Ikars and Photoriga.com

So this is first post since summer. As anybody who try to maintain blog knows how difficult to do that. Life usually take over. And sometimes it’s only sheer determination is making this happen.

So my first post will be an interview. The interview that is few month late. Unfortunately as I mentioned life takes over. In my case loads of things happened. About some of them I will tell in future posts. So instead of posting an interview and leaving it without sharing I decided to wait a bit. So know when I will make more effort in to getting my blog up there I think it’s only fair to share this interview with all of you guys. 

So long story short (and people that know me know I love long stories): I found Ikars’s blog http://www.photoriga.com/, while I was looking for and image of bridge in Riga.

by Ikars, photoriga.com

He agreed for me to use one of his images for my top image, free of charge. So I'm returning a favour and learning more about creative people in the same time. 

So here is a small interview. 

How old are you? 

I'm 28.

Where you from?

Originally, from Bauska town, now spending my time mostly in Riga, less so in Bauska.

Have you always had interest in photography? 

Well, at first I wanted to say "No", but then remembered that in my early childhood I always looked at photo books (Soviet time photo books of Riga, then there was one about former Czechoslovakia, etc) and photos in magazines with great interest. In fact, I even tried to re-draw them and forced to do it my grandmother too :). So, the interest about visual things and photography has been there in me since my childhood.

by Ikars, photoriga.com

How did you start this? Why photography and not something else? 

I started to do this around ~2005 when bought my first camera (Fuji S7000). But I was inspired to this step after I was in music festival in 2005 summer, with loaned camera and then I suddenly realized how cool this is - to take photos where I've been and to look back at them later. It was a very amateuristic start, of course and even now I'm still taking many pictures of whom other may wonder "What's interesting there?" Primarily I feel an urge in me - to document almost all environment around me, the most different cityscapes, and I'm not very exacting in terms of it's beauty/uniqueness or smt.

Is it you main occupation, or you have a job, and you take pictures in your free time? As I understand that it's not easy to make a living from taking pictures. 

No, of course, it's not my basic occupation, but it has brought quite a solid side income in recent ~2 years - and especially the blog has helped to that (people search for Riga photos in the net and come up with my blog, then contact me). 

How do you come up with different themes? 

I guess, part of the answer I already wrote (Primarily I feel an urge in me - to document almost all environment around me). I just see interest in many things, either it be House of Blackheads or even some rusty pillar sometimes :) 

House of Blackheads by Ikars, photoriga.com

How did you decided to get a blog to post your photos? 

Well, it seems I was inspired by some other City daily photo blog and immediately felt this is a great how to regularly, day by day share my photos. Btw, before that and also until now I'm participating in Skyscrapercity community as Vecais Sakarnis (one of my Riga threads here: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=604778)

Other thing is, from personal experience I know that to make a good picture and get a perfect shot sometimes you need to make hundreds of shots. 

Yes, I'm also photographing very much and sometimes I happen to be in right time, place, angle, mood, etc, to get some good shot :)

Would be great if you could share some photos that maybe only took few shoots to take and then some that took ages and ages to do.

For example, this one asked a few tries to achieve the best possible light and composition: http://www.photoriga.com/2012/02/frostwork-2.html. Usually it takes at least few tries to get a nice picture (for adjusting settings, at least), even if the subject is very gratifying, like here: http://www.photoriga.com/2012/05/summernight-city.html Of course, much much more tries are for difficult light situations and special conditions, like, to catch these thunderstorm shots ( which are still not perfect, of course) I took some 500 shots of whom mostly were only black sky. Also firework shots are very tricky thing - mostly depends on luck. Maybe professionals know much more about how to take them, but I still think mostly it depends on luck (in case of firework shots).

Thanks.

So that is it. Translation in to Russian if you interested will be up next. Hope you enjoy this interview. More interesting post will be coming up. 

Stay tuned. 

Hot spot Nr.1: Not Just Design

As part of our subject: professional Design Practice our tutor Lora organized the meetings for our groups with local Creative businesses. So all of us had places to visit and had an amazing chance to pick brain of people who do something similar to what we want to do: Work in Creative and Design Industry.

Dental practice like a SPA, with Jennifer, Jodie, Me, Rebecca and Andy Rice.

So the first meeting we had was with Andy Rice, from Not JustDesign. I think most of our group were overwhelmed at how much information we got out of two hours with Andy. He shared so much with us: why he stayed in Dundee, what he does as current projects, what to look after industry, told us about small things that we should look up and pay attention to, as well as wrote down some names for us to look up as well.

Andy said: “Design is everywhere. If you want to do it you should be living and breathing DESIGN.” And Andy does. From amazing projects that takes him to Antarctica to designing West House Drinking and Eating Establishment in Dundee, when every small things matters and are handpicked.

We had a 40 minutes long chat with him in Tonik, and we hardly had to ask any questions, all we had to do is to absorb information that was provided for us.  But most important things I think I’ve learned personally from Andy were: “Don’t be scared of trying out something, even if this is very unconventional”; “Work hard on it” and “Make it happen”.

After our chat we had amazing chance to see West House Drinking and Eating Establishment a day before its opening. And on the way there we popped in to the Beam: dental practice in Dundee, design of which make you feel more like you are in SPA Salon rather than Dentist.  

Jennifer and door at the Beam.

West House Drinking and Eating Establishment was coming together when we came in. Attention to detail was just amazing from work of Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design student on the bar to very old book press that was restored specially for this place and it took a heavy machinery just to put it inside.

Later on after the place was open I had a chance to have a lunch there and it was amazing. Place is fresh, full with amazing details and great service as well. Definitely will need to visit again soon.

West House Drinking and Eating Establishment, Dundee.

В рамках нашего предмета: Профессиональная практика дизайна,  наш преподовател Лора организовала встречи для нашыых групп с местными творческими предприятиями. Так что у всех из нас были места для посещения и была удивительная возможность познакомиться с людьми, которые делают нечто подобное тому, что мы хотим сделать сами в будущем: работать в творческой и дизайнерской отрасли.

Таким образом, первая встреча у нас была с Энди Райс, из Не только дизайн. Я думаю, что большинство из нашей группы были поражены тем, сколько информации мы получили за два часа с Энди.  Он поделился столько с нами: почему он остался в городе Данди, что он делает, какими текущими проектами он занимаеться, на что обращать внимание в этой отрасли, рассказал о мелочах, ха каторие ми должны мы должны смотреть и обращать внимание, а также записал некоторые имена для нас, на которие стоит обратить вминамие.

Энди сказал: «Дизайн во всем мире. Если вы хотите сделать это Вы должны жить и дышать ДИЗАЙНОМ ".Что Энди и делает. От удивительных проектов, занимаясь которыми позволяет ему путеществоват в Антарктиду к проектированию West House Drinking and Eating Establishment в городе Данди, когда каждая деталь важна и подобранна в ручную.

Male and Female toilet doors in West House. Pretty cool. 

У нас было 40 минут поговорить с ним в баре Tonik, и нам дазе почти не прищлос задават вопросов, все мы должны были сделать, это поглощать информацию, которая была предоставлена ​​для нас. Но самое главное, что я думаю, что я узнал лично от Энди были: "Не бойтесь попробовать что-то, даже если это очень нетрадиционный», «Работай усердно над этим» и «Сделай так что бы это произошло".

После нашей беседы у нас была удивительная возможность увидеть West House Drinking and Eating Establishment за день до его открытия. А по пути туда мы вставил в Beam: стоматологическая практика в городе Данди, дизайн которого заставит вас чувствовать, как буд-то вы находитесь в SPA салоне, а не ха приёме у стоматолога.

West House, Dundee, restored book press for a big table.

West House Drinking and Eating Establishment  обретал свои окончателние очертания, когда мы туда пришли. Внимание к деталям было просто потрясающе: от работ студентовDuncan of Jordanstoneколледж искусств и дизайна  на панели барной стойки, до очень старого книжного пресса, которий был восстановлен специально для этого места и прищлось исползоват тяжелую технику, что бы просто занести его во внутрь.

Позже, после того, как место было открыто у меня была возможность пообедать там, и это было удивительно. Место свежее, полное с удивительных деталей, а также отличный сервис. Определенно нужно будет посетить в ближайшее время.

You can follow Andy on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/NotJustDesign

See more pictures of West House here as well: https://twitter.com/#!/NotJustDesign/media/slideshow?url=pic.twitter.com%2FqHSyGOKw

as well as visit Not Just Design web site: http://www.notjustdesign.co.uk/