“Quiet break” (portrait of Lola, below, dated May 2021) and “Never the same” (with Chiara & Margherita, dated July 2011) were selected yesterday by PhotoVogue. Thank you, editors, for choosing my work!
Some people can do it easily, whilst others have to strive continuously. My journey through photography has been a long search and research, and I have stumbled a lot. In my case, what has been most difficult, has been the most rewarding. I was obsessed with it and once I got it, I felt a deep joy. A portrait session is both an individual and a team effort. I am proud and thankful for that!
Each stage of life is different and life can challenge us at all stages but obviously there are rougher times. Shall I resume my last decade, the words that come to my mind are “slow, tiring change” and “prolonged battle phase”. This decade proved to be the busiest, toughest and most challenging period of my life. My fears and insecurities have come to the surface and seemed to overwhelm me, more members of my family have passed and I have also experienced some minor health issues. I have felt more difficult to love myself and to accept my limits. I have felt stuck, emotionally and physically, and I have felt ashamed of this.
That challenging time isn’t over yet, however I have now got the hopeful feeling that this oppressive and overwhelming phase is slowly fading away and I am regaining courage to open up to life.
Would I be in the position to give some advice about how to pass through difficult times? I can say that I have learnt that almost often growth happen in silence and in the small, annoying difficulties that we experience in everyday life. These kinds of hardships, repeated in time, will make us endure over time. During these past years, accepting myself for who I am and accepting to surrender to slowness has been hard, especially for my overachiever, rebellious side who wants to reach an idealistic image of myself that doesn’t exist. Accepting hard times or situations is difficult, but it is also dealing with those inner parts of ourselves that we perceive as weak or faulty.
I have allowed myself to find some peace of mind and to focus on my needs by acting, giving myself new projects. We cannot really change our nature but, if we are mindful, we can work on it, we can smooth it. Hope and will are meaningful motivational factors.
Dark times are the true “teachers” in our life, and that every person we meet or every event that we face have a meaning in our journey. Even in my darkest moments I have always been aware that there was a joyful sparkle in me, this little something was pushing me forward. There is beauty in a bad life chapter as this prepares us to something positive that will come next. And finally I pushed myself and took part in a Marketing webinar for photographers 🙂 Happy new year folks!
One of my weakest points is not being constant, not producing articles or taking photo shoots regularly. I would like to write more often and on a regular basis. There are periods where my brain is filled with ideas and I readily jump into action whilst other times I am almost drained of initiative. I have always been ashamed of this side of my personality. I should push myself more forcefully (I can be lazy!) but sometimes I just lack the impetus. Over the past few years I brainstormed a lot about my Facebook page (and I also asked advice from my friends): how to direct it, what topics to publish, what could be perceived as more interesting but at the same time would also catch my interest and any others who follow me.
At the moment I have a sort of a mental block but I am sure it is only temporary! Generally speaking, I would say that variety is important, like talking about my photographic journey, my shots, other photographers’ portfolios & experiences, new ideas & trends, maybe equipments…but always about photography!
If you have nothing interesting to say, it is better to be quiet for a while but that’s not an original thought!!
Freak-out moment, this is an interview-share!! I needed a tandem, somebody to back me up in this project and Campbell accepted to be part of the game. I wanted to make a small video where I was saying something about my photography but I was not brave enough to do it by myself. So I asked him if he would like to be involved in a few questions between amateur photographers, a sort of “Ask anything of” about our approach to photography.
I was curious and wanted to have a try: I did not know whether the video format would be suitable for me. So Campbell and I (we are both shy!), decided to display an insane self-confidence and put ourselves in this teaser, asking each other a couple of questions, after studying each other’s portfolio.
Now there is some excitement in the air : have we done something meaningful? Is my English good enough ?! What we know at this stage is that it was a formative experience for both of us. We have encouraged each other to prepare this mini-interview and also to think about our answers. It was a challenge to step up to the “battle field”, without any serious expertise, talking, being ourselves, eventually preparing to receive some feedback and still trying to enjoy the process.
A few words about Campbell Montgomery:
Apart from being my “partner in crime” in this project, Campbell is the brother of one of my best friends. I met him through her a couple of years ago. He is a young man and a passionate amateur photographer. If you visit his website : you will realise his raw artistic talent. He focuses on landscapes, nature and abandoned places. I find that his images are really classy and elegant and pick up the details in an exquisite way.
I can’t remember how I discovered the portfolio of Martine Franck (1938-2012). It was 5 or 6 years ago and it immediately captured my attention. She is now one of my favourite photographers. I feel close to her sensibility & approach to photography and also, I identify myself through her interpretation and methods of photographing people.
She was born in Antwerp in a wealthy family (her father was a banker and an art collector) and grew up between the UK and the USA. She flew back to Europe after the war and studied Arts in Madrid and Paris. She was a passionate traveller and started taking pictures in the ’60s, with her Leica, when she was exploring the Far East. Her favorite subjects were travel shots, artists’ portraits and street photography. After settling in France in 1964, she worked as assistant for photographers such as Eliot Elisofon and Gjon Mili before becoming herself a freelancer. She collaborated with famous magazines (Vogue, Life, Sports Illustrated) as well a Théâtre du Soleil. In 1966 she met Henri Cartier-Bresson whom she married in 1970, they had a daughter, Mélanie, a few years later. In 1980 Martine joined the Magnum Agency. She carefully documented the “human condition” of her times and was an active reporter in capturing social issues.
In her images there is a search for a human touch and shows an empathetic attitude in observing other human beings. I guess that photography was her passion but it probably was also a service that she was performing for the community. In her reportages, she was passionate, committed and curious, in a honest, brave, spontaneous and intense way.
I admire her as a woman and as a photographer. She was socially involved, and put the heart in what she was doing. In her photos I see a hint of curiosity, spontaneity, coolness with a touch of geniality, but also affection. She must have had a warm hearted side and she capable to love people, to be “close” to people. Something that was not shared by her husband, even though he was technically exemplary!
Eudora Welty was born in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1909 and there she died, almost a century later, in 2001. She was a writer and a photographer. Her father, an amateur photographer, passed on the camera’s passion to her, and Eudora started taking pictures in the late 1920s. A relatively prolific writer, she published short stories and novels for various magazines and she worked also as an advertising agent and a radio operator.
In my utter ignorance, I didn’t know her at all. I didn’t even know that she had won the Pulitzer Prize in 1973 for her novel “The Optimist’s Daughter”. I discovered her portfolio recently, whilst I was doing some research on Afro-American portraiture in deep South, and I bought a book with her photos (see photo below). At first glance her photos made quite an impression on me: I was struck by the spontaneity and the unconventional situations she managed to capture. However, on a second viewing, I noticed a certain lack of technicalities in lighting, composition and framing.
She had a streak of genius and the sacred fire of art was within her. I wonder whether she considered herself a real photographer. As Aries, she was tenacious and did not lack in courage. In fact she was a rebel and a pioneer, for the type of photos that she took and for the subjects that she chose: mainly people of color and the poor classes around the Great Depression (30s), through to the 60s. Taking the camera in her hands allowed her to document the struggles and aspirations of the under-classes that were invisible and ignored. I don’t believe she had a constant self-confidence, even though probably she didn’t let others know this. But at the same time, I don’t think that she really cared what other people thought about her and her work.
Well done, Eudora, your qualities are an example to us all!
When I started photography in 2009 it was a simple hobby without any expectations. I had no idea whether I would be good or not. I jumped into it with both feet because I liked taking pictures. After a few years, I had improved my techniques and equipment and I felt the need to get in touch with other photographers or photo-amateurs. I was looking for some inspiration and for their advice. I wanted to learn and grow and for other people to share our experiences and…the Internet was out there, calling for me!
However, narrating my photographic activity and documenting it on social media has been a long and nonlinear path…my hesitancy and perfectionism must have definitively kicked in the process!! Over 15 years I have been on the following platforms, with different outcomes:
2007: I discovered Facebook
2010: I created a WordPress blog which lasted 5 years. In that period I was also was using on a daily basis my Facebook page
2015: I closed the blog (thinking it was something “out of date”) and opened an account on Flickr
2021: Flickr being almost “dead” + got the feeling that just my Facebook page was not “enough”. Therefore, I went back to my first love, blogging!, as I was missing it and opened this website (that should be closed by the end of this year)… I am not convinced about its layout and navigability!
2023: I opened this blog (the 3rd one) I am writing on now: https://elenaarvasi.com/ I am using and updating it as main tool for my photography
The platform I have loved most and that has given me the most satisfaction is WordPress. It challenges me to express myself, it pushes me to be active on the web and to consider myself as a conceptual artist. Social media has changed my attitude towards work and so many aspects of life. Now we are living and working, in most cases, inside of a technological bubble. Contacts are more frequent and it is easier to discover and follow somebody or something but these contacts can be very superficial. Creating a network on the web is almost essential but often lacks human connection and a deep interaction. A face-to-face exchange makes the difference.
I still believe that a blog is “your face” on the internet, is partly a reflection of your personality and choices and allows a fairly direct approach with the people who follow you. I am thankful to this platform for allowing me to achieve, through learning, developing and persevering, a personal fulfillment and demonstrating to myself that I am capable of reaching my goals, despite the obstacles that I have faced.
Cliché to say but still true, every year and every life’s season is different for each of us. Our life is changing due also to the fact that we are evolving. Depending on different factors, feelings, moods, meetings and events that we are experiencing, we react in distinct ways since we are in different stages of our life. We try to keep our equilibrium and take some advantage from our experience, sometimes willing to find a new vision or goal.
I often think about what I have accomplished or achieved in the past. So just to recap “what” and “when” I have practiced and learnt during my photography activity, I can label some years as brilliant as well as others less rosy.
Talking strictly about the progression and structure of my hobby, I started to take a serious interest in photography in 2009 : this was my “initiation year”. My mother knew that I liked to take pictures so she gave me, as a present, a Canon EOS 500D (using her Esselunga’s clubcard points). In 2012 I realised that even although I had started covering different subjects such as architecture, street photography, landscape and still life, I preferred portraiture. In 2017 following the advise of some friends, I evolved mainly into working with children and their families.
I believe that the development of some of my ideas and the artistic quality of my work, so far, produced my golden-years between 2015 and 2018.
And talking about my personal life, my “golden years” coincide, so far, with the decade between 1999 and 2009!
I have often reflected on the meaning of success. The first point that comes straight to my mind (on which we all probably agree) is that this is a subjective concept. What each of us means by “success”? We would ultimately provide different replies to this question. Also, there are different spheres to which this concept can be applied (business, career, wealth, fame, couple / family happiness, self-development…).
The concept of success has evolved in me, over the years. When I was younger, I would stick it to being considered cool, getting the attention and becoming famous. However, over the past decade, I realised that success is not strictly related to professional life or to making a fortune.
Success, to me, is related to a decisionalfactor or power. It means to figure out who you are, what you thrive for. It means to find your path and to decide what & who you want in your life (and very often this doesn’t come natural to me!!). I am not implying that the financial asset is irrelevant but I would highlight that also our impact on the social sphere is key, aka the capacity of establishing healthy, inspiring and useful relations (in work, as in private life) are reflections of achievement & realisation. Persevering is also a powerful tool that can grant us success.
Photography has always been a passion and never a profession for me, however I consider myself a photographer. I am not powerful under a financial point of view, as I am not a sales person and I have never pushed into that direction, of making profits thanks to my photography. I believe that God gave me this talent as a purpose and also as a tool to serve others, and that this gift has allowed me to be more self-aware and confident, opening me up to life. Photography has really linked me to other people!
To sum it up, “my success”, regarding my photo activity, relies in:
– having defined the subjects I want to work with (specialising in a photography type);
– having developed my own style (this took quite a long time!);
– having drastically improved the quality of my shots.
– last but not least, a very outstanding factor is shown by the fact that people chose me, they still prefer to work with me, even after many years and considering the huge available competition! At the end of the day, a photo session is not just a question of taking good pictures, it is also a human exchange & experience!
All these factors have been developed over time as success is, very often, a long & hidden path!!
To start in a biblical way : in the beginning (of my photographic journey), there was…me and a lot of mess bubbling around.
The other day I rediscovered this video while surfing the web (it is a succession of pictures from my early portfolio). I remembered it, although I hadn’t seen it for ages.
When I came to photography, I was moved by good intentions and was stubbornly determined to achieve decent results. However it can be said that, at that time, my ideas were totally unclear. Lots of grey clouds were running around in my head. I enjoyed hanging around, carrying the camera in my hands but had no clue what subjects to choose and to work on or with & what direction and shape should be given to my work.
Comparing past & present, inevitably reveals a quick self-assesment and after that, I see myself as I am now. And I whisper : “Oooh”. This “Oooh” implies both positive & negative feelings & prerogatives. Looking back at my early work stage, the first photos I took, make me smile (this is a positive, tender feeling) because I realise the improvements, the step-forwards that have been made, both from a technical & knowledeagble point of view, but also considering the development of a vision, of a more stable, defined and consistent line of approach to photography.
On the other side, I almost feel “embarassed” with these shots. They seem so naive, unprepared, unspecial. Like thrown out by accident. Luckily I have understood that these kind of thoughts are self-defeating.
I am a strict judge of myself and my work. I am my own worst enemy. But I have learnt from experience. This tells me that persevering is positive, only if it is of help to develop our self-consciousness. We need to be self-conscious, this is fundamental to our growth and is the key to self-confidence, this can make us stronger. After this step, my true values are humility and the will to act in a honest way, to express a concept about myself that is true.
We are the result of genes, upbringing and what we have experienced. We are a “line”, a connection between past and present. But I would add that we are also a series of elaborations, tries and processes that we imposed on ourselves. We did it because we wanted to grow and to improve. We are a living process, we are a stream. We cannot deny ourselves and our past expressions.
In all that I do, there is a search for love. Photography has, for me, been a healing process and a blessing, it has rescued me in so many ways. It has encouraged, strenghtened and fired me up to do something that I love. It has opened doors by exchanging ideas with other people. It is a great form of communication..
Watching this video, brings back memories of those who encouraged me in my quest and I have included below (see pictures!) some of those who helped me through my initial struggles. They are a part of my journey and my life. I thank them all dearly!
I find that pictures have a huge emotional power. I like to carry photographs of myself and my family when I travel, I call them “roots-images” and am staunchly attached to them. When I look at pictures that I love, this gives me an immediate strength. It is a powerful mechanism that releases such a positive feeling. Certainly for me, images speak more than words. I prefer prints because I have them to hand and have the pleasure of touching them. I like to have them on my desk or on the wall.
I confess that one of my passions is old, vintage pictures and family photos. There is life and vibrancy emanating from them. Not only are they a bridge between the past and the present, between our ancestors and us, they also invite me to persevere on the path. At the moment I don’t have any of these type of photos with me and I thought: “How do others relate to these pictures?” So I asked some friends if they were attached to family photographs and how do they affect their everyday life. Do they have pictures that have an emotional impact on them, that may have a reassuring effect or give them strength? These replies have been received by emails, mobile messages or vocal notes…
Prior to a shoot, there is a tension dwelling inside me. I ask myself : “Will it be a good one? Will I be able to get a winning shot?”. I always have high expectations when I take the camera in my hands and start to work with somebody, even when I don’t want to admit it to myself. I feel thrilled but at the same time I am under pressure of what I call the “achievement factor”. I am really committed to be successful, to reach a satisfactory quality level and am always looking for some stunning shots from each session.
I guess this is normal, it stimulates and motivates me, pushes me to be pro-active and to develop my strenghts. However I realise that it is important to keep this winning tendency under control : all the elements have to be balanced (expectations & fears, reality vs ideas, projects vs eventual unexpected events) and I need to make the scales stable. What I find helpful, is to understand what project I am working on, who are the people I am working with and then let this process slide in the smoothest way.
I remember having a good feeling before meeting Ross & Lynsey’s family. I did not know them but wanted to give them a good impression and I really hoped they would like and trust me. The shoot had been planned a few months earlier. Heading back from a week-end trip with a friend on the west coast, we stopped in Lochgilphead and met Lynsey, Ross and their three beautiful girls : Milly, Ella and Pippa. We only had a couple of hours to spare and I wanted to make the most of it. I knew that they had a garden and it was a beautiful spring May day, sunny and warm, with a blue sky. I thought we could take the pictures outside, since the girls would have been freer and be at their ease. Once I got to know them, after a chat and a drink of coffee, my hopes and expectations came to reality. They were welcoming, uncomplicated and genuine people. The two older girls (the little one was 7 months old at that time) were well behaved, respectful, lively and spontaneous in their enthusiasm. They were excited about the idea that somebody would “officially” take their portraits. I felt like a truly “important” person, having the role of being their photographer. I asked the girls to pose for a couple of shots but most of the time I was following them, the camera in my hands, while they were having fun and playing with each other.
After editing the photos throughout the following days, I saw my work through different eyes. Instinctively there were some photos that captured my attention, they looked really alive, natural and unplanned and I saw the girls characters shine through. Two photos were accepted for publication on PhotoVogue’s website and when this happens, to me it feels like winning the lottery! I recently asked Lynsey which picture from the shoot she cherished most and she chose the one below I have attached, including her message.
At the start I felt hopeful of successful images, together with some tension. At the end, and this happens to me all the time, I experienced a beautiful and peaceful sense of accomplishment. And then I can tell myself : “It’s done, chapter closed. The people you have worked with and for, are happy. You handled it pretty well. Hopefully there will be an other shoot coming soon”.
It can be argued that either men or women had the greatest impact on the history and the development of photography. In my case I can say that I have been influenced more by male photographers. My early portraits were taken by Franco, a colleague of my mother who is a passionate photo amateur. All my technical understanding of the camera was explained to me by Carlo Urbani. Last but not least it was a couple of artist friends who suggested that I focus on children’s portraiture because the little subjects were quite relaxed, spontaneous, vibrant and empathetic. I realized that empathy is critical and it is the key to successful images. A big thank you to Corrado Sacchi and Stefano Cavazzini!
The best shot, from Casalbaroncolo’s session, is in my opinion this portrait of Margherita. I cherish it because…it is a fresh and pure moment of happiness, frozen in time by the camera. Margherita’s proverbial good character is echoed in the picture. Her laughter, even though you cannot hear her, is incredibly loud! This image passes on to me a feeling of wellbeing.
Looking at these pictures (dated July 2011), makes me feel that I would like to go back, just to spend a few hours surrounded by nature and good company!
Chiara, Pietro, Lisa, Margherita, Mara, Cris and Romy, thanks for welcoming me to your special place! Enjoy this lovely photo-memory!
Elena Arvasi Portrait Photographer 