One day in the middle of August I got an email from Pola. She was writing to ask if I would be interested to be interviewed in her blog Jetting Around, about my photography, ‘especially shooting cities‘ as she stated. I immediately checked her blog, which by the way, is a finalist in the Travel Bloggy Awards and of course I said Yes. Pola sent me a list of questions, and I must admit her questions really made me think! Made me think about my profession and made me think about the way I take pictures; intentionally and unintentionally.
When I read more about Pola and her blog, I realized we have a lot of things in common; we are both expats in the US. I’m an Israeli in New York and Pola is Polish in Chicago. We both Travelers by heart. We both blog about it and document our travels with our cameras, and we both leave room for serendipity when we travel.
In case you didn’t get it by now, Pola is also a Travel Writer and Photographer. She also loves cities (her blog really reflects that) and for times, she feels like she is somewhere between the two continents she loves (Europe and the US) and experiences ‘city love on both sides of the pond’
So without further ado, here is an interview with great Pola. To follow her Jetting Around the Globe, you can visit her facebook page, or find her on Twitter.
Thanks Pola! Can’t wait to hear about your next adventures.
Where are you from? I grew up is Wadowice (pronounced Vah-duh-veet’-seh) a small city in southern Poland, about 30 miles southwest of Krakow. I always had close ties with Krakow and later lived there before moving to Chicago in 2002.
When did you start writing? I started writing in my teens – I published articles in several youth publications in my hometown, then wrote for the high school paper – and those years were my writing school. Also my mom, who is an excellent writer, was my first teacher and audience. As an adult, I enrolled in writing courses.
Where and when did you study photography? As far as photography, I took classes at a school in Chicago, did some self-study and have done photo outings with friends who are photographers. The best way to learn is to go out there and shoot as much as you can. That’s how you find out what works, what doesn’t, and what your strengths are.
What made you want to learn it? In both cases, the need came from within, I simply felt it. Writing came early – growing up, I was always encouraged to read and write, so it was natural. I discovered photography much later.
When visiting Toronto a few years ago, I went for a walk one morning. It was cold, windy, and it started to drizzle, but I didn’t want to go back to the hotel. Instead, I kept on walking and taking tons of pictures with my tiny point-and-shoot camera. I ended up having so much fun that I later bought a DSLR and enrolled in classes (the first one was actually a present from my husband, who had noticed my newfound passion). Eventually, I decided to combine travel writing with photography and started Jetting Around.
If you weren’t a Travel photographer what would you do? I have an alter ego already – my day job is marketing communications. It does involve quite a bit of writing, though…
Where do you get your inspiration from? Cities and the energy they give off. I’m inspired by their architecture, art, cultural activities – whatever surrounds me when I’m on the road.
What do you mostly love shooting? Views from above, cities at night, stadiums, coffee shops.
How do you usually approach a new project? It’s a combination of planning and spontaneity. Whenever I travel, I have a mental list of places I want to write about and photograph, but I always leave room for last-minute decisions. Often, the best experiences are those that happen by accident. I may stumble upon an interesting café, performance, or neighborhood.
What are you working on right now? I’m getting ready for a trip to San Diego, California and Mexico. I especially look forward to exploring and reporting on the Baja California Wine Country. I also have plans to grow the newest section of the blog – City Guides.
Window or Aisle? Window, hands down! I tend to get glued to it upon takeoff and landing…
It all started with a random shot of my sister when we were visiting Paris on June for my Birthday. We were walking in Montmartre and we found this beautiful Parisian cafe in Rue Gabrielle, with its amazing red doors and facade. I knew it would be the perfect backdrop to take a picture of hers.
Well, actually this is not exactly when it started.
A few months ago I have launched a new photography service in Manhattan (where I live) called ‘New Yorker for a Day’ in which I offer a photography session for tourists who come to visit the city and want to experience it in a different way and leave it with a long-lasting souvenir. As this service became quite popular among tourists and even among New Yorkers who want to have their pictures taken in the city they live, and since I am visiting Paris few times a year, I have decided to expand it to Paris as well and offer my service in the City of Light.
What can be better than feel like a real Parisian, at least for one day?
For more information and to find out when I am in Paris, drop me a line or send me an email.
For years, I’ve been an avid reader of Travel + Leisure, one of the most leading travel magazines in the world. The magazine serves as an on-going inspiration for my next travel destinations and not once do I buy an issue and highlight some articles and find tips on where to stay, what to see, where to eat and what is the next ‘most desirable’ place these days. Truth is that my in flight read (beside the magazine they give you on the plane) is always the recent issue of Travel + Leisure, and since I’ve started my Travel Photography career, Travel + Leisure was definitely something to look for.
I am so excited one of my Pharmacia Restaurant images has made it to the ‘Lisbon by Design’ segment in November issue. It seems Lisbon gets the exposure it deserves and I’m glad to be part of it.
“Napoli is like a woman you fall in love with by mistake. First, it attracts you by its magnetic passionate force, but once you experience the bad manners of the Neapolitans, you cool off'”
This is how Marina, my personal tour guide, summed it all up while we were walking in the narrow streets of Naples, her hometown.
I was always curious about Naples. Was it because I am always drawn to the genre of Mafia movies, or maybe because ever since I started my photography project ‘Intimacy Under the Wires’ I was constantly told to go to Naples and shoot laundry. Therefore, I promised myself that the next time I would be in Italy, I would go and see Naples, even just for a day.
I wanted to make sure that once I visit Naples, I would do it with a local. There is no better way to experience a place than through a local’s (preferred photographer or an Artist) eyes and experience. There is no doubt that Marina, a born and raised proud to be a Neapolitan woman, was the best choice. It was great watching her walking in the streets of the old city, knowing every corner, every courtyard, every building, and hear her great stories about her family and her city. If you happen to visit Naples, I highly recommend to contact Marina.
My main agenda was to shoot as much laundry as possible, better in areas I wouldn’t be able to go by myself, but also to learn about the city and see different parts of it, even though I was only visiting for one day.
“There are places that you go and once in enough…and then there is…Napoli”
I couldn’t agree more with John Turturro‘s words, in a clip he did for his movie Passione, dedicated to Naples and its musical tradition. (please promise me to watch this movie to understand the real essence of Naples). And even though I watched the movie after my visit to Naples, it was similar to the way I experienced it. You cannot stay indifferent to Naples. You either love it or hate it. There is no ‘in between’. You are either drawn to its paradox of love, loss, sex, religion, superstition, birth and death, or you are running away from it.
I LOVED it. The city MAGNETIZED me.
Here are some highlights of my trip and some places worth visiting once in Naples. Bear in mind, it is even more beautiful in real.
Ospedale della Bambole
A magical tiny store which operates as a hospital for dolls from all over the world. I was fortunate to meet Titiana Grassi, a 4th generation in the family business, which was established in 1890. The founder, Luigi Grassi, was making marionettes for Teatro Di San Carlo in Naples, and he had a small laboratory with hanging marionettes. Back then, dolls were made by porcelain and were easily breakable. They were mostly bought by Aristocratic women, as they were expensive. With time, these women found and heard about Luigi Grassi, and asked him to fix their dolls. Due to the high demand, Luigi decided to continue with this tradition and passed these skills to the next generations.
This is a charming place and a magical journey to discover the great toys of the past. Here is a movie about Titiana Grassi and her father, Luigi Grassi Jr.
After I left Titiana’s store, Marina took me to another dolls’ related store, but this one was one of the most known for its Neapolitan terracotta traditional characters. Started also as a family business since 1838, Ferrigno family passes the mastering of traditional terracotta figures from one generation to another. The store is packed with hand-made icon graphic figures of Neapolitan script and Marina told me that before Christmas time the store is over crowded with visitors and clients who buy these terracotta figures to decorate their homes.
Known also as Largo Corpo di Napoli, got its name from the statue of the Nile God. The Piazzetta is located in the Historic center of Naples, which is considered the first historic core of the city. (Naples was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1995). The square was established in the 15th century and the area was known as a trade center during the Greek and Roman ages. This is one of the REAL authentic squares of Naples.
Church of Gesù Nuovo
Church of Gesù Nuovo (New Jesus) is considered as the most important church in Naples. Located in the Gesù Nuovo Square, the church was originally a Palace built in 1470 for Roberto Sanseverino, Prince of Salerno. In the 1580’s the Palace was sold to the Jesuits (members of the Society of Jesus) and they turned it into the current church. (constructions last from 1584-1601). The church façade in bugnato style, (a style that was especially used during the Italian Renaissance) remained from the Sanseverino Palace. It is a beautiful church inside and out. Don’t miss its interiors as well, although the exterior is incredible.
The Market Square is located in the historic section of Naples. Today it is one of the largest squares in the city, but in 1647 the square was the site of battles between rebels and royal troops during Masaniello‘s revolt. Later, in 1799, it was the scene of the mass execution of leaders of the Neapolitan Republic. The area – including parts of the church premises – was heavily bombed in World War II and still shows the scars of the devastation.
Next to Piazza Mercato, you can notice the Church of the Holy Cross with its yellow green Dome. The church was severely damaged during an earthquake in 1980 but it is still impressive and a testimony to the Medieval city it used to be. During Summer times, around 6-7pm, there is a beautiful golden light hitting the Dome. I’m talking by my own experience. Great for a shoot!
Church of Santa Maria del Carmine
Church of Santa Maria del Carmine is located on the other end of Piazza Mercato. It was founded in the 12th century by Carmelite monks driven from the Holy Land in the Crusades. The old monastic grounds next to the church now serve as a shelter for the needy and homeless of the city. You can’t miss the church from far.
San Francesco di Paola Church
San Francesco di Paola Church is located in Piazza del Plebiscito, which is one of the largest squares in Naples. The Church was constructed as an imitation to the Pantheon in Roma and was built as a tribute to Napoleon. It is one of the elegant monuments in Naples and as you can see by the picture, is constantly being restored and maintained.
Galleria Umberto
I just LOVE the huge space and the glass ceiling of Galleria Umberto. It is located across from Teatro di San Carlo and despite its modern look, I was surprised to find out that it was built between 1887–1891. The Galleria was named for Umberto I, King of Italy at the time of construction. It was meant to combine businesses, shops, cafes and social life — public space, with private space in the apartments on the third floor. Don’t miss it! The architecture is breath taking all year long.
There are few things I am addicted to; One of them is Coffee. Where ever I travel, I look for a good place to drink my daily cup(s) of coffee. I’ve heard about Caffe Gambrinus before but preferred to try it out myself. The place is known as one of the most important Literary cafes in Italy and a meeting place of cultural Elite in Italy and in Europe. The interior is an Art Nouveau style and the coffee mugs are well decorated. I took my time to take pictures of the mug right after I drank my (overpriced) coffee. Rumors say that Oscar Wilde and Bill Clinton were among the well known figures who have graced the place.
Another thing I am addicted to and always looking for while I travel, is dark chocolate. I have this habit of searching the streets of a new place I’m visiting, looking for a good Chocolatier. I’ve been eating good chocolates in different places in the world but Gay Odin is by far, the BEST chocolate I’ve ever had. When I got into the store, I asked one of the guys for their most popular taste, and he handed me the La Foresta one. Words and pictures cannot describe the devine taste. This is a must-stop place when in Naples.
Naples is also known for its port. It is one of the largest Italian seaports and one of the largest seaports in the Mediterranean Sea.
Naples is also known for its Pizza. No wonder Julia Roberts went all the way to Naples to have a relationship with her pizza it in the movie ‘Eat, Pray, Love’. If you want to see the location of the scene, visit L’Antica Pizzeria Da Michele.
As I mentioned in the title of the post, Naples is a city of great contradictions. Even though it was a short visit, it left a great impression on me and a desire for more.
Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans….
This sentence basically sums up what led me to become a photographer.
I got quite excited today to find an interview I did for Resource Magazine few months ago, published in today’s blog, under the category of Image Makers. I met with Janet Alexander one rainy morning over a cup of coffee when she wanted to hear how I became a photographer and how my laundry project ‘Intimacy Under the Wires‘ started.
To see more of my Laundry project, please check my ‘Intimacy Under the Wires’ category
To read my article aboutTel Aviv; Production of the World in Resource Magazine Summer 2012, please check here.
After I was so thrilled to be chosen as one of the Blogger of the Month for July on EasyJet Holiday Blog, I wanted to share with the readers some of my favorite places I’ve visited when I was in Lisbon.
I’ve decided to concentrate on four great places visitors should not miss when they explore this great city;
Mude, the new Fashion and Design Museum for the design lovers,A Vida Portuguesa Concept Store for shopping, Pensao Amor for thenight scene andPetiscaria Ideal, for those who like to eat well.
To read the full post on EasyJet, please visit here.
There is nothing like arriving at a new city or a new place for the first time and falling in love with it.
That’s what happened to Benjamin Colombel, an Art Director and Photographer from Paris, when he came to New York on a foggy night in May 2012. (I still remember the first day I arrived to New York to live in, even though it was 10 years ago. The images of 6th Ave on the night before New Year’s Eve are still fresh in my mind)
For Benjamin it was this extraordinary reflection of the light of Time Square on glassy buildings, the Empire State Building vanishing in the fog through the sunroof of the car… It was such a fresh and unique feeling which continues for the next day when he woke up early just to see life slowly rising in the Lower East Side.
I sort of ‘discovered’ Benjamin through Greg Finck, a friend of mine who lives in Paris, and was also featured on my blog. I think Greg made a comment about one of Ben’s images of New York and it showed up in my facebook feed.
But before I continue, I have a confession to make; I LOVE looking at pictures of my colleagues photographers who come to my city for their first time. They look at things different from the locals do and they want to grab any piece of information in their lens. (That’s what happens to me when I visit Paris). Ben (who easily fits my ‘Frenchman in New York’ thing) was here in a very foggy rainy week in May, and the way he captured the city was very misty. The more I looked at his New York pictures, the more I wanted to see other places he has been to and shot. I must admit that some of his other albums made me want to book a flight and go. He has that talent to look at the little things and objects in a way that makes you want to know more, and yet, you kind of understand the feeling he was trying to convey.
To see more of Ben’s pictures, you can visit his Flickr account or follow him on Insagram @jeanfrancisco, and if you want to see how talented and creative the guy is, just visit his website.
For me, I just wait for the opportunity to shoot New York with him next time he is visiting.
Merci Ben!
Where are you from? I’m from Quimper, a small town in Brittany, France. Near the sea. That’s where I started to appreciate beautiful images. Landscapes are so wonderful there.
Where did you study graphic design? At first I learned by myself. Graphic design is definitely not something that you learn on the bench of a business school. But after a couple of years as a project manager in advertising (after my business degree) I made the best decision of my life. I applied for a graphic design school in Sydney called Billy Blue. I was directly enrolled for the bachelor degree, I was exhilarated ! It was an amazing school with people from all over the world and an amazing education, so different from the French system . That’s where I learned to think differently. Since then I’m highly motivated in whatever I’m doing in this field !
What made you want to learn it? It’s the combination of multiple factors but I guess as I’m a fan of music since my childhood, I always wondered how the album cover were made. As a teenager I used to spend so many afternoons, trying to figure how they were executed. And what I really loved while I was in my graphic design school was to get all the answers to the questions I had during this period. I’m really into technique and still spend a lot of time learning.
If you weren’t an art director/graphic designer, what would you do? I prefer not to think about that. I would probably be highly depressed, held in a madhouse, screaming…
Where do you get your inspiration from? What I love the most is to find time to stay on a bench and watch people. Hear what they say, see how they look, how they move. I could do that for hours. Spending time with my friends is also highly inspirational. I’m really lucky to be amazingly well surrounded. And when I’m not with people I bury myself in my office with my books and one of my best friend … the Internet !
What do you mostly love shooting? As an art director, my day-to-day work is to conceive projects with very narrow boundaries. Everything has to be planned. Photography is my balance to that, I love to shoot the unexpected !
How do you usually approach a new project? If I’m not catching the unexpected, I would say that it’s a long process. I’m really critical in general but it’s nothing compared to how I can be critical about myself, my ideas, my work. I’m my worst client. That’s why I tend to think that photography is a quest to help me find who I really am deep inside. But I realized that the process is pretty long.
What are you working on right now? I have many projects in art direction and also working on some videos (one of my new passion). In matter of photography, I have several ideas right now that may be more conceptual than usual. All I need is to find some time. And I will never give up on travel photography. I’m sure all the readers of this blog can guess why? Argentina might be my next destination. Scoop!
Window or Aisle? Can we say both ? I’m always doing the splits between dream and reality.
A few weeks ago I had a semi-argument with my mom in which she said I was addicted to Airport terminals and the act of traveling.
While I tried to explain to her that traveling is part of my job and actually part of who I am as a human being, I had to think about it more; (Jewish mothers are always right)
Am I really addicted to Airports? (well, addiction runs in the family)
Can’t I really sit still in one place and need to wander? (I was always the ‘curious cat’)
What is it in the ‘act’ of traveling that makes me happy to the point that I always want more? (I often plan my next travel before the current one really ends)
Not to mention, the urge to take pictures and look at the reality in front of me, fit into a frame.
Was it a coincidence or not, but A few days after my conversation with my mom, a friend of mine got me the book ‘The Art of Travel’by the philosopher Alain de Botton, and I dwelled into it. The book is not a typical Travel book that suggests its readers where to go, but it is more a philosophical one, that brings up questions of WHY we travel and WHAT do we get out of this experience. Alain de Botton keeps reminding the readers that travel is a learning experience and if we be open and use all of our senses, than we be well rewarded and so our travel experience.
“…Journeys are the midwives of thought. Few places are more conducive to internal conversations than a moving plane, ship or train. There is an almost quaint correlation between what is in front of our eyes and the thoughts we are able to have in our heads: large thoughts at times requiring large views, new thoughts new places. Introspective reflections which are liable to stall are helped along by the flow of the landscape. The mind may be reluctant to think properly when thinking is all it is supposed to do.
At the end of hours of train-dreaming, we may feel we have been returned to ourselves – that is, brought back into contact with emotions and ideas of importance to us. It is not necessarily at home that we best encounter our true selves. The furniture insists that we cannot change because it does not; the domestic setting keeps us tethered to the person we are in ordinary life, but who may not be who we essentially are.
If we find poetry in the service station and motel, if we are drawn to the airport or train carriage, it is perhaps because, in spite of their architectural compromises and discomforts, in spite of their garish colours and harsh lighting, we implicitly feel that these isolated places offer us a material setting for an alternative to the selfish ease, the habits and confinement of the ordinary, rooted world…”
As I’m still reading de Botton’s book, I came across another travel essay, that was on point with how I feel when I travel. If I ever need to justify myself in any future argument, the essay ‘Why we Travel’ by the philosopher Pico Iyer, will be a winning case.
“…We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate. We travel to bring what little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globe whose riches are differently dispersed. And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again—to slow time down and get taken in, and fall in love once more. The beauty of this whole process was best described, perhaps, before people even took to frequent flying…”
While each of us has his own reasons to travel, here are some of mine;
A major part of my traveling is connecting with local photographers and shoot with them in their local playground.
There is no better way (for me) to discover a new place, but through photography. It is even better when I do it with a local photographer; Someone who knows the best locations to shoot, the right hours for a sunrise or a sunset, the most photogenic areas of the city, the secret and hidden places and how to avoid the touristic traps. And when someone is visiting New York, I’m always happy to show him around, taking him to all my favorite places.
This collection of images is from different locations in the world. Some of the photographers I met randomly and stayed in touch, with some I know I will shoot again in the near future. With some, it was just a one-timer. Some serve as mentors, some serve as colleagues or friends. But they are all serve as a great talent with tons of inspiration.
Polly, a destination marketer of Easy Jet Holidays, has sent me few questions to answers and asked for some of my favorite Polaroids, which was not that easy to choose. I loved her questions, especially how did it all started and what have been my travel highlights of this project and why. To read all the answers and see which was the first images that started all of that, please read the full article on-line.
‘When I take a really good picture that tells a story, it can really make my day!’
