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Violina Mladenova
@wanderful.nomads
Visual creator based in Bulgaria
I am Violina, a graphic designer, artist and photographer from Bulgaria. Ever since being born, they labeled me – “a wild child”. I was always creating something out of nothing, wandering in nature and playing with my neverending imagination. My world was full of wonder, fairy dust and wild, astonishing adventures. I was a happy child with amazing grandparents who took me for trips in nature on daily basis. My grandpa would take me to the forest to pick mushrooms, he would teach me about animals and plants, how to recognize different animal prints on the ground, different kinds of mushrooms, herbs or flowers. My other grandpa had huge gardens and a little farm just outside of town and he was a carpenter. We had farm animals at home and we produced all kinds of veggies and fruits and really most of the food we ate. It was the happiest childhood! I now live in my little creative bubble in Sofia, together with my husband and partner in crime and our precious dog. We love to travel and experience nature together and go on crazy adventurers, enjoying this beautiful world.
"This little wild girl full of wanderlust and love for nature and animals lives still within me and will stay with me wherever life takes me."
"I remember a sad, bored teenager sitting in her room one sunny afternoon a long time ago. I was 14. I was upset about something (I don't remember what) and a tear went down my cheek and dropped on the table."
I saw my window and the garden outside perfectly reflected in its surface, like a tiny mirror. I went to look for my parents’ camera to take a picture of it. And I did. Suddenly I spent the rest of the day walking around my tiny little town and taking pictures of random things. One of the best days I had back then. I was hooked. I told my uncle – he was into photography ever since he was a young boy. He was the one who taught me all the cool things I got into as an adult – movies, music and from that day on – photography. My parents had a somewhat expensive camera for that time but they used it for family pictures and stuff on vacation and so most of the time it was just sitting in a desk. I asked my dad for it saying I want to do photography and he happily gave it to me. My uncle would take me with him on hikes to take pictures on the weekends.
"I come from a tiny cute town called Dryanovo, just in the center of Bulgaria. Mountains, forests, rivers and lakes are just a few minutes drive away. And Basically this is how it all started."
There was a period of time back in university when I barely did any photography for a couple of years; I was focusing more on fine art and graphic design, because this was my biggest passion. But it has always been there and when I began focusing more on photography again, I never let it down ever since. All together I have been doing photography for about 15 years and over time I also got really passionate about filmmaking and I keep learning new things and having fun with it every day. My main work is with graphic design and fine art, but I take my escape in between projects with traveling and photography. This is my completely free moment where I create mainly for myself and capture my emotions to keep for later.
My work in fine art and design made me fall in love with many different things that now inspire me when I shoot and edit my photos. I mainly focus on colors. I love painting and getting my hands dirty with oil paint on my fingers and I like to dive into certain color moods when I look at a photo, imagining it was a painting. I am also very inspired by cinematography and the art of filmmaking in general. I am astonished by the worlds curated in the frame and then colored in certain ways to deliver pure emotion. I want my photos to feel dreamy and colorful – sometimes just slightly and sometimes very expressive, full of story. But most of all I want them to deliver emotion. To deliver my emotions that I felt when I took the shot. It is amazing to share what you are passionate about, express yourself through art freely. And of course to hopefully inspire others to seek such experiences as well.
"Part of this for me is to inspire others to visit Bulgaria and show its beauty. There are still many people that don’t think about Bulgaria as a travel destination where you will find breathtaking nature."
I feel truly blessed to live in Bulgaria. I see our tiny country as a treasure chest of wonder and beauty. Mountains, seas, beaches, forests, lakes and rivers and green and gold valleys – world wonders all together, here in this ancient land, all within 2-4 hours of driving away. At any day I want, I can find myself on a new adventure, just a couple minutes away from my front door. Bulgaria is in every way the reason I keep doing photography – it touches my heart and brings inspiration every single day.
"To me this land is sacred, magical, mystical and, in many ways, otherworldly. I could keep talking for hours..."
There are so many beautiful spots and each one is unique. The Rhodope Mountains are probably my favorite; they are packed with hundreds of spots with naturе landmarks: Amazing caves, stunning and wild hiking trails, breathtaking peaks and landscapes, waterfalls and rivers. The Canyon of Waterfalls for instance is a blend of 46 isolated phenomenal waterfalls. The biggest and most popular is Orpheus. Peaking at 68m high. Orpheus was the Thracian mythical musician and prophet and supposedly inhabited the Rhodope Mountains, home to these magnificent waterfalls. They are situated in the canyons stretching along the Elenska River and are interconnected via this well-managed eco-path. Then there’s the Central Balkan National Park. As I am born in that area this place is very close to my heart. The hike to Mazalat Hut is a spot I never get tired of; it’s an astonishing location with many many hiking trails around.
"But there are so many places; like the 7 Rila Lakes, the deep south Black Sea close to the border with Turkey and the northwest where nature is wild and untouched."
"I was lucky enough to find another soul that shares my dreams and love for photography, adventure and Bulgaria. My husband. And let’s not forget - our dog."
We travel together, we take pictures, we snowboard, we constantly seek new adventures to share, new landscapes and moments to capture with a camera or maybe a paint brush, or sometimes just a gaze. We dream to make a long trip around the whole country for a whole summer as soon as possible. Of course documenting it all with our cameras. Wanderful.nomads summarizes who we are and how we would like to live life. It is a wordplay of our desire to constantly wander in nature, discover new places, seeking adventure and beauty. And of my love for the digital nomad lifestyle.
"I spent about 9 years in advertising agencies and creative studios and although some of that time I felt very happy, the 9-5 hustle never seemed logical for me or in any way convenient for our lifestyle."
If anything – I perceived it like as a way to waste time. Getting ready in the morning to go to a traffic jam on your way to some office, where you have to spend another 8 hours, after which another traffic jam follows… I feel a thousand times more productive and inspired working at home, in my personal space, my temple, getting up really early. First taking some time for myself, my body, my mind and then get to work energized, fresh and healthy, in the comfort of my own work space. I love the balance between being in my creative bubble at home, creating art, doing focused work, being out on adventures and getting my hands and sneakers dirty while my soul can be breathing a bit. This way of living makes me truly happy.
"Photography played a huge role in here. It took me to places far outside of my comfort zone and showed me a much more meaningful and colorful way of existence."
It also brought me amazing friendships and memories and got me closer to mother nature. Because of photography I started spending more days in the mountains and forests and less time elsewhere less meaningful to me. I rediscovered things I loved as a child but came to forget as an adult. I rediscovered my bravery, my wild heart and my love for the smell of wet grass after the rain. It made me dream about new horizons and fall deeper in love with our beautiful world and nature. I started to hike and workout more to be in better shape for longer and more advanced trails. I faced my fear of deep waters and learned to hold my breath underwater for longer. I touched the bottom of deep blue waters with my own fingertips and took a picture of the magical underwater world.
"I have so many wonderful memories and going through life like this, makes life itself my favorite adventure."
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