Fotograf Gina Stef

—Czy jesteś fotogeniczny/fotogeniczna?

—Yes I am, but only when i'm not posing.

—Co sprawiło, że zajmujesz się fotografią?

—I wanted to do something else with my photos, to bring more joy to happy couples.

—Jakie twoim zdaniem są najważniejsze czynniki decydujące o dobrym zdjęciu?

—It has to capture the moment. When the bride cries, when the groom laughs at her or when the people at the wedding just go crazy :)

—Kochasz podróże?

—Absolutely YES! We love meeting new and interesting couples and we're eager to take their photos in an unknown location. This is also a big challenge, to take improvised great photos of them in a place we've never been before.

—Co najbardziej lubisz w swoim zawodzie?

—Every wedding is a challenge and we love challenges! Meeting new people and "clicking" on their wedding ideas is great!

—Co najmniej lubisz w swoim zawodzie?

—Sometimes it's the long hours of a wedding here in Romania that get to us, but after all if the newlyweds are still having fun at 2 a.m. in the morning, we'll hop in and have fun with them!

—Jaka będzie przyszłość fotografii?

—Nowadays if you don't know Photoshop you're like dead in the water. Photography won't change much, as opposed to the way we as photographers will present the final result to our clients.

—Co wyróżnia rodzaj fotografii, którym się zajmujesz?

—Before any event we always have butterflies in our stomachs and that's a good thing, because it pushes us further. We love the rush of the events and the general happiness of the people attending the wedding.

—Jak radzisz sobie z krytyk?

—We try to prevent it, usually we under-promise and over-deliver. If by any chance our clients are not fully satisfied, we communicate on what's wrong and we try to correct that.

—Czy w fotografii panują jakieś trendy?

—The vintage, chabby-chic trends are on fire! And we love them, all the decors give a wedding a great feel!

—Jakie kryteria powinien przyjąć klient przy wyborze fotografa?

—On the initial meeting, they should analyze whether they "click" with the photographer. If you're not on the same mindset, then you might as well find another one.

—Co jest absolutnie niedozwolone podczas sesji?

—It all comes down to common-sense. A wedding photographer is not (or should not) seek the tabloid-like, outrageous pictures. He/she should always comply with the client's wishes and demands.

—Jakie zwykle niezauważane szczegóły może uchwycić fotograf?

—It's that split-second facial expression on somebody's face, or some short event that nobody saw because they were focused on the bride and groom.

—Co wpływa na wartość zdjęcia? Jakie są jego składowe?

—I think it's all about the "feel". No matter how you composed it, no matter how blurry it is.

—Jaka osoba może być twoim zdaniem uznana za symbol XXI wieku?

—It's difficult to assess, since social media is huge nowadays and everybody's a celebrity.

—Kogo chcesz fotografować?

—We would like to shoot a tattooed open-minded rockers couple, in Moab, Utah :)

—Czy masz zawodowe tabu?

—Yes, to never disappoint our clients!

—Z kim marzy ci się fotografować?

—It would be a dream to shoot with Sergey Ivanov, Sal Cincotta or Aaron Nace!

—Co cię martwi i dlaczego?

—I always worry that we won't be able to satisfy all our clients' needs. But so far, so good.

—Jaka była najwspanialsza chwila w twoim życiu?

—Traveling through the U.S. and admiring the cities, the breweries, the landscapes and all the beautiful people!

—Gdybyś był/była postaci z kreskówki, książki lub filmu, kto by to był?

—When I was little I looked like Betty Boop so...

—Kto inspiruje cię w życiu i dlaczego?

—I see inspiration all around, it's hard to pinpoint something.

—Jaka jest twoja definicja sukcesu? Co jest jego miarą?

—I thing it's a sum of the opinions of the people who met you. If most of the opinions are great, you could consider yourself a successful person.

—Wolisz, aby cię lubiano czy szanowano?

—Both, of course!

—Jaki był twój największy bąłd zawodowy?

—I made only small mistakes :)

—Co zabierasz ze sob w podróż i dlaczego?

—My husband, our cameras and leave behind everything else.

—Czy masz jakiś gadżet, zakupu którego żałujesz? Dlaczego?

—Along the way there has been some trial and error, some gadgets failed and some we still have, but I guess we shouldn't have bought a Wii U console and a 2x extender.

—Jak uczysz się robić lepsze zdjęcia?

—Through inspiration on the web, brainstorming with friends and talks with clients.

—Czyje prace miały na ciebie największy wpływ jako na fotografa?

—I wish Sergey Ivanov influenced me, but I couldn't rise to that level :)

—Czy jest coś, o czym warto byłoby wiedzieć, zaczynając karierę w fotografii?

—That "anything flies" if you have a story behind it.

—Co chcesz przekazać poprzez swoje fotografie?

—People are beautiful!

—Co motywuje cię do dalszej pracy w fotografii?

—The satisfaction of our clients and money, of course.

—Uważasz, że twoi rodzice powinni byli być bardziej czy mniej surowi?

—At times I wanted them to be less of a pain, but it turns out that I turned out just fine!

—Mając możliwość cofnąć się w czasie, co być zrobił/zrobiła inaczej?

—Listen to rock music earlier, read more and move to another city sooner.

—Co myślisz o życiu na innych planetach?

—I can't wait to have an alien friend!

—Kto jest twoim bohaterem/bohaterką?

—Lebowski from "The Big Lebowski" film!

—Do kogo nie żywisz szacunku?

—People who don't have any hobby, any taste in anything, any opinion of their own.

—Co robisz w czasie wolnym?

—I love calligraphy and everything hand made, I try to do as much as I can, apart from editing photos.

—Jakiego aspektu twojej osobowości nie ujawniasz publicznie?

—I'd have to kill you...

—Kiedy twoja praca w pełni cię zadowala?

—Never!

—Czy wierzysz w tradycyjne role mężczyzny i kobiety?

—I'm not a feminist, but no, I do not believe in these stereotypes.

—Czy łatwo się zaprzyjaźniasz?

—I'd say that I do, but some would say that I keep to myself a lot. I only make friends with the people which inspire me and help me evolve, by having interesting argumentative conversations.

—W jakim miejscu dobrze by ci się mieszkało?

—San Francisco, some 50 years ago.

—Jaki była najgłupsza rzecz, którą zgodziłeś/zgodziłaś się zrobić?

—I have a problem with saying "no" to things. But I'm working on that.

—Czy istnieje życie po małżeństwie?

—Of course. If you don't make a child right away. Or never.

—Masz ulubiony żart? Opowiedz go.

—It's a photographers' joke, of course:
So there's a dinner party. A photographer's talking to the host. She says to him: "Mr. Photographer, I love your work! You must have a great camera!" The photographer doesn't respond. But at the dinner table, after taking a bite, the photographer says to the host: "Oh, this food is delicious! You must have a terrific oven!"

—Wolisz psy czy koty?

—Both, but mostly cats.

—Kogo lub co nienawidzisz?

—Ignorance and arrogance together.

—W życiu najlepsze jest:

—Combining your hobby and your job.

—W życiu najbardziej irytuje mnie:

—Having a job and a hobby-job :)

—Czy jest wokół ciebie coś, co chcesz zmienić?

—I would love it if the hobby would stay just hobby, not having to deal with contracts, invoices, bills to pay... This narrows the creativity, the whole "professional" side of photography.

—Co chcesz zmienić w sobie?

—I would like to learn to say NO and not bite more than I can chew.

—Co chcesz zmienić w świecie?

—If only money disappeared, people will start being people again.

—Czy możesz udzielić kilka wskazówek początkującym fotografom?

—Take lots of photos, then analyze them and develop your own style. And most importantly, never stop!

—Jeżeli na Ziemię przybędą kosmici, a ty będziesz pierwszą osobą, która ich spotka, co im powiesz?

—Most surely they won't understand a word, but I'll beg them to share some wisdom here on Earth!

—Jeśli poproszono by cię o nakręcenie filmu, jaki byłby to gatunek?

—Some moody drama

—Jutro pójdę i...

—some portraits, for sure!