PicsArt Monthly December Issue 2013 | Page 42

How did you first get into photography? When photography first showed up in my life, it was like a stranger to me. An interesting but distant one... and I did not know what to think of it. Then slowly we became friends. I felt photography was something I could trust and certainly it was a lot of fun, and then suddenly, I fell in love with it. When I finally realized the magnitude it has for me (especially when combining photography with image manipulation), I could not sleep and could not stop thinking about it – the concepts I could create and the visions I could bring forward. The realization came pretty much overnight and I have never looked back. It is my secret language, my way to truly express myself (something I have never managed to communicate in any other way). I do hope to have a long lasting relationship with photography. I have to add that it is not only photography, I often use Photoshop to create my visions, but photography is the foundation of it. Where do you get your inspiration from? Inspiration comes from relationships, books, nature, music, dreams and my life in general. Is every photo a planned vision? Can you talk about the process behind formulating a vision for a photo? It is a mysterious process, I might carry an idea around for a while, doubting it and considering its faults and then, when I go out and create it, it seems somehow more than I envisioned. Other times, I have an idea and believe it to be special and beautiful and when I get my things together and try to capture it into an image, it falls apart, looks dull or just makes no sense when it is out and visible. So I can hardly ever predict if an idea is actually something that I will like or not, I just carefully have to start unfolding it, hoping it will work. You seem to exclusively use women as your subjects. Why? I actually photograph men and children as well, but I have to admit that the majority are female figures. Perhaps because this makes it easier for me to relate to the story. 42 | PicsArt Monthly