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Irina Mituca
@irinamituca
Landscape photographer based in Germany
Photography has always been a bumpy road for me from the start. You know there are aspects in life that come easy to you, while others take you two steps ahead and one back. The good part is that you are moving, although not at the speed you are expecting.
It all started with my father, who had a passion for photography since high school. When I was little, I was sneaking up on him while he was developing black and white photos from our holidays in a dark room. He was the family photographer, with a lovely soviet Zenit camera. He liked what he was doing, but at that time the company that was making developing materials in Romania went bankrupt. Not to mention that for an amateur photographer it was nearly impossible to make colour photos due to the high price and the complexity of the process. The only other possibility was using materials from the West of Europe which were quite expensive.
"Finally, his camera broke without the possibility to be repaired and with the development of digital photography my father stopped with the artistic part of photography and focused more on the practical part needed for his job."
"I received from him my first analog camera, a small little model, while I was in elementary school."
At that point it was more to create memories than to create art. I loved to photograph my friends and that only increased with the digital era. Let’s just say that, back then, I did not think I would start running for the perfect light and waking up early just to photograph a place. At the same time I truly enjoyed photographing nature and the new places I visited. I felt that I had an affinity with photography and that I could frame a subject quite decently for a person that hadn’t studied anything in this direction. He also encouraged me with my passion and helped me financially to buy a DSLR to always develop further.
"My photography was based on what I felt, no analysis involved, no specific knowledge or techniques that I was consciously applying."
I spotted a flower, framed it, and photographed it, whatever the hour of the day. It did not really matter. I didn’t comprehend the basic concepts of photography, nor did I invest time into studying it. Too many other activities were ruling my days and I just kept going forward with the knowledge I had. I have always found theory to be boring and loved to skip it; I preferred learning by doing. Because of this, I wished for so many years to participate in a photo tour, to practice and meet other people. Sadly, as I was a student, it was either too expensive, or I was too busy with my studies. I was moving forward, but not much.
"During the past few years I started to have more time to practice and learn. I did not have the environment or people around me that encouraged or pulled me into the world of photography."
I started to pick it up, little by little, along the way and put them all together by myself. Slowly, but surely. The boost came while I was still at the university and I met a friend from Spain, who gave me exactly that little push and information I needed to move forward. We rarely met due to the distance, but he was always helpful. From there, also due to the great shots I saw on Instagram, I began to challenge myself to do more because I felt I could, particularly after moving to Germany.
"I was very inspired by the surrounding nature and the outdoors was always calling me to practice."
Plus, it made it much easier because the mountains were closer and easier accessible even without needing a car. I also started to network more with people that are passionate about photography, some are colleagues from work, others are friends from Instagram. Even though some are more interested in food photography and others in astrophotography, you still have so much to discuss. It’s never ending and so pleasing. It’s like you have your own language that only these kinds of people understand. People who understand your struggle and are there with a solution or advice or even lending their gear to you! A big shout out to people like you!
"As soon as I became financially independent and could dedicate more resources and time to photography, I did."
I started to travel more and more. It was a combination, a lust for knowing about new cultures and the desire to photograph new places. I always loved travelling but now, more doors have opened. I am amazed by how wonderful our world is. How unique each place is and the feeling that it evokes within even after leaving the place, keeping the memories and the lessons learned within my heart and mind. You come home changed, more flexible and more tolerant to everything around you. I started to go to specific destinations with the aim of taking pictures. I even travelled on my own on some occasions, which I wasn’t used to. I remember very well my first solo trip to Cinque Terre in Italy, a couple of years ago. It was a strange feeling to be alone. Dining alone was the worst. But the beautiful places I saw and the feeling of fulfillment of doing such a thing alone made it up! After many years, I finally participated in a photo tour, in the Dolomites with two talented photographers from Romania.
"It was a dream coming true. I learned so much and it was such a lovely feeling to be surrounded by people who share the same passion."
"Nowadays I travel with my DSLR and plan most of the things ahead of time. I enjoy the entire process from preparing a trip to editing my photos."
For the preparation, I find doing research very important and enjoyable. I dedicate a lot of time and effort to preparing a trip, those places that I photograph don’t just pop up on my way while I travel. I love to read books about the country, the culture, the language, the history and the people. I have a whole collection of books about places where I’ve been and just by looking at them again I get a smile on my face. I also read articles, watch YouTube videos or documentaries, search on Instagram, etc. Having this knowledge makes having interactions with locals more pleasant and more profound, I can understand better things that I am seeing and experiencing and put them into place. In addition, reading helps me plan my trip. For each of them I would create an Excel file, including information about what to see, distances between places, where to eat or to stay, etc. That way I can maximize my trip.
I want to have some space to change plans and just hang out a little longer around places I feel good and where there is a lot more to discover than I thought. I want to keep the balance between travel and photography. Balance that earlier did not exist. My Iceland trip was a bit of a rush, in a sense that there are so many beautiful places to see that I preferred to compromise on sleeping.
"Doing all of this traveling does not come at no cost. What I am really referring to is that you have to balance what you really want from your life."
You have to cut down on expenses, for example eating out or buying all the unnecessary stuff you don’t need, but want. You get to live a more simple life. Learn to reuse items and do with what you already have at home. Cook by yourself and have healthy habits. And when traveling, you don’t sleep at fancy hotels or eat at restaurants every day. You choose a backpack instead of a suitcase and pack some sandwiches with you. Buy a bottle filter to avoid always buying water bottles. There always is a compromise; if you really want something, you have to give up on something else.
I cannot say I have a travel objective. I just go by the feeling. I ongoingly gather information on different places from around the world, and when the opportunity arises, I try to take it. Sometimes I look up Google maps and just admire the geography and start to pinpoint places. Sometimes it happens that the cheapest ticket chooses my destination. It’s a great way to keep the travel expenses low and let myself be surprised! There are so many places I would love to visit, Japan included.
To admire the architecture and discover a world so different from my own, the one I am living in every day."
"For me, photography helped develop a sensibility to detail. I see the world in a different way, catch the specific details that belong to a place, a country, an ambience. And I empathize more with what is around me."
I feel more the diversity that surrounds me and I feel more that I am part of it. I try to convey these feelings in my photos. Only recently have I started editing my photos. I was a strong believer of keeping your photo as natural as possible and learning how to make a great shot from the camera, not from post processing. Another aspect was that I did not know how to edit my photos. Only later did I start to retouch them but again, keeping it as natural as possible. There are a lot of presets and any kind of filters available, everything to make editing easier, but I feel the photo loses your personal and unique mark if you don’t try to edit it by yourself. I tried some, but I never felt it; they are not giving my picture what I want them to give. So, I like to do my own edits.
"First of all I learn, and secondly I can make the photo more ‘mine’. Getting more out of a picture by doing it myself from the start motivates me."
I still have a long way ahead to master this skill but practice makes perfect, they say. However, in general I try to take the photo as best as possible without having to rely so much on post processing. Knowing your camera, having an understanding of framing and being able to play with light is essential in order to achieve the best result already when pressing the shutter. I frequently have those euphoric moments when I am so amazed that I discovered a new thing; I am proud of these small achievements. It’s that moment when you finally, after so much time, understand how to work with certain settings that create a great effect, for example to capture the motion when photographing a waterfall.
"Moreover, I always try to develop and to continue going straight ahead. An important person in this journey is my husband."
Out of all the people who helped me and supported me, encouraged me, the most important person is my husband. It’s him who gives me the liberty and the support I need. Who is willing to wake up at 4am in order to catch the perfect sunrise and to withstand the freezing cold by my side. Who inspires me to continue when I feel desperate. Occasionally, I have these moments when I just want to give up. I keep hitting bumps on the road. And when your new lens hits the ground because of you, or when you receive less engagement on your photos than a person who has extremely saturated his/her photo, your self-belief and confidence really drops. You just feel that the world is not playing fair. You feel judged for the positive aspects in your life, even though you try to explain the drawbacks. Sometimes you even feel that maybe the direction you took is not the best one.
"But this is normal. You cannot always win. You will try and you will succeed, but you will also try and you will fail."
You will feel tired and you will need breaks, and that is ok. You cannot satisfy everybody, but you can satisfy yourself. The most important is to do it for yourself and never give up, no matter what life throws at you! You and you alone know how hard you worked in order to reach this point and how hard it was to always have a happy face regardless of the situation. It’s not other people’s business to criticize what you sacrifice. We all have our own road.
"Chin up and continue shooting! Because in the end, it’s all about you and your passion. All experiences, successes and failures, helped me to become what I am."
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