They didn’t want to do a portrait session on their wedding day. Why leave the guests alone and waiting on your wedding day? So we agreed to do a portrait session two days later. Little would we know that the weather would be complete different then during their lovely wedding.

It has been agreed we would do the session on Sljeme, and it would be the three of us: no best man, no bridesmaid, no assistant for me. Just the three of us. When we arrived up there was a strong wind, and even rain. Where did summer go to? The moment we went out of the car, hairstyle was gone and rain took it’s effort to wash away the make-up of my bride.

What was supposed to be a sweet portrait session turned in to a trash the dress session. My couple didn’t seem to mind though and we had great fun getting some wonderful images. Sometimes you just have to go with the flow.

She wanted some pictures for her portfolio and I was in the mood to play around. We found a lovely black dress and went for a shoot in Slovenia. Meet Melissa.

The bride was crazy about colours. No white wedding dress for her! Colourful it will be and colourful it was. I really enjoyed being part of such a special wedding. And happily we kept it dry until the end. At least, I did, not the couple ;)

Hallstatt… the last day, early in the morning, finally, the rain was gone and though cold, I could go for a small, early walk. Too early for the tourists to arrive, too early for the sun to warm the earth. Light was just coming, and I enjoyed ten minutes with nature alone. The swans dominated the lake of Hallstatt. For ten minutes, they were my world.

Hallstatt… how to photograph a place which has been photographed by almost everyone? How to portrait a town which has been literally copied and remade? What to photograph if one shows a sign against photographs? Respect it, or not?

I decided to go for details; things which would be overlooked as most of us will be enchanted by the beauty of the small town …

For ‘real’ images of Hallstatt, google them. The internet is full of gorgeous images…

Vanesa is an artist with a wide spectrum of activities like creating masks (by now she has a house full of it), creating music and singing in her band BF x GF (“cura i decko”), together with her boyfriend. 

As with most artists, bills needs to be paid and therefore Vanesa works at the ZPC (Zagrebacki Plesni Centar, Zagreb Dance Center) at the front desk, a great side job as she works with artists all the time.

The first time I saw Vanesa, she greeted me with an enthusiasm and joyfulness that made my day. I had a short meeting at the ZPC regarding space/location and Vanesa was the ruling desk officer. The second time I met her, I came for a shoot (this one), and she greeted me in the same style, which was so nice.

The third time I had her in front of my camera as she agreed to have a photo session and while planning this shoot I was really looking forward to it and curious how it would go.

The photos below are a perfect reflection of the session we did: on one side it shows the great fun we had and at the other hand the seriousness, the effort we put it.

Contemporary Connection: Vanesa Petrac, Martina Marin, Martina Nevistic

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