Katharina Imhof
@imkaphotos
Photographer based in Germany
My grandmother showed me a lot of beautiful places in Europe as a kid and when growing up. She is one of the most important persons to me and she was and still is always there for me. We saw lots of wonderful places together and because of her I learned how great traveling is. We often traveled to Italy or Switzerland, but sometimes we also went to France, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain…
"Wherever we went, she always had a camera with her."
It’s wonderful to have so many memories together. It took me some time though to realize how special it is to live in the mountains and how hikes can bring peace to my mind. On our trips we went hiking a lot too but I didn’t quite like that part. I was young and lots of walking in the mountains wasn’t something I was always looking forward to. Especially because I grew up in the mountains and I wasn’t really aware of how beautiful they actually were; it was normal for me. One day, I spoke with a tourist and she was very enthusiastic about the mountains, saying how amazing the views were. Hearing it from someone else helped me to change my perspective and I decided that I should hike more and take up a different point of view myself as well.
"I then realized how damn beautiful it all was."
During all these trips I had a camera myself as well. As I did not grew up in the city, I was a lot in nature, photographing both the little things and the vast surroundings. The colors and forms of nature fascinated me and I wanted to grab all of it with my camera in an artistic manner. Later during my studies I bought my first DSLR, learned everything about the basics and started to take photography more serious. I feel like photography belongs to me; I even reduced my hours at my main job as IT Project manager so I have enough time for my hobby. Photography is an artistic and emotional compensation for my main job. It’s also a pause for me to this sometimes stressful job, because when I am shooting it feels like a holiday to me.
I want to get the best out of a photograph and edit it in my own style. Usually I try not to change that much, so photoshop is mostly closed. Blueish and greenish tones are my favorites to use, not so much saturated colors although sometimes I like having a strong color popping out. There are so many factors playing a role when it comes to getting and creating a ‘perfect’ photo, and it happens that sometimes the result is not as how I imagined it.
"That motivates me to go out again and keep shooting to get that ‘perfect’ picture while enjoying everything that comes with it."
For me, a perfect shot tells a story, shows an emotion and stops people from scrolling through their Instagram feed for a few seconds. I want to generate within others the longing for nature, the feeling of wanderlust and I want them to realize how little we are and how powerful nature is.
"When I go out shooting I love the quietness of nature, to wander around and to dream."
I can really enjoy these moments alone. I do enjoy going on photo trips with other people as well but I notice that when going with others, I can’t lose myself in my daydreams. And when I am alone in nature or at home, I let me guide by my wanderlust; always traveling to different places in my thoughts. Nevertheless, I also feel happy working together with someone in the sense of shooting portraits. Seeing emotions in someone’s expressions is wonderful and although a nature shot can be emotional, nature itself doesn’t show emotion. Every person is so different and I believe that the more people you meet, the more you will learn. I love to take portraits out in the green to combine these two genres.
"What I particularly appreciate about landscape and nature photography is that it gets you to discover the unknown."
Of course you can find beautiful places to capture near home, but you can also visit places you don’t know and go on adventure in your own country or abroad, learning about other cultures meanwhile. Because of travel I got to know the diversity of the world, learned to deal with unexpected situations in foreign countries and overcome challenges in order to get where I wanted to get.
Also, my curiosity is being stimulated all the time, finding answers to my questions during my trips while it generates new questions at the same time. When I see a lot of new things I feel like a little kid in an ice cream shop that has these colored sprinkles; so many impressions and colors, feeling enthusiastic and having my eyes lit up.
"Photography, and the combination with adventures, makes me happy and I cannot get enough from it."
It works also like a kind of therapy for me to handle negativity and stress. Photography is my balance; I learned a lot about myself throughout the journey. It brought me patience, self confidence and helps me to always improve myself. Travel and photography opened up my eyes and I can say that I took up a much more positive attitude towards everything. Nothing is as beautiful as it seems to be but on the other hand you can find a lot of beauty everywhere, even if you don’t expect it. And going out in the rain is fun 🙂
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