City portrait #18 – Dalibor Popović Mikša (take two)

Again, I tried to do a portrait with Mikša. And again, I let my mind wondering, and as a result, it evolved my original idea to this. I love that process!!!
Original idea was to show Mikša as an all around artist – musician, painter, song writer, wanderer… Then, he showed me his 2D/3D installation of railroad electrification wires. It gave me an idea to do something similar with photography.

City portrait #17 – Rade Vranješ

Rade Vranješ – street book salesman. Also, great photographer (retired temporarily), studied in Zagreb (Croatia) – agriculture, but never finished it because of war in ex SFRJ (Yugoslavia). He is selling books on streets of Prijedor for several years. That is his life.

I can not decide which one is better to me so I’m posting both of them. What do you think?
On first picture I used one Vivitar285HV strobe set to 1/2 power, 1/125 sec., f8. Second one is taken with two Vivitar strobes. First one on 1/2 power and other one that lights books set on 1/16 power, 1/250 sec., f8.

City portrait #16 – Mirjana Maksimović

Mirjana Maksimović is a professor of biology and ecologist. She is a founder of “Sanus” a non governmental organization based on environmental education and environmental protection.
One of the programs that Sanus is covering is also a prevention in water pollution.
So… I thought… there will be my starting point in making this portrait. I pictured it in my head very clearly and I was pretty satisfied. When we went on a location I realized that things are not going as well as I imagine it. Idea was to take a picture of Mrs. Mirjana holding a glass of water through which will be visible a chimney of old brick factory – symbolizing water pollution by heavy industry. But… it is hard to get that through glass reflection. So… here is the result.

I tried with another approach and try a different one with Mrs. Mirjana holding a glass and trying to save it clean.

City portrait #15 – Aleksa Milić

Aleksa Milić – orthodox ikonographer. He is making ikons on a traditional way and with traditional materials (pigments, eggs, gold…). Originally, painter by profession. Works in a studio in monastery Klisina, 15 km from Prijedor.

I have to thank to my friend Ogi and my lovely wife Dragana who helped me with this portrait. Here are some pictures from rehearsals two days ago:

And here are two pictures I used for my final image:

City portrait #14 – Darko Vujasinović

Darko Vujasinović – airplane and helicopter model maker. Passionate hobbyist. One of two owners of a helicopter powered by a fuel engine. More info to come. Here are pictures for now.

City portrait #13 – Gojko Rađenović

Gojko Rađenović – Prijedor’s Music School principal (new name is Music school “Savo Balaban”). Music school in Prijedor exists for over 50 years and since then, its building was never repaired, until this year. It took one year and a half to finish all the reparations and through that period, music school was moved to 7 different locations.

City portrait #12 – Nešo Nožinić

Finally, a new portrait. I’m back!!!
Nešo Nožinić – a pilot. Idea to take a portrait of him came to me long ago because as long as I’m aware of myself, I know for him and for his passion for hight. We were discussing yesterday of how the picture would look like and how am I going to do it and as I mentioned one old airplane on a empty field in small village near Prijedor called Međuvođe, I saw a sparkle in his eye. After a small break, he told me that the airplane, that I want to include in the picture, is the same airplane from which he had performed his first free jump while he was at the parachute training.

Through Nešo, I wanted to indicate on a long tradition of flying in Prijedor. That old devastated airplane of Kurir type is a monument to a partizan pilots from WW II that took 2 German airplanes and escaped to a non occupied territory of Prijedor and formed first partizan squadron. Those two pilots were Franjo Kluz and Rudi Čajevec.

City portrait #11 – Lazar Marčetić

Lazar Marčetić – director and manager of Saničani fish pond near Prijedor. I know Lazar for some time, and I tried to transfer my own vision of him in this portrait. I always saw him as an urban intellectual who live a quality and successful life. Active sportsman, involved in a cultural life of a city, successful career.
The idea was to show him as a worker (not a stereotypic manager kind a guy). So, fish net is symbolizing his occupation while basketball equipment (he was active basketball player for a long time and now he is helping in development of Prijedor sport life) symbolize his active way of life.

City portrait #10 – Mladen Palada

Mladen Palada – a parachutist. Owner of many awards and medals and one of the icons of Prijedor sport, member of Prijedor Airclub. He is still active but doesn’t compete anymore. Many interesting stories he has to tell but there is one that can not leave you calm. Back in 1971 he had to perform his first jump after a theoretical part of his parachutist training. Airplane climb to altitude of 800 meters from where every training jump begins. They were performing a hook jump (where parachute is hooked to the airplane and opens instantly after jump). He jumped, and everything he felt was high speed but no absorbing shock when parachute opens. He saw that parachute was not opened right so he detached his main parachute and he opened his reserve. He had just 3 sec. to do that. And it was his FIRST jump. That was the time when death at first jump was common thing.

I was trying for few days to do this portrait but everything came up wrong. From weather to idea and scenario. First, weather was so bad that one could not go outside from a house. Then, I was building some ideas for this portrait and finally I overcomplicated it too much that realization became impossible and too expensive. So I decided to go with Mladen at Prijedor airfield and we will do some simple and clean portraits. When we get there, strong wind starts and instantly, I’ve got an idea to try to open a parachute against the wind. We were trying for several times, but it was impossible to get Mladen at the place I wanted him to be because, parachute was carrying him around airfield. So, I tried to run with him while I was holding my light stand in one hand and camera in other (and that is how picture on the top arise). Suddenly, wind stopped and parachute collapse over me.

And here are few tryouts of opening a parachute

City portrait #9 – Tihomir Ilijašević

Tihomir Ilijašević – artist, painter, director of city gallery, Gallery 96 in Prijedor.
He is also a caricaturist and I asked him to draw himself with light as a contrast to real him. This kind of shooting is based on many tries and many mistakes. This particular picture is taken in 42 seconds and f stop was 8.
My advice to all of you who will try light drawing on your pictures is to have some kind of canvas behind camera (a wall, or blank sheet, or a truck ) because it will be much easier to draw when you can see some of light trail.
Here are some tryouts: