. 4 - Martin Parr - GB. England. Cambridge. 2005.

Some images, like the one above, are quite funny and naturalistic but they do attract attention too. However, Parr's style is maybe too documentary and realistic for my taste. As much as I would like to go out in the streets and photograph people eating, that would be much more related to the human element of food consumption than to the food itself. Most of his images have that 'human element' - either a hand in the frame, or the food has already been eaten/ bitten into. 

I would like to focus much more on the recipes than on humans that eat them for the time being since I aim at presenting the common cuisine of the Balkans to people who have no idea (or very little idea) of what I have in mind, whereas Penn and Parr worked with much more familiar ingredients and recipes. 

Hence in my WIP, I need to find a balance between the documentary, the deconstructed and the highly styled and well-composed still life cook bookshots. 

Sources

https://www.pushinsky.com/store/just-not-kosher/

https://aperture.org/shop/feast-for-the-eyes/

https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/irving-penn-archive-food-photos

https://atelierdyakova.com/The-Story-of-Food#.W2mnPr8VTIU

http://uk.phaidon.com/store/photography/real-food-9780714871035/

https://pro.magnumphotos.com/Package/2K1HRG6S7S7S

List of figures:

Figure 1 – Penn, Irving - published in Feast for the Eyes The Story of Food in Photography by Susan Bright

Salad ingredients, New York, 1987
Ripe Cheese, New York, 1991
Available at: https://atelierdyakova.com/The-Story-of-Food#.W2mnPr8VTIU
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 2 – Penn, Irving - “Eat This!,” Vogue, May 1989
Available at: https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/irving-penn-archive-food-photos
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 3 – Parr, Martin - GB. Scotland. Largs. Nardini's Cafe. 1999.
Available at: https://pro.magnumphotos.com/Package/2K1HRG6S7S7S
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 4 – Parr, Martin - GB. England. Cambridge. 2005.
Available at: https://pro.magnumphotos.com/Package/2K1HRG6S7S7S
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Critical contextualization of my WIP - looking for style part 1: an unexpected discovery

Throughout the module it turned out that my biggest problem was not scope (unlike module 2) but style. How to create a style of my own that is different from the cookbook stock images I am used to creating. Honestly speaking, that proved to be a tough call and greatly hampered my work. To experiment (because that seemed the obvious route) one needs to be brave and step out of their comfort zone. However, I am not exactly the brave type of person and tend to love my comfort zone so the first thing I needed to do was some research. 

Most of the food stylists I was familiar with did more conventional style photography showing food as it was and I will write more about them since some of them had quite the influence on my earlier works - in a different post. I was in need of a different approach so tutors and colleagues turned out to be of great assistance. 

One of the first people I was refereed to turned out to be a Bulgarian. What makes the whole picture even funnier was that I hadn't heard her name (which is strange since I thought I knew at least by name all prominent Bulgarian photographers). But I knew nothing about that woman, Eugenia Maximova or her project, entitled Kitchen stories.

This sounded like a fascinating start since she, too, focused on the Balkans, just like mine. Here is what she said for an interview for Lensculture, describing why she started the project:

'The people of the Balkans live in the shadow of a long history of wars, conflicts and unresolved ethnic tensions. Much of the energy that could have gone into building a future has been squandered on maintaining those tensions and the result is an impoverished present.

Young families must either pay exorbitant rents or live packed like sardines in their parents apartments. And most of those apartments are in the hopelessly ugly, crumbling concrete blocks which are the legacy of the communist era.

The term Balkan whether it is describing a culture or a geographic area, usually has a strong suggestion of the rural with a heavy overlay of the Orient. In whatever context it is used, the word reverberates with cultural and sociological connotations, with a sense of division and disagreement.

When I set out to tell a story about the Balkans, it was food that sprang to mind as being the only thing people in the whole region agree that they have in common. After five centuries of Ottoman occupation we have all continued to eat the dishes they brought.

Thinking about this shared culinary heritage, I began to wonder what was happening in Balkan kitchens these days. The kitchen is a multipurpose room, a space which reflects identity and self-perception. It embodies the spirit of the Balkan home and mirrors society as a whole.

People in the Balkans would rather spend what little money they have in a cafe than on interior decoration. The functional, unadorned style which results from this conveys a tangible sense of the region’s lost identity, the inevitable legacy of half a millennium under the Ottoman yoke and half a century behind the Iron Curtain.'

So, she decided to use the kitchen space as a metaphor and means of expressing the way people on the Balkans live today. In Bulgaria and most of the other Balkan countries, the kitchen is the heart of the home - where most of the family life goes. The living room is reserved for special occasions or guests so most of the time people gather, do their daily tasks and even have their meals in the kitchen. Actually, I am writing this on the kitchen table as this is the room in which I do most of my work.

A house without the smell of freshly cooked food is considered ill-kept and 'dead' and a woman who cannot make a simple dish is deemed 'not good' to put it very mildly. Kitchens are usually the pride and joy of any wife, the 'feminine' corner of the house which is decorated and adorned. Sometimes, it is just out of the need to restructure the space but sometimes it is driven by the need to 'show off' to the neighbours. Still, the kitchen space is of pivotal importance to any Balkan home and Maximova does have a valid point that the state of the kitchen usually tells a lot about what is the general condition of the family and the space they inhabit.

What Maximova did was travel around Bulgaria and document the interior of the houses she visited focusing on how the interior functions as an augmented whole to create an overall impression. In her works, however, she focused much more on interior (what is IN the kitchen space and how it is actually used or how it functions together with the rest of the other tools to form a whole set of symbols) than on the actual food being cooked. 

Her images look like they have been taken out of a memory book with candid interior images of the home. They are surreal at times, the whole impression being almost dream-like and thus transporting the reader back to a time long-gone when all that mattered was to be allowed to get out and play in the yard or to get that longed-for waffle or bar of chocolate. 

Fig.1 - Eugenia Maximova - Interior from Kremikovtsi, Bulgaria 

To viewers that are part of this culture, these images evoke a certain sense of nostalgia. Not because the 1990s (in my case) were a wonderful time to be in Bulgaria (or any country on the Balkans) but simply because one tends to idealize all childhood memories, even the most mundane ones. 

I can heavily relate to all images I decided to post here - because they look as if they have been taken years ago at my own house. My mother used to have those ceramic spice jars (fig.1 above) which she inherited from my great-grandmother and they are still somewhere at the back of the spice drawer (and yes, we have a whole section full of different spices). The singer on the poster used to be a chalga star when I was a teenager and most of my classmates would adore her. 

Fig.2 - Eugenia Maximova - Interior from Gorno Drjanovo, Bulgaria 

 The image above (fig.2) also projects a vivid image from my childhood (and not only). That type of salami is one of the most popular breakfast 'dishes' in Bulgaria since during the Communist times it was presumed the best quality salami. Made out of raw dried meat, it is quite tasty and most Bulgarians would eat it with anything (I do, at least, even with pancakes). When I was a child this salami was a mark of prosperity (if you can put it on your table). The jar is actually full of yogurt - on the Balkans when we use the word 'yogurt' we mean something that is not sweet. When I was a child, my mother would make yogurt herself in jars like this - that was before the era of supermarkets and packed goods. So this is like a snapshot of my childhood life. 

The next image (fig.3) I saw literally shook me because it is so alike my grandmother's kitchen. As if I am a child again and can smell the chilly peppers she used to bake (an still does) on the hot plates. 

Fig.3 - Eugenia Maximova - Interior from Kostenez, Bulgaria 

This type of stove is called Rahovets and it marked a whole era during the Communist period. It is a local brand, probably sold only on the Balkans, and (according to my whole family) the best brand ever. My mother used to cook on the exact same model up till a few years ago and that machine worked for more than 20 years. 

The icon on the next image (fig4) is also a common sight in Bulgarian kitchens, especially if the place is inhabited by older people. 

Fig.4 - Eugenia Maximova - Interior from Ruse, Bulgaria 

The last image I selected (fig.5) struck me the most since we had absolutely the same tablecloth at home and that sight - of a table covered in this print and the jars and bottles transported me around 20 years back in time. I must have been six or seven when my mother took me to an open air market to buy a new tablecloth and I picked this one because of the animals. Then, for years on end I would stare at the pictures and imagine what it would be like to be in a fairytale wood surrounded by all those beautiful animals. I even tried to draw the animals printed on the cloth. 

Fig.5 - Eugenia Maximova - Interior from Kremikovtsi, Bulgaria 

What I love about Maximova's work is that she does manage to incorporate the cultural environment into her images. These interior shots look almost like still life images or abstracts but to me (and to many more Balkan viewers, I guess) they are not still life compositions but fragments of real life. Looking at her images, I do think that I can make some use of the props she depicts - like jars, spoons etc . - in my own images to add in some local flavour. I would really like to be able to transport the viewer into a different time and evoke as strong feelings as she does. 

Her images, however, are focused on the living quarters rather than the food itself so apart from that, even though her style is quite interesting, I cannot put into practice more of it and apply it to my own work. 

My biggest problem with her project is much more ideologically oriented - or in other words, related to the message she tries to send out to the world, especially to viewers that are out of this culture and are totally unfamiliar with its specifics. 

What I dislike about the whole project is the one sided view of the Balkans as backward and torn apart. As Maximova herself stated in the interview, her idea was to show the 'lost identity' as she puts it of the Balkan people. Being at the crossroads of Europe, the Balkan people have met with a pot of other invaders through the centuries but this doesn't mean they have lost themselves and their rituals in the process. On the contrary, I believe that a new identity was forged - something that combines bits and pieces from all peoples that mingled on the territory. That makes the people on the Balkans unique, not backward or lost. 

Hence her one-sided attitude and deliberate selection of old and withered kitchens really annoys me. As if she aimed at depicting Bulgaria as the poor neighbour that has been robbed and now crumbles. The nostalgia these images evoke for me will be turned into either dismay or disgust in the eyes of a Westerner. The author herself has studied and now lives in Vienna ever since her late teens - quite a stark difference from what it is like to live in Eastern Europe - so I guess that the attempt was totally deliberate as some ex-pats tend to forget where they come from and hence tend to regard everything related to their home country as 'backward' and 'falling apart'. 

I totally wouldn't blame the Iron Curtain or the Ottoman rule for the state of those places. These are just rural areas (all the places cited are actually villages or small towns) inhabited mostly by elderly people so that they see no reason to buy new appliances or lack the funds to do so. That is why the interior gradually deteriorates - the peeling paint and the withered prove it. But such a generalization is far-fetched, to say the least. 

So, as beautiful and thought-provoking her images are, I will be incorporating little of her style and idea into my works as my aim it at the opposite end of the spectrum. 

Sources:

Eugenia Maximova's website - Kitchen stories
https://www.emaxphotography.com/kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans
https://www.lensculture.com/articles/eugenia-maximova-kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans

List of figures: 

Figure 1 – MAXIMOVA, Eugenia - Interior from Kremikovtsi, Bulgaria, 2010
Available at: https://www.emaxphotography.com/kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 2 – MAXIMOVA, Eugenia - Interior from Gorno Drjanovo, Bulgaria, 2010
Available at: https://www.emaxphotography.com/kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 3 – MAXIMOVA, Eugenia - Interior from Kostenez, Bulgaria, 2010
Available at: https://www.emaxphotography.com/kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 3 – MAXIMOVA, Eugenia - Interior from Ruse, Bulgaria, 2010
Available at: https://www.emaxphotography.com/kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Figure 5 – MAXIMOVA, Eugenia - Interior from Kremikovtsi, Bulgaria, 2010
Available at: https://www.emaxphotography.com/kitchen-stories-from-the-balkans
[accessed 08 August  2018]

Exhibitons? The sad truth about having an exhibition in Bulgaria

I guess that most photographers crave seeing their work framed and hanging in a gallery. At least I do. There is one obstacle to that, however - money. Not only for printing (which is relatively cheap, depending on the materials you choose) but for exhibition space. 

In Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria, where I live, having your work exhibited is a costly business with murky end. Few people go to exhibitions so if you aim at selling your work that way, you'll have a hard time. One-to-one sales work much better since people get to actually meet the person that had created the image and hear the true story.

In general, to do an exhibition in Bulgaria, you need some connections to gallery curators so that you can get a slot at a lower price and yet have some time for your works to be displayed. The bad news is that galleries are not that many and the most desired ones are very few. I, unfortunately, lack those connections, yet so this one was completely off the table, at least for the time being.

Alternative spaces are also very few since the concept of alternative galleries is relatively new in Bulgaria so most people don't even know it exists. Supermarkets and most stores are totally against having works of art distracting the potential customers and as for cafes - they would also require some payment to let you display your work on their walls. On top of that, most cafe or restaurant owners would then demand to keep the works after the exhibition is over since 'they look so good on our walls' - and that basically means you give out your work for free.

So, having an exhibition of prints is quite the ordeal.

As a part of my project, Culture Crossroads, I did plan an exhibition of works but I didn't mean to have it done this early. I have a few spaces in mind and I think I might use the help of the other members from the Association of Professional Photographers to get decent place at a decent price. Some business centers also have places for art works and I might ask the UNESCO club for help. Still, since I was in and out of Bulgaria and missed the whole exhibition preparation and excitement, there was no way to arrange an exhibition of prints for just three weeks. 

Still, the idea remains open for my Final Major Project.

My lame attempt at being a lecturer - or what NOT to do when you want to have a lecture

Being a bit ahead of time in terms of the assignments, my admission to the RPS gave me the opportunity to be a lecturer at the Sofia University's photography club. Naturally, when they invited me, I was overjoyed and took things really seriously.

I didn't know what the public would be like so when I was added to the closed group of the club (prior to that, I have never ever been a member) I had a look at the profiles of the others. It turned out that there are people who are quite advanced and some that are just beginning. So I created not one presentation but two, to cater for the two types of audience. The one aimed at the beginners was about popular myths about photography and photographers - after all, when you do something, you would like to know the truth about it, right?

So I compiled some of the most popular myths and put some images of mine in the presentation to illustrate my point. Then, I created another presentation, with some tips and tricks I know and again used some of my images. Decided that when I go on location, I will let the public decide which one to have. We could even have both, if there is enough time. The idea was after that to have a workshop around the building so that I can show them how I work on location. 

It was supposed my first-ever lecture. I have lectured before, during a session with the Bulgarian UNESCO club. Then I talked more about what you do during an expedition and how to behave on location. I have some experience in making presentations on different topics - academic topics, related to my studies. But never on photography. So, truth be told, I was much more than nervous and expected a lot of the whole experience.

This is a pic of me lecturing during one of the UNESCO club events:

So I went in early to find the location and set up. Imagine my dismay as there were only three people present, two of them being part of the club and the other just a friend. With the whole club numbering about 30+ people, I took the lack of people as a personal insult. So I got angry and decided to use the academic rule - no lecture unless at least 6 people show up. Imagine how many showed up? Four.

So, basically, the lecture was called off since I saw no point of presenting in front of 3 people from the club (out of 30+). I promised to be around in case they had any questions or ideas BUT refused to present as I felt let down and deceived.

This experience, though not the most amazing, taught me a few things about how to do my next photography lecture (because I am keen on doing another presentation, not for this club though).

First of all, the audience - I left all organization to the club - since I was a guest, I guessed they have some means of letting people know and having an audience. It turned out they didn't and at that Sunday afternoon almost all students have found something else to do. Next time I do something like that, I will promote it not only within the closed group but among my friends as well. It's always good to have a helping hand.

Timing is also important - from the very beginning I doubted that I will have a vast audience if we have a lecture on a Sunday but the decision was not mine. Next time I will insist on a saner time than Sunday afternoon.

As for the topics I wanted to present, I plan to record the presentations as videos (in Bulgarian with English subtitles, hopefully) and upload them on my YouTube channel.

Thoughts on workshops - yes, no, maybe?

Speaking of workshops (since, independently from the weekly activities, I have also thought of the idea, or people made me think of it), I am in two minds. 

My actual plans are for having a series of workshops - I even have an agenda for the whole thing with exact topics and activities to be covered -  after all, in my BA in English Philology, I was trained to be a teacher of English so I have an idea how to create a lesson plan. The idea of the workshops is to tutor people who start from scratch and it is divided into two parts - the basics and a more advanced one. 

The whole idea (as awesome as it sounds) has a few setbacks - I lack a room to hold these meetings and some sponsorship would be required. Another problem is price (if I will be charging at all) - people in Bulgaria simply hate paying for anything! So if the course is free, I am sure there would be some people to sign up but if I set a fee (even if it is as little as 5 EUR) people will skip it simply because the will have to pay. On the other hand, I need some funds since, as we say in Bulgaria 'you need money to buy cheese' so it would be fir to charge them. 

The Bulgarian UNESCO club I work for have already proposed that I do the course as a lecturer for them but I am still reluctant to do so for a few reasons. Reason number one is that they will not be able to certify the people I will be tutoring. After all, what does UNESCO have to do with purely photographic course? The main idea was that I will be helping out to recruit people that are to go on expeditions. The ongoing project of the UNESCO club, Friends of the Bulgarian treasures, is all about digitalizing the Bulgarian cultural, natural and historical heritage and to do that they need not only students that have expertise in the current field but also people who have some knowledge about shooting and composition. 

That is where I come to the fore - as the Photographer-in-Chief of the organization, any images that are taken on expedition anywhere are to pass though my hands for composition, editing and so on. I have also been on several expeditions already (for the sole reason that you need to have a good photographer around when you document an important ritual or site). However, as the project progresses - I have been on board ever since 2016 when it started - we need more photographers as I have other things to cater to (an a project of my own to tend). So, on the one hand, holding a course with them is not a bad idea. Initially, I drew up the lesson plan to cater for their needs. I also have a whole photo guideline book done for them (yet to be uploaded on the website and we plan to have it in print too).

Then I had a second thought. Who am I, after all, to be having a course of this kind? And charge for it? I am not really a very famous name in Bulgaria (fellow photographers know me but it is only them that do) and when people pay, they would like to have a document that they could use. I cannot issue something like that. The UNESCO club cannot either. On the other hand, I am not exactly OK with sharing my tricks of the trade for free. It took me years to learn them (as we say in Bulgarian - you do not learn to be a craftsman, you steal the craft from someone else) and as keen as I am to teach people, I would love to have someone pay me for my work.

So, as the new academic year starts - which means October this year - I will be having talks with the UNESCO club (since they see the opportunity to earn more money). The main target are university students and they are very few during the summer break. 

I thought out a better option that would, if realized, bring me much more. 

It depends on the good will of the Association of Professional Photographers of Bulgaria. I proposed them to have such workshops since most of the members are really famous photographers with years of experience and will have a lot to say. On the other hand, this type of courses would not only bring in money for me and the others, as well as the organization BUT also bring me some fame and prestige. Plus, the Association has the legal right to issue certificates so that problem would also be off the table. Besides, with having more than one professional lecturing (not just the widely unknown me) I would have the opportunity to also learn and have some support from the other colleagues.

The chairperson is enthusiastic but this idea, too, cannot be realized until the summer is over since most people are out of Sofia, having a good time at the seaside. I also need to talk to hep in detail about my idea since I have managed to briefly outline the ideas to her in a phone call. 

Hence, any plans that I have could be realized in a few months time.

Work in progress portfolio - the stories behind the images

The time came to share the story behind those places and since I cannot do it in the PDF for submission, I decided to create this post and share the information. 

Name of the place of worship: Sveta Petka Samardzhiiska chucrh

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: 1000+ years

The image above shows a church which barely escaped demolition - Saint Petka Samardzhiiska church. It is a 12th century small church, build on even more ancient remains. In the 1950s when the big Stalinist-style center was built the church was destined to be demolished. The complex, known as the Triangle of Power led to the destruction of the Roman Serdica and the whole layer of the earliest history of  the city. They destroyed a whole street that used to house the trade shops in town (the so-called Targovska street), famous for its Viennese-style architecture AND they demolished the forum of Roman Serdica AND the larger part of the palace of Constantine the Great. If that is not stupidity, I don't know what is. 

So, having destroyed all that, the Comrades, destined the church for demolition too. Until a delegation of government officials and their wives came from Moscow to inspect the new government's work. While the men did their job, the wives entertained themselves. One of these was an art historian and wanted to tour the city in search for frescoes. She found that church and demanded to see it. Even though it was already destined for demolition and locked up, somehow the Bulgarians managed to find the key and open the place, The woman was in awe because the frescoes were unique in the whole of Europe. She asked what the church would be made of, hoping to hear the phrase 'a museum' and was appalled to hear that it was to be demolished. 

She made an effort to preserve the church (talking her husband to press on the Bulgarian Comrades for that) and they somehow bent to the wishes of the wife of the high official. The whole architectural plan was changed and now the church sits in the middle of one of the busiest crossroads in Sofia. All that, thanks to one woman who just loved art...

Otherwise, the history of the place spans across more than 10 centuries because it was built on  the site of an ancient Roman temple. It is dedicated to Saint Petka, who is a Bulgarian saint that lived in the 11th century AD. The Samardzhiiska part of the name refers to the fact that in the Medieval ages the place was used by the guild of the saddlers so Samardzhiiska means of the saddlers. 

A legend goes that Vasil Levski (a national hero, too long a story to explain all the context here) was buried in the church. There is even a tombstone at one side. Truth is, no one knows where Levski was buried...

Name of the place of worship: Saint George rotunda

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: 1600+ years

It was built in the 4th century AD by the Romans on the remains of other archaeological remains (most of which were destoryed by the Comrades in the 1950s) and is practically one of the oldest churches in Bulgaria that is still in use. It has amazing frescoes and it is deemed one of the most important places of the Serdica Ecumenical Council. All in all, the fate of the Roman empire was determined behind its walls. 

The church has been used for many a thing over the years - both as religious and secular building. During the Ottoman rule, it even functioned as a mosque. 

This church shared the fate of the previous one - it was also destined for demolition. The reason was simple - it was located in the middle of the Presidential complex. The Comrades wanted to destroy it so that the government officials can go to the hotel next door in style (by car, that is). Problem was that this church was just in the way. Moreover, they discovered the palace of Constantine the Great and decided to preserve at least the part that was inside the building. The church, however, was a different story since the new ideology regarded religion as something degrading. 

Here the church was saved by society - it is an example of different styles of iconography and you can see four centuries of frescoes and their development during the centuries along its walls. It is still quoted in art historians' textbooks and history books as a unique example. 

Name of the place of worship: Italian Church of the Most Holy Redeemer

Location: Bucharest, Romania

State: in use

Age: 100+ years

This church also has a dramatic story to tell. It was consecrated in 1916 and is owned by the Italian government. It is a Catholic cathedral that differs drastically from anything else you can see in Bucharest. What is also draws some attention is the surrounding area. Blocks of flats are built so close that you can actually see through the church windows from their balconies.  

The fact that it was owned by a foreign government saved the building from demolition during the huge reconstruction projects of Nicolae Ceaușescu (who was notorious for destroying churches and ) but it could save the priests that worked there and the architects who created it. The priests were imprisoned and the archcitect was forced to leave Romania. 

The church remained closed up till 1968 when the government opened it for a while for the most important Christian holidays such as Easter and Christmas. It has been in use ever since. 

Name of the place of worship: Cathedral of St Joseph

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: less than 15 years (current building)

One of the newest places of worship in Sofia, this Catholic cathedral (commonly known as the cathedral by the locals) was built on the same spot where the old Catholic cathedral used to be before the bombings of WWII. The foundation stone was laid by  Pope John Paul II during his visit to Bulgaria in 2002 and now there is a full-size monument depicting the Pope in front of the Cathedral. 

Its futuristic design sets it aside from most of the other places in my project but since it is such an important landmark (and the only Catholic cathedral in Sofia), I decided to include it. 

Just as the previous churches in Sofia, this one was also built on ancient remains as some of the Roman Serdica can be seen in the yard. 

Name of the place of worship: Banya Bashi Mosque

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: 500+ years

The only mosque in Sofia that looks like a mosque, Banya Bashi is one of the most spectacular buildings in the centre of Sofia. Together with the rotunda, the cathedral and the synagogue down the street it forms to so-called Rectangle of Tolerance where you see places of worship of four different religions and no one offends the others. 

As with anything in the Sofia city centre, this place of worship stands on Roman remains, some of them still visible at the back yard. Below the mosque lies the stratum of Roman Serdica that was excavated a few years ago during the underground system construction works so the biggest underground station is literally five meters away from its entrance. 

The mosque was built by the famous Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan in the 16th century and was once surrounded by huge baths (which gave the name to the mosque and were demolished in the beginning of the 20th century when the whole area was rebuilt). The story of the mosque resembles that of Taj Mahal because it was built in loving memory of a diseased wife of the local Ottoman ruler. 

That mosque somehow managed to survive though wars, bombings, numerous earthquakes and what not. It is still in use so during prayer time (especially on Fridays) the space around it is packed with worshipers (which was one of the reasons I couldn't take pictures of it during night time). 

Name of the place of worship: The Great Mahmud Pasha Mosque

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: not in use, now housing the National Archaeological institute

Age: 600+ years

One of the biggest used-to-be mosques in Sofia that was not as fortunate as the previous one. It was used for many things during the years: a library, a military hospital and finally - a museum. 

Legend has it that when the Liberation of Bulgaria became a fact (in 1878) most mosques in Sofia were either demolished or turned into churches - the same way Ottomans turned churches into mosques 500 years earler. 

This mosque, however, was too big to be demolished. Another mosque in Sofia had already been turned into a dungeon (called the Black mosque, now a church) and city jail so this one was destined to be a theater. At the time, Sofia had no theater so this seemed like a good idea, especially given the location of the place - in the ideal center. 

What saved the place was the speech of the Bulgarian Patriarch who gave an angry speech in front of all National Assembly members, stating that 'I will not turn a temple of God into a den of sin'. So, once excavations around Bulgaria were carried out, the place became the storehouse of the findings. Naturally, it was turned into a museum at the end of the 19th century.

Name of the place of worship: Saint Alexander Nevski Cathedral

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: 150+ years

One of the most imposing buildings in Bulgaria and one of the symbols of Sofia, Saint Alexander Nevski church was built around the end of the 19th century. Paradoxically, one of the most famous place of worship in Bulgaria is dedicated to a Russian kniaz and warrior. The architecture is a cross breed between that of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul and that of traditional Russian churches. It is one of the biggest churches in Bulgaria and the place where the Patriarch announces the birth and resurrection of Christ. BUT it wasn't always as venerated. 

In the 19th century it was built on donations by the grateful Bulgarian people and was a masterpiece of architecture. Some of the bells weigh up to 10+ tons and the whole complex houses several thousand people during festivities. 

At the beginning of the 20th century, the church was hated for the Russian saint that was its patron. The reason were the political problems and numerous wars Bulgaria took part in. It even had its name changed because of this. During World War II. it was bombed because of its golden domes. The gold was a gift from Russia (15 years ago, when the domes had to be restored, the Russian church again donated 10 kilograms of gold for the restoration) but also a target for Western pilots. They were told to bomb yellow domes and yellow pavements. Paradoxically, the church is in the middle of the city center, all paved in yellow tiles, famous for their durability and beauty. 

Today, the church is one of the most famous places in Bulgaria and the mark of the ideal center of Sofia. The area around it, though, is quite secular - since it doubles as a concert space and public parking.

Name of the place of worship: Holy Trinity Romanian church

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: 100+ years

The Romanian church in Sofia is one of the hidden gems of the city. It is located on a quiet street, not far away from the other religious buildings in the complex. It is included here because it differs significantly from the Romanian churches in Bucharest. 

It was built by the Romanian government for the Romanian congregation and was severely damaged by the WWII bombings and was restored in the 1950s. Now it is owned by the Romanian state. 

Name of the place of worship: Kretzulescu Church

Location: Bucharest, Romania

State: in use

Age: 250+ years 

One of the strangest structures in Bucharest and strangely eerie place. It was destined for demolition in the 1960 but was saved by the efforts of local architects. The church had been damaged during several earthquakes so the exterior (which used to be richly painted with frescoes) was changed to bricks. 

The bust on the right belongs to a Romanian politician that was a devout Christian and in strict opposition to the Communist regime. 

Name of the place of worship: Saint Dumitru Church

Location: Bucharest, Romania

State: in use

Age: 150+ years (current building)

The old church with the same name was built at the same place in the 16th century but was destroyed by a fire in the 19th century so the new building was consecrated shortly after that. It is dedicated to Saint Dimitru, the patron saint of Bucharest. It is located right behind the old Post office in the old town and is famous for its richly decorated interior. 

Name of the place of worship: Curtea Veche church of Saint Anton

Location: Bucharest, Romania

State: in use

Age: 500+ years

This is the oldest church in Bucharest, build by one of the first Romanian kings in the 16th century. It was once part of a huge palatial complex that existed on the place of the Old town of Bucharest. 

During the past two centuries, coronation ceremonials of the Romanian kings were held there. Today it is still one of the must-see sights of Bucharest and one of the most holy churches in the area. 

Name of the place of worship:  Stavropoleos Monastery church

Location: Bucharest, Romania

State: in use

Age: 250+ years

This small nunnery is one of the most famous places of worship in the whole of Bucharest. It was built by one of the Princes of Wallachia in the 18th century and used to be sustained solely by the inn it owned. Today, the only thing that stands from the original monastery, amidst the restaurants and bars of the Old town, is this little church with its amazing frescoes.

It is still in use and you can go in and listen to a mesmerizing choir during the service. Monks and nuns take it in turns to sing psalms (in Romanian so I couldn't make much of what they sang) and the feeling once inside the monastery - as if you have been transported back in time.  

Name of the place of worship: Saint Nicholas the Miracle-Maker church

Location: Sofia, Bulgaria

State: in use

Age: 200+ years 

This church was built in the place of a mosque that was demolished towards the end of the 19th century. This was one of the few churches that was open for all worshipers at all times (even during the Communist regime). Unlike other churches, where only old women were let in (technically anyone could come inside but younger people used to be scolded for lighting candles and so on), here anyone could come, but everyone was watched by the state secret police. 

This is one of the most beautiful churches in Sofia and one of the landmarks of the city. Now it is located in a very busy (and fancy hence expensive) area, as you can see from the image (a reflection in a restaurant window).