Fotograf Stephanie Kindermann

—Po prvé a predovšetkým - koho môžete vymenovať ako najlepšieho fotografa vo vašom meste? :)

—Ha! There's a mad, crazy hoard of us.

—Ste fotogenický?

—Yes, and I'll tell you why – I have a high threshold for embarrassment. The less self conscious you are, the better you photograph.

—Ako ste sa dostali do fotografického priemyslu?

—So here's the story – my father had been a wedding photographer and so I had my first little film disposables from about 5 years old. I’d shot probably thousands of rolls by the time I made it to photography college, but it was the moment where I was standing in the darkroom seeing that first image rise out of the chemical trays that I remember. Everyone else around me was fairly cool about the whole process but I couldn’t stop laughing with this electric thrill. This was the moment in my life where it became absolutely clear – I knew this is what I was going to do now. Weddings? Everyone loves a party. And a wedding is the best kind of party to shoot.

—Aké sú podľa vás najdôležitejšie súčasti dobrej fotografie?

—Good visual narrative – all the elements needed to give you context.
The split second – at the high point of madness.
The feels – something that makes your heart hurt or leap.

—Máte radi cestovanie?

—I live for it.

—Čo máte najradšej na vašej profesii?

—Learning the world's secrets.
I'll share some of them with you.
No one cooks better than a Greek mama or parties as hard as a Croatian groomsman. Vietnamese elders are the bravest karaoke singers, the French do the best cigar and whiskey bar (not to mention the cheeses) and that Ghanaians will crush any dance floor. Chinese door games can be a hair raising experience, and it is deeply moving it is to see Maori women sing a welcoming song to the bride.

—Čo sa vám páči najmenej na vašej profesii?

—When the alternate drop arrives, the chicken is always overcooked. Always.

—Aká bude budúcnosť fotenia?

—Wow this is cool, I hope it will be some sort of virtual reality with a fully rendered 3D capture from the entire day. You'll be able to bang on your head set and take a walk through the entire event from any time and angle.

—Čo je výnimočné na žánri fotografií, na ktorý sa špecializujete?

—Often having a professional photograph your family is a very rare event. With this in mind I always devote a lot of time and care to capture portraits of treasured people – grandparents, GREAT grandparents, brothers, sisters, children.

—Ako zvládate kritiku?

—I walked through a lot of fire in my early years of learning to shoot, and I'm still here :) Think of my teacher as being that old guy from Kill Bill who strokes his beard a lot.

—Sú nejaké trendy v oblasti fotografie?

—Yes, and they're mostly so cheesy. Things like making love hearts with your hands.... plz no!

—Aké by mal mať zákazník kritérium pri výbere fotografa?

—Love the work – don't employ your photographer then ask for an aesthetic from another artist!
Vibes! Would you want to drink a beer with them? Ideally you start the booking process with good vibes, and finish the wedding singing bad karaoke together.

—Čomu sa určite vyhnúť pri práci?

—Hunger. Bride, groom, photographer and squad members should be loaded up with snacks. Picnic style canapes and champagne if you're fancy, sausage rolls and red bull if you're not.

—Aké detaily, ktoré zvyčajne prejdú bez povšimnutia, si môže fotograf všimnúť?

—Ha! "Common people," love it.
One of my favourites is the tight-lipped, crazy-eyed stage-whispered threats of a parent to errant child – usually during a particularly tender moment during the ceremony.

—Čo ovplyvňuje hodnotu fotografie? Aké sú jej prvky?

—The value in a photo is, I feel, in how valued the subject is in it.
For example, a wife will always love a portrait of her husband that has captured how she sees him. If he's a charismatic person, than a genuine laugh. If he's a quiet person, then a photograph of him unaware, relaxed and thoughtful.

—Ktorá osoba môže byť podľa vás symbolom 21. storočia?

—Elon Musk. Billionaire, genius, puts a model car in his real car then launches it into space. What a legend.

—Koho chcete fotografovať?

—People madly in love.

—Máte nejaké profesionálne tabu?

—I am a woman of no limits.

—S kým by ste chceli fotografovať?

—Jonas Peterson. He seems like a very relaxed, interesting fellow.

—Čoho sa obávate a prečo?

—Mostly I have dreams where I've overslept my alarm and a bride is calling me, asking where I am, and I'm a 2 hour drive away. I guess that's my biggest worry.

—Aký bol váš najpôsobivejší okamih v živote?

—Once, driving home very late from a wedding (of course), I saw space junk or a comet or the worlds most massive shooting star – so bright it illuminated everything around me. It travelled directly down the line of the straight highway I was driving for a full 10 seconds before burning out. An exceptional moment.

—Ak by ste boli animovaná, literárna alebo filmová postava, kto by ste boli a prečo?

—Trinity from The Matrix. She was cool and wore latex before lip injections and enormous butts became the symbols of beauty.

—Kto vás vo vašom živote inšpiruje a prečo?

—Jimmy Nelson, photographer and author of Before They Pass Away. His is a body of work that is truly exceptional and of historical value.

—Ako definujete úspech? Ako ho meriate?

—Can't measure it but you can feel it – are you getting enough quality sleep? Are you eating well and sharing good wine with friends? Do you have leisure time with your loved ones, and does your work fill you with pleasure?

—Boli by ste radšej obľúbení alebo rešpektovaní?

—Not everyone will like you all of the time, but you should always conduct yourself in a way that people have no loss of respect for you.

—Aká je najväčšia chyba, ktorú ste kedy v práci urobili?

—Working at a camera shop, shipped two very expensive video cameras to someone who turned out to be fraudulent. OOPS!

—Keď cestujete, čo si so sebou beriete a prečo?

—My husband, because he can read maps.

—Existuje niečo, čo by ste si boli radšej nekúpili zo zariadení, ktoré vlastníte? Prečo?

—No, but people love to "gift" me their defunct camera gear. Please stop doing this baby boomer friends.

—Ako sa vzdelávate, aby ste robili lepšie fotografie?

—I spend A LOT of time on lovely curation sites like this one.

—Koho práca vás ovplyvnila najviac ako fotografa?

—Steve McCurry (again). Portrait photographer for National Geographic.

—Jedna vec, ktorú by ste chceli vedieť, keď ste začínali s fotením?

—That the rules don't actually matter, and only diminish the potential expression of true moments.

—Čo by ste chceli povedať cez vaše fotografie?

—This is a mirror of your life in this moment.

—Čo vás motivuje v ďalšom fotografovaní?

—I have no other talents. LOL, no I can cook quite well. But photographing is my true purpose.

—Mali byť vaši rodičia menej alebo viac prísni?

—Less. I was raised conservative Catholic. Not allowed to watch The Simpsons when you're 17... come on!

—Ak by ste sa mohli vrátiť v čase, čo by ste urobili inak?

—I wouldn't bother going to study, and instead buy a great kit and apprentice myself out 3 years earlier instead. I did the ol' highschool > study > apprentice > professional route. But study is now a moot point with online resources like Linda.com.

—Čo tak život na druhých planétach?

—Oh jeez I hope so. Certainly spices things up.

—Kto sú vaši hrdinovia?

—My colleagues, for lifting my heavy, heavy camera bag up and down stairs and into the car innumerable times.

—Kto nemá u vás žiadny rešpekt?

—Paedophiles

—Čo robíte vo svojom voľnom čase?

—I punch through Netflix series like a karate master does bricks.

—Akú vašu tvár nikdy neukazujte na verejnosti?

—Lying around in pyjamas, no makeup, orange Dorito stained fingers, unshaved legs.

—Kedy ste úplne spokojní s vašou prácou?

—When a couple tells me they cried seeing the pictures. (With JOY).

—Veríte v tradičné role mužov a žien?

—There are definitely things men are better at, like being muscly and crushing rocks with their bare fists. And there are definitely things women are better at, like looking good in high heels and jean shorts.

—Získavate ľahko nových priateľov?

—Yes

—Kde by ste radi žili?

—I'd love a couple of years in Istanbul. I'm a big fan!

—Čo je tá najhlúpejšia vec, na ktorú ste kedy pristúpili?

—To go on a VERY long bush walk, mere hours after getting home from a pub crawl.

—Existuje život po svadbe?

—YES! It just keeps getting better!

—Máte obľúbený vtip? Povedzte nám ho.

—Any Gary Larson comic ever published. He might be the funniest man on earth.

—Máte radi psy alebo mačky?

—Cats. I'm not embarrassed.

—Koho alebo čo nenávidíte?

—Celery. Eww

—Najlepšia vec v živote je:

—Champagne and cheeses with friends.

—Najviac znepokojujúca vec v živote je:

—People farting next to you on flights.

—Existuje niečo okolo vás, čo by ste chceli zmeniť?

—I'm about to try my hand at home renovation, in a very literal interpretation of that question!

—Čo by ste chceli zmeniť na sebe?

—I would love to learn Chinese. And sign language. And also do some pottery. And learn to ride horses. Probably should exercise more too.

—Čo by ste chceli zmeniť vo svete?

—Let's turn down the level of racism shall we, it seems to be gaining momentum instead of losing it.

—Môžete dať niekoľko tipov pre fotografov, ktorí práve začínajú?

—Sure! Don't train yourself out of -not- shooting things. Such as the weird, or awkward, or funny or embarrassing moments. These are some of the greatest photographs you could take!

—Keby prišli na našu planétu mimozemšťania a vy by ste boli prvou osobou, s ktorou sa stretnú, čo by ste im povedali?

—I guess I'd ask them if they wanted to join us for lunch, I know a good place...

—Ak by ste mali natočiť film, aký žáner by to bol?

—Whatever genre Monty Python calls itself.

—Zajtra pôjdem a urobím...

—EDIT! Pat my cat. Email clients! Poke around the fridge and hope for the best. Print some albums! Look at memes!