1. Tell us about yourself – what made you fall in love with photography?
Everything started when one Christmas as a kid a family member gifted me a camera. After a couple years at photography school and the practice acquired shooting mostly outdoors just for fun, I ended up finding joy, peace and solace in (self) expressing myself visually. Spending long seconds looking through the viewfinder framing the raw beauty of Mother Nature and letting my feelings and emotions speak through what I would capture, completely hooked me. Now, the rest is history
2. Tell us about the project you're going to work on as part of Tell Your Story ↓
Despite the bond I created with Photography as a means to express myself in the past, I lost all interest in it a couple years ago and completely forgot why I ever started shooting. And I am pretty sure I am not the only one who might have found themselves in such crossroads with this or any other creative outlet. Therefore, my project aims to Tell My Story (the journey) of reconnecting back with Photography, with Mother Nature and my passion for walking long distances, as the core part that brings back to life this bond. It is going to be a path of uncertainty, fear and doubts too, yet that will wholeheartedly seek out blind trust, compassion, love and freedom along the process.
3. How did you react when you found out you'd been chosen for Tell Your Story?
Well, I should mention first that I almost deleted the email thinking it was spam - I am so very glad something told me not to do that! So yes, it took me completely by surprise to find out. I couldn’t believe what I was reading and went through it all a couple more times just to make sure it was real. And oh-yes was it real! My Heart, Being and Soul felt full of joy and deeply grateful for having been given this huge chance.
4. Are you enjoying using your new OM-5? / Which equipment are you going to use? Are you enjoying it so far?
What I love most about the OM-5 despite how incredibly small and light the whole set is, is the feel of ‘being home’ I get when looking through the viewfinder. It’s almost like shooting analog when your LCD screen is not on, thus making you fully concentrate on the experience of actually composing the photo you are about to take before pressing the shutter. I chose the black OM-5 (which I find so elegant) along with the M.Zuiko 25mm F1.8 and the M.Zuiko 12-200mm F3.5-6.3; this zoom lens has greatly surprised me! The quality of the photographs is mind-blowing: the sharpness of what is in focus, and the heart-melting soft bokeh is incredible and makes me want to bring the camera out on walks more often than I expected at the beginning of this adventure. I am thrilled and super excited to delve deeper into these OM System little gems!
5. What are your goals and dreams as a photographer?
I may not have at this very moment any specific goals or big dreams set as a photographer. For me, at this very moment, just getting to truly reconnect back with this discipline -I have loved so much in the past- is already going to be the biggest achievement. If my photography gets to make even just one person out there feel something or inspire them in any given way, I am more than happy. But if I had to choose one specific goal or dream, it would definitely be to capture the essence of as many natural places on Planet Earth as I possibly can while slow-traveling and hiking through it while getting to share my knowledge on photography with others as well as to exhibit my work in printed form