Turning into Something

Slowly my love for photography is turning into something. It’s come a long way, especially if I consider my first childhood memories as a photographer - being about 9 or 10, I was saving money for the photo developing equipment (to tell the truth even now I’d love to have that, oh, and a secret dark room as well!). Later on I was taking lots of crap photos that would be interesting just for the family or the ones involved and, even though they aren’t of any significant artistic value, it’s always nice to hear my friends say that I’m the one with the best documented school life. Being at uni I got my first digital camera and that’s when it hit me – I can practice as much as I like, as everything I don’t like, can be easily deleted.

At the moment I got to the stage where I’m not embarrassed to show my photos – some are better, some are worse and several can be called interesting. To my mind “interesting” is good, as it means the photo evokes emotions or makes you notice something you wouldn’t have noticed unless pointed to you. I’m still documenting everything what catches my eye and avoiding taking photos of people (although nice portraits is something I’d like to be able to capture; I guess that’s my ultimate goal). This year I’ve managed to compile a calendar using my images and suddenly got a few requests – in May I’m going to be shooting my first ever wedding and in the middle of the summer my first ever christening! But this means taking photos of people, so I guess I’m a BIT worried…

I’m very flattered my friends and family trust me and are sure they will like the results (I’m keeping my fingers crossed). I’ve finally started feeling that my photos are worth something and I’m not talking about money here. For e.g. I was very glad I could help out my friend taking photos of an interior she has designed and created – professionals might do a better job, but I know a few years ago I wouldn’t have taken anything like that. So while my portfolio is growing it’s time to think of the next step… An exhibition? Prints for sale? Why not! The bigger the goals, the more can be achieved. Hey, but first of all concentrating on the two requests.

A very cosy bedroom:

An art lovers office:

P.S. I love the paiting on the desk. It's painted by my friend, the flat owner, who has never learnt how to do that, so I guess it proves that all you need is a bit of enthusiasm and you can perform wonders.

$25 000

Have you ever wondered how to make $25 000 taking photos? Sounds like every photographers dream! It seems it has come true for Judith Stenneken, who has been announced as the Grand Prize Winner by the Blurb team (http://www.blurb.com/). I haven't been keeping an eye on the photo books, that have been submitted for this competition, so I can't say if there've been better ones, but Judith's "Last Call" certainly draws interest.

The photos themselves might not look anything special, but they start making sense once you discover where and under what circumstances they've been taken. Berlin Tempelhof Airport. Does it ring a bell? To tell the truth I'd say: No. Although it seems that once its main building was listed among the top 20 largest buildings on earth.

Anyway, now on Wikipedia you'd find that Tempelhof WAS an airport in Berlin, Germany, situated in the south-central borough of Tempelhof-Schöneberg. The airport ceased operating on the 30th of October 2008. Looking at any busy airport this would be hard to imagine, as these places always seem so full of life. And it's really hard to understand how one could become empty and deserted, just because it's impossible to think that there would be a day, when people would stop travelling by air.

That's what the author says about the book:

When I used to step in the main entrance hall of the airport, it always felt the same. In contrast to the stress of the city outside, this place was calm and relaxed. Although the airport was still operating, it felt as if the building was deserted and the only people who were there acted like extras in a movie: a man reading the newspaper and waiting for his flight, a woman from the ground crew standing behind at the check-in counter waiting for passengers to come. Nobody speaking, no announcements from the loudspeakers.

It was a place where time did not seem to matter. A place which slowly lost its function, where desertion had been taking place for a long time, where the future is still unkown.

For me this feels as if it's a script for some scary movie that depicts our future (too many people shouting about the end of the world). Well, make sure you have a look at the photos in the book that was worth so much money:

http://www.blurb.com/books/1561541

And if you are interested in what’s fashionable in the photography world at the moment, don’t forget to view the other winners and the runners up. The whole list can be found here:

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/pbn-winners-10?utm_source=Emailoffer&utm_medium=email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=

I particulary liked Lauren Orchowski's "Rocket Science", Alexey Vanushkin's "Merry-Go-Round" and David Beach's "Fetzer's Tale" (recommended for cat lovers!).

Hope you can find inspiration in every single one!