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Nina Nimmersatt
@fiorella_firefly
Landscape photographer based in Germany
When I was 8 years old I got my first camera, an instant camera from Polaroid. I tried to photograph everything and everyone; I wanted to capture as many and beautiful moments as possible. I grew up in a small tourist town right on the border with Austria and the Alps and as a child I was constantly in the mountains, at the lakes… Always in nature. As a teenager though, I just wanted to get away from the idyllic Allgäu and immerse myself in the city life. It was only a few years ago that I rediscovered my passion for being “in nature”.
"At some point I realized that I simply feel most comfortable in nature, by lakes and in the mountains. Free and complete."
Everything came together when I met my colleague, who also works as a freelance photographer and goes on an adventure whenever he’s able to. Once he asked me if I wanted to join him and it went off from there. I could borrow his second camera for practicing and he taught me a lot about photography. In October 2018 I bought my first own camera, a Sony Alpha 6000, and spent most of my free time visiting places nearby, including the hotspots, to take photos.
"Last year I was traveling so much, mostly in my surrounding areas such as The Allgäu, Austria, Switzerland and northern Italy."
"The separation from my boyfriend at the time was key to actually fully discover and enjoy my new passion for nature and photography."
The end of this relationship, which lasted for eight years, made me think a lot. I was 30 years old without a husband and children, while everyone around me was settling down and making a family – and the whole society expects from you to do the same. I did not (and still don’t) understand why many people believe that as a woman you are not complete without a man and children. When I was by myself after so many years, suddenly everything was open again and questions came up to me.
"Who am I? Where do I want to go? What do I want to do and who do I want to be? New doors opened for me."
Life is only a reflection of what we allow ourselves to see… Sometimes I struggle with myself, I get lost in self-made problems and find no way out. It’s like a vicious circle. Nature helps me to calm down and get out of this circle. Seeing things differently and finding new ways. The time in nature, hiking in the mountains or in the forest, was so good for me and gave me the feeling of finally being able to breathe deeply, of being free from any expectations. I finally came back to my true self. I can stay in places for hours, just listening to the birds and the rivers. By that means I can refuel and organize myself, free from everyday life and problems. Here it’s just me. It’s like a parallel universe for me to disappear into. My very private bubble where everything and everyone around me vanishes. I feel like a real part of nature.
"I am respectful of this nature and enjoy every little thing I encounter there. And photography, the pictures in which I capture my trips and moments outdoors, always bring me back there. I feel free through them."
"I always try to remind myself that this world is full of miracles. There's no time to be bored in a world as beautiful as this - if you pay enough attention and really look around with gratitude."
When I’m on a trip, I take a lot of time to take in the surroundings. All my senses are sharpened. I pay attention to the sounds, the smell, the details. I look around a lot to not miss anything and enjoy small things. It doesn’t have to be a hotspot – the places are often too crowded for me anyway and there is no real peace to enjoy the moment and the incredible landscape given. I prefer to go to places that are less crowded and on each of my trips there is something that seems special to me. The encounter with an animal, the formation of the mountain or the like. Everything is so unique and important at the same time. Honestly, through photography I have rediscovered my love and attachment to my homeland and now I want to explore the surrounding area again. Therefore I have mainly been taking photos in the south of Germany. One of my favorite places is definitely the Eibsee with a view of the Zugspitze – my favorite combination: mountains and lakes. Then, of course, Neuschwanstein Castle – a classic spot that for me personally awakens a lot of my childhood memories since my grandparents live and work nearby.
"I also love the squirrel forest because the squirrels live there completely free and are very trusting towards people."
My trips mainly took place from Sunday to Monday and so I really have most spots for myself. Photography is not my main job and I work from Tuesday to Saturday, which allows me to discover places in their essence – in all its splendor and peace. These short trips or longer travels brought me so much beauty and happiness. I became conscious of the natural world, animal life and my role as a human being on this planet. Watching and encountering animals in the wild is somehow magical for me and every time I feel like an intruder in this world – somehow we humans are. We broke the natural balance and have constructed beyond that. Both in positive and negative sense.
"Traveling has certainly made me more sensitive; I pay great attention to the nature that I am surrounded with, that I live in."
"It also made me realize how little I actually need materially speaking, how wonderful the little things in life are. Above all, these are things that don't cost anything."
The views, the wildlife, the fresh air and the excitement of discovering new places and not knowing what you will experience there. You can’t compensate that with any money in the world. The daily routine when traveling is very different from that in normal everyday life. It is determined by the sunrise and sunset, preparing food, exploring the area and capturing those moments with the camera. Just let the day come to you and take everything as it comes. I try to apply this spontaneity to circumstances in everyday life, to stress less and to make the best of every situation, because life is unpredictable.
"Some things just happen, whether we want it or not."
"On any of my trips or travels, my focus is on the experience, on the moment itself, the natural beauty and how it makes me feel."
I am definitely not a first class photographer. Actually, one of the biggest obstacles for me is the technology of the camera. I got the basics but I often reach my limits, feel annoyed afterwards because I didn’t adjust the settings correctly, the picture was blurred, too light or too dark. All things that could have been avoided if I simply had a closer look at the technology. I could also practice with my editing program a lot more, but for me it is not about becoming the perfect photographer. It is about capturing what I have experienced. Of course I want to capture it in the best way possible and I also watch YouTube tutorials from time to time about photography, cameras and lenses, but only when I feel like it and not with the aim of acquiring as a lot of knowledge as soon as possible in order to get the best photos and get known. I do it for fun, the experience and I honestly don’t care if the picture is not 100% sharp or if I don’t have the newest gear. My camera is secondhand, I had only one lens up to four months ago and my editing program is also not the most common – but that is enough for me.
"My goal when editing a photo is to intensify colors to get them out better. I am in love with greenish and bluish tones; even my hair and many other things have this color."
It makes me happy, it’s a cold color but at the same time a color that warms my heart. In general, it is very important to me to stay true to my own style and to ensure that the colors harmonize with each other and with my feelings. I want people to see the world through my eyes, and these colors fascinate me the most. They resemble a Caribbean ocean, the sky or a deep forest with their different shades of blue and green. Simply beautiful!
"In the end I think it’s photography and nature that really taught me to listen to myself."
To do what I like and to stick with that regardless of what is expected or supposed. Feel in harmony with myself, do my best and take care of our world as much as I can. I think it is important that we do not influence or disturb the living spaces of animals and nature more than we already do. Whether it is with our activities, constructions or behavior. Some people are often not aware of the consequences of their actions in nature… Garbage is such a big issue while it doesn’t have to be! I just pack it back in my backpack or an extra bag.. It doesn’t cost me anything to take the things back and dispose of them in the next trash can or at home. If you feel like it is a burden to carry it with you… I am sure there are many other things – much heavier – that you could take out of your backpack and leave at home.
"That is something else that I learnt; don’t overestimate your own strength!"
Very often we are stronger than we think, that is true, but we also have limits. Once I started what was supposed to be a four-days hike, spending the nights in different huts in the mountains, with a 15kg backpack. The weather allowed us to only complete the first night, but I wouldn’t have managed hiking four days with that backpack anyway. I really reached my limits several times on the way the first day. There were moments I didn’t know how I could keep going. Fortunately, I met a group on the way which I then joined. They were very experienced in hiking. I arrived safely and we had a fun evening in the hut but I was really exhausted; I didn’t even watch the sunset. I just couldn’t do it anymore. On the descent the next day my body was still whacked and I was happy to drive home once we arrived on the foot of the mountain. It was a total overestimation of my strength and it can be really dangerous in the mountains. For so many reasons it is important to stay connected with yourself, your own desires, your energy, your abilities and also respect your limits. It is the only way to live a qualitative live.
"My life experiences so far taught me that you can have anything you can imagine, but if you don’t have yourself, if you are not connected with your true self, you don’t have what is most important in life."
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