my file info

Printre Bogdani 7

2012-02-17T01:32:00.000-06:00

Alea iACTA Est

2012-02-12T02:27:00.003-06:00

Bucharest joined other cities across the world during an international day of rallies against the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). A controversial international accord billed as a way to beat online piracy has sparked a fightback led by Internet users in ex-communist countries.

Every Once In A While

2012-01-21T12:09:00.006-06:00

Every Once In A While

2012-01-16T06:39:00.002-06:00

Every Once In A While

2012-01-15T06:27:00.002-06:00

A few hundred people have been gathering for the last couple of days to protest austerity measures in Bucharest. What sparked the protest was the forced resignation of the founder of Romania's emergency medical services, Raed Arafat, a Palestinian-born doctor, who had publicly criticized health reforms proposals.

Printre Bogdani 6

2011-12-07T07:51:00.002-06:00

Along the Way. Cheia.

2011-11-21T10:04:00.001-06:00

This Is Home

2011-10-24T06:34:00.011-05:00

One late evening about a month ago, I was standing by a projector, holding a glass of whiskey, in Amanda Lucier's garage in Norfolk, Virginia, wrapping up the latest Hop the Fence Photo Night, when the question hit me.

For those of you who don't know, Hop the Fence is a home made event usually hosted by Amanda or next door neighbour Matt Eich, where every two months or so, a bunch of photographers get together in a garage, present work, then share questions, feedback, food, cigarettes and of course some type of intoxicating liquids.

We were almost done when, after I had showed some pictures towards the end of the evening, Matt and Amanda both shot a couple of questions that made me break out in a cold sweat. They basically asked the same thing. "What is your work focused on?" That happens to be a question that I have been asking myself for quite some time and have yet to come with a coherent answer. My work so far - whatever that may represent - has no focus.

A quick look at my website will undoubtedly reveal to any visually trained eye a mild case of photographic schizophrenia. There is a little bit of everything, but no clear underlying theme within this collection of images that I sometimes pompously call my documentary portfolio. That may well be a consequence of several years of working for a news agency, where you are supposed to be a jack of all trades. But this could simply be another excuse, since there are examples of wire photographers who manage to fit the job description perfectly and find their own voice at the same time.

For about a year or so, since I have started to really dig into this issue rigorously, I have been feeling like a lens with a really slow autofocus, trying to find a point of reference in the dark. Which is probably why my reply to the garage audience was a little rant centered on what I did not like to photograph, rather than what I did, and why I didn't really feel comfortable working in Romania. You know, the typical grass-is-always-greener-elsewhere tirade that lazy people come up with.

Back in Bucharest, the question did not fade away. Quite on the contrary, it ruined several good nights' sleep and pushed my anxiety to very insightful edges. However, repeatedly going back to that night in Norfolk, some sort of answer began to take shape. A few weeks ago I was reading an article in a Romanian newspaper, about a family of four women who have left Moldova for Romania, when it suddenly dawned on me. Over the last five years, I have never completely felt at home, no matter where I happened to be. Professionally, the US will always be my home. Socially, it could be anywhere in the Balkans. There is no perfect mix. Probably one way to deal with this constant conundrum it is to document the lives of people who are somehow adapting to a new home. This concept of home, or, more precisely, home away from home, is of course a broad and generous one. It taps into so many issues, such as migration, family, homelessness, sense of belonging, national identity and so on. For now, it is a starting point. A framework. It is the first topic personal enough to be worth exploring at length, when shooting for myself.

The day I read the article about the women from Moldova, something clicked. The authors of the article, writer Ionela Savescu and photographer Vlad Stanescu of Evenimentul Zilei, were so kind as to connect me with the women. Diamantina Cojocaru has left The Republic of Moldova and arrived in Bucharest on January 14th 2011, along with her daughters Ana and Victoria, 16 and 14 years old, and her mother Valentina Braduteanu, a retired neurologist from Chisinau. They moved to a two room apartment in Bucharest, where they live mostly on welfare. It is a tough life, but they say it is nothing compared to what they ran from. Below are some pictures from my first few visits with them. They cannot afford a washing machine, so they do laundry in a social laundromat, to which they get by subway. The laundry bag weighs about 10 kilos on the way there. On the way back, the clothes are wet, which builds up weight on Diamantina's shoulder. Later in the week, she took Ana and Victoria for the first time to the Natural Sciences Museum. Back home another day, the girls did homework, where the photographer couldn't help bending some ethics and helped translate a few paragraphs for the English assignment.

I am grateful for their trust and cooperation and hope that their story will make some of the people living in Bucharest appreciate what they take for granted and perhaps lend a hand to Diamantina and her family, in whatever form possible. They certainly need it.

Printre Bogdani 5

2011-10-04T03:48:00.002-05:00

Vladimirescu

2011-09-29T06:21:00.003-05:00

Got to play around with Bogdana's new camera (Canon T3i) all day yesterday.

Along the Way. NYC

2011-09-26T10:33:00.003-05:00

Along the Way. Norfolk, VA.

2011-09-21T11:59:00.001-05:00

Along the Way. Atlanta, GA.

2011-09-20T13:56:00.002-05:00

Syrians Protest

2011-09-02T14:14:00.003-05:00

Members of the Syrian community in Bucharest organized a protest to support their people back home.

Ramadan

2011-08-30T04:05:00.002-05:00

Kasabian

2011-08-30T04:04:00.002-05:00

Syntagma Square 03

2011-07-04T06:46:00.003-05:00

Syntagma Square 02

2011-07-03T05:40:00.002-05:00

Syntagma Square 01

2011-07-02T08:37:00.002-05:00

Syntagma Square is one of the most popular places to visit in Athens, Greece. For the last few months, it has turned into a platform where Greek people choose to openly express their discontent with their government, a scene that has witnessed peaceful debate, angry politics and violent clashes.

Printre Bogdani 4

2011-06-13T02:42:00.000-05:00

Bus Stop

2011-06-08T16:38:00.001-05:00

Printre Bogdani 3

2011-06-08T04:44:00.001-05:00

Printre Bogdani 2

2011-06-06T06:20:00.003-05:00

Curs

2011-03-28T04:23:00.000-05:00

Pe 11 aprilie 2011 incepe un curs de fotoreportaj pe care o sa-l organizez impreuna cu prietenii de la Decat O Revista.

Pe scurt:
- dureaza trei luni
- costa 1000 RON (exista o bursa)
- participantii o sa aleaga o tema de grup pe care o s-o documenteze impreuna
- desi apreciem talentul, o sa punem accentul pe munca la acest curs

Detalii aici: http://andreipungovschi.com/#/curs-fotoreportaj

Printre Bogdani

2011-03-14T11:16:00.004-05:00

"Printre" means "amongst". Bogdani is plural for Bogdan, a Romanian name. My girl's name is Bogdana. Most of my closest friends happen to bear this name. They are the only reason why I have not yet left this country. As long as I stay here, I intend to document my life and theirs by photographing the moments we share, so that when I do leave I can have something to look back to.

People of Merit for Soros Foundation

2011-03-11T10:03:00.006-06:00

These are some of my favourite images from a series of portraits that I took a few months ago for Soros Foundation. DoR magazine was assigned to create a brochure to celebrate 20 years since the beginning of the programs that allowed thousands of Romanian students to benefit from scholarships that the foundation has awarded in Romania. I was one of them, a long time ago.

1. Andreea Craciun
2. Stefan Cibian
3. Corina Pintea
4. Simona Manea
5. Corina Murafa
6. Simona Baciu

Dad

2011-02-24T08:43:00.000-06:00

Can't Touch This

2011-02-24T08:20:00.003-06:00

iPhone Photos Get POYi Award

2011-02-09T02:04:00.002-06:00

A while back, photographer Chip Litherland wrote a blog post about how photographers are contributing to the decline in quality by overusing gimmicks such as Holgas, iPhones and similar type of imagery that "Ashton Kutcher would see as art".

Today, one of the most prestigious photojournalism competitions, POYi, has just posted a list of recent winners in this year's ongoing competition. Third place in Feature Picture Story is a series of photographs shot with an iPhone, by NYT photographer Damon Winter. You can learn more about this story on the Lens blog. Congratulations, Damon!

Long discussions are likely to ignite, so feel free to comment. What's your take on this?

Lupsa

2011-02-04T09:53:00.002-06:00

A constant source of inspiration and contagious optimism, my friend Cristi Lupsa.

Update

2011-01-18T09:47:00.003-06:00

Fresh from the ski trip, slightly pushed by contest deadlines, I've taken the time to update the website a little bit. You can check it out here. You'll find the story I worked on in Serbia and an improved version of the story about Vama Veche. Both with crucial editing input by the great editor Mike Davis, who was able not only to coherently sequence my chaotic selects, but also point out images I definitely would have thrown out the window.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T15:26:00.001-06:00

Here's something good to chew on over the Christmas break from Mike Davis.

Gymnastics for Esquire

2010-12-09T07:00:00.004-06:00

These pictures are my favourites from a series that recently ran in the Romanian Esquire magazine, part of a story about the state of Romanian gymnastics. Pictured below are national team member Ana Porgras and one of our most successful coaches, Mariana Bitang.

Serbia 15. Theological Seminary

2010-11-28T08:33:00.003-06:00

There is a theological high school in a small town next to Novi Sad. The students in the class I photographed had an exam during my short visit there. At the end of the day the whole school (boys only) went to church to sing during the evening prayer.

Serbia 14. Velika Remeta Monastery

2010-11-27T12:55:00.004-06:00

I have been trying for a long time to get access to one of the old Serbian monasteries. It was through friends from the Radio Television of Serbia that I was finally able to visit Velika Remeta, a monastery established in late 15th century in Voivodina, the northern part of the country. These friends helped me tremendously with access and transportation. I am deeply grateful to Ljubica Lalic for her assistance.

Serbia 13. Slava.

2010-11-25T07:15:00.006-06:00

The Slava is the Serbian Orthodox tradition of the celebration of a family's own patron saint. The family celebrates the slava annually on the patron saint's feast day. I photographed two Slava celebrations. I wanted to photograph this celebration both in a city and in a village. The first pictures batch of pictures are from a Slava in Belgrade. The second one are shot in a village called Porodin, where I got access thanks to a Romanian-Serb guy called Zoran Gruic, that I met while photographing the pilgrimage in Djunis last month. I am really grateful to these people for allowing me to photograph their celebrations.

Serbia 12. 1389

2010-11-22T05:29:00.004-06:00

1389 is the year when the battle of Kosovo took place, where the Serbian army, led by Knyaz Lazar, fought against the invading army of the Ottoman Empire. After the battle, both Knyaz Lazar and Sultan Murad I died, along with most of their soldiers. Serbian epics says that Knyaz Lazar was visited by an angel of God on the night before the clash, and offered a choice between an earthly or a heavenly kingdom. Lazar opted for the latter, which is why many Serbs believe they are heavenly people.

1389 is also the name of an organization in Serbia, often called right-wing by the media and associated with nationalistic movements and implication in anti-European actions, such as the recent gay parade protests and clashes. They are strongly strong believers and consider Orthodoxy a core element of Serbian identity. That is why I wanted to meet them. The leaders of the 1389 agreed to see me. I explained a little bit about my project and they agreed to let me tag along with some of their members for a while in New Belgrade.

Marko's Romanian Teenagers

2010-11-03T13:14:00.001-05:00

Great work about Romanian teenagers, for the World Press Photo's See Masterclass, by my friend Marko Risovic, a great Serbian photographer.

Ciocan. Christian Ciocan.

2010-10-30T04:02:00.003-05:00

About a month ago, I had to photograph Christian Ciocan, the spokesman for Bucharest Police, for DOR magazine. He is an interesting character and we had fun shooting this.

Serbia 11. Around Belgrade

2010-10-29T14:10:00.003-05:00

Serbia 10. Orthodox Kindergarten

2010-10-27T11:24:00.002-05:00

Serbia has one Orthodox kindergarten. How is this different from any other kindergarten in the country? While the children study English, ballet or sports a few times a week, Orthodox religion is a class they have every day. They hear stories about their saints and get to learn prayers. The Patriarch himself comes to visit every now and then.

Serbia 09. Red Star vs. Partizan vs. Police

2010-10-26T15:47:00.004-05:00

Historical football derby in Belgrade: Red Star vs. Partizan. The country's best teams, whose stadiums are a few hundred meters apart. Police presence at the game: 5000 +. Fans sang throughout the game, which was great to witness. Surprisingly, there was no violence after the game. Which the media attributes to fear of recent legislative efforts to outlaw the fan brigades.

Serbia 08. More Novi Beograd

2010-10-25T12:49:00.002-05:00

Serbia 07. Novi Beograd

2010-10-22T05:09:00.004-05:00

New Belgrade is a neighbourhood of Belgrade, built in 1947 on the left bank of the Sava river. About five hundred thousand people live together in this huge complex.

As I'm walking through with my friend Mladen, we talk of Ceausescu, who must have been so envious of Tito for creating the ideal communist development. Even though it seems cold and lonely out there, I get the same feeling I got in East Berlin: their communism was better than ours. While the tall, grey buildings resemble those in Romanian cities, there is more space between, more room to breathe. I'll try to get back to that fascinating area before I leave Belgrade.

Serbia 06. Faculty of Orthodox Theology

2010-10-19T13:53:00.006-05:00

After taking the wrong bus and walking for miles, I end up in front of the Faculty of Orthodox Theology. I confidently walk into the building, although I had no appointment and knew no one there. Let alone I speak no Serbian. I show the doorman the name of the dean, carefully written in my small notebook. He could not agree more, that is the dean. However, the doorman speaks no English. He tries to get some students to help. No one cares to stop. At some point, a professor passes by. "Sprechen Sie Deutsch?" he kindly asks. Last time I did speak some German was many years ago. Still, I try my best and it seems that despite the severe mutilation of German grammar and vocabulary, I can get my point across.

I wait in front of the dean's office. It's Friday afternoon and he is out for lunch. While waiting, a young student asks me a few quick questions in Serbian, before I have the time to defend myself with the phrase I've come to master: "ja ne govorim srbski". His name is Mladen, we switch to English and exchange a few words. I try to explain what I'm doing in Serbia. He listens, nods politely, then leaves.

The dean's secretary tells me to come back on Monday if the dean is not back by 3pm. An hour passes and it's 3:15. I get out of the school and head for the closest bus stop. On the sidewalk, I run into Mladen. "Hey, where you're going? You have something to do now?" I obviously did not.

Mladen took me to the church in which he chants, then we headed back to school for the evening prayer, a very interesting, somewhat intimate and mysterious ceremony. Which he invited me to photograph. We returned to the evening prayer yesterday, to photograph it one more time. Thanks, Mladen!

Rural Life in Northern Romania

2010-10-16T07:49:00.003-05:00

On assignment for the World Bank about two weeks ago, I've had the privilege to spend some time with Gheorghe Giurgiu, a very hardworking man who raises water buffaloes in the village of Libotin, in Northern Romania. The images below were taken when Mr. Giurgiu went to a forest near his village to get some firewood for the shepherds who keep his sheep.

Serbia 05. Djunis Pilgrimage

2010-10-14T12:27:00.004-05:00

The legend says that on 24th of July, 1898, a thirteen-year old girl named Jocic Milojka, from Djunis, met the Virgin Mary while going to get water. Mary threw a stone and demanded that a church be built around it, to serve the sick and troubled. A small chapel was built and, as the number of visitors began to grow, a church was built next to it.

It is supposed to be one of the most popular places of pilgrimage for the Orthodox in Serbia. On the night of October 13th, before the feast of the Veil of Our Lady, people gather there and pray until sunrise. Many believe that those with a clean soul can spot the profile of the Virgin Mary in the horizon in the early hours of the morning (photo 3).

Serbia 04. Anti-Gay Pride Riots

2010-10-11T07:38:00.005-05:00

Approximately 5000 policemen were deployed in the center of Belgrade to protect the gay parade, in what the media described as an attempt by the Serbian government to prove their ability to protect citizen's rights. Hundreds of protesters tried to break through the police blockades. Chaos followed.

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Belgrade Off-Topic

2010-10-09T14:17:00.001-05:00

Serbia 03. Peć: Patriarch's Enthronement

2010-10-08T06:01:00.005-05:00

From the back of the bus I could see the line of cars behind, driving close to one another, all heading to Peć in the early hours of the morning. Just like the guy sleeping next to me, many of them had come directly from Belgrade.

It was impressive to see thousands of people who had travelled hundreds of kilometeres to be part of the enthronement ceremony, to respect their tradition. Ever since Joanikije II was elevated from Archbishop to Patriarch of Peć on Palm Sunday, April 6th, 1346, The Peć Patriarchy was to be the historical seat of Serbian Patriarchs.

Peć is now in Kosovo and NATO officials made sure the level of security for this event was high. The number of Italian KFOR peacekeepers was reinforced. Although people were calm and respectful, there was this constant feeling of tension and enmity throughout the courtyard, which carried through untill the end of the ceremony.

As I had no credentials, I couldn't enter the monastery and was therefore confined to the courtyard. Which I didn't mind at all, since it is the believers that I am mostly interested in for this project anyways. The high priests pictured below were guests in the ceremony.

Serbia 02. Who Do You Work For?

2010-10-05T09:08:00.001-05:00

It pays off to wake up at 4:30 in the morning. While I had absolutely no idea which way to turn after stepping out of the hotel, I remembered what a Russian friend once told me: "Where there's a will, there's a way."

The streets were filled with policemen, some of which directed me to the bridge in Mitrovica that separates the Serbians from their southern neighbours. It was 5am by the time I reached the bridge. Dozens of buses and cars were lined up, waiting for KFOR soldiers to give them the go-ahead to cross the bridge.

Some of the vehicles had their doors opened and I popped my head inside here and there, asking if they had any seats left. I realize that I might look slightly suspicious, when, after a few refusals, I ask the passengers of a minibus for room and half of them say "yes", while the other half yells "no" at the same time, as if to shut the first half up. Ok. I must agree. A six-foot four, darkly clad guy, asking Serbians to take him to Kosovo, in English, with an American accent, must look dubious. Odds were against me.

I realize that I need to somehow neutralize this image I'm conveying so I change my phrasing. "Hello, I am from Romania and …" Finally, it works. One priest who seemed in charge of a large convoy of buses from Belgrade, along with a dressed-up gentleman give me the benefit of the doubt. After checking my passport and press pass, they make a couple of phone calls, most likely to several drivers, then place me on one of the buses.

People around me are young and most speak some English. This is when I get the question I was going to get throughout the day and I would most likely get until the end of this project: "Who do you work for?" Again, suspicion arises when I say I'm a freelancer and try to explain the concept behind the masterclass. Even journalists have a hard time understanding why someone would come to their country to document something unless there's money at the end. They look at each other, smile, then assume there must be some dark force behind this: "James Bond, right?".

Before I left Romania, I spoke to a wise friend who has spent some time in this part of the world. "How do you cast away the suspicions?", I asked. "You can't. You just go about your business and let people believe whatever they want." Comforting.

Serbia 01. Strong Start: Improvization

2010-10-03T12:11:00.002-05:00

When I wrote the proposal, I had no idea that the point of departure was about to change, as during my documentation I found out that the new Patriarch, His Holiness Irinej, was soon to be enthroned in Pećka Patrijaršija - or the Patriarchate of Peć - a beautiful monastery now in Kosovo. A few days later I was on the night train to Belgrade.

Marko (another participant in the masterclass) waited for me in Belgrade, armed with contacts' phone numbers, possible fixers and a large, confident smile. That helped a bit, considering I had little control over what was going to happen next, which is always somewhat disheartening.

He put me on a bus to Mitrovica. The plan was to spend the night there, where I had already reserved a room, and head over to Pec in the morning. For some reason, no one, including Marko, had any idea of how to get from Pec to Mitrovica.

Mitrovica must be a lovely city. I wouldn't know. By the time the bus got there, after an eight-hour ride, I didn't even know where to get off. The main power generator in the area was down and everything looked like Easter night in my hometown: candles left and right.

I finally got to my hotel, where I had cautiously reserved a room. "Andrej?" asks the guy at the front desk and points to my name, mispelled at the top of a page somewhere towards the back of a math notebook. "Yes, sir, that's me!" I answer, vaguely pointing my chin up, as if to show I knew they were waiting for my arrival. "Sorry, your reservation is October 10". It's October 2nd, the enthronement was the following day and something told me they were not going to wait for me. You can imagine how fast the chin dropped, back to where it should have prudently stayed.

We got into a slight argument about the reservation phonecall, but, while I totally trust my girlfiend's English skills - she was the one who called - I realized there was no point and moved on. On to another hotel, that is. The guy who took the reservation was really nice and walked me through the dark to this fancy hotel where I was lucky enough to get a room and, once the power came back - in a couple of hours - a really great meal.

No one in this hotel knew how I could get to Pec from Mitrovica (keep in mind this in Northern Mitrovica, where most inhabitants are Serbian), but they all agreed on one thing. I needed to get up at five in the morning.

Serbs and Orthodoxy

2010-10-03T11:20:00.003-05:00

"As you reach the end of an exciting one-hour drive through the hills southwest of Kraljevo in central Serbia, at some point the windy road makes one last curve and the trees give way to a clearing. One can then admire, profiled against the sunset, the harmonius blend of the Romanesque and the Byzantine architectural styles, under the roof of the Studenica monastery. While for the regular tourist this may be just another check mark on the list of the World Heritage Sites, locals know this particular monastery stands for much more.

Built by Stefan Nemanjic, the founder of the medieval Serbian state, in 1190, the Studenica monastery represents the symbol of Serbian Orthodoxism, the mother of all Serbian churches, a stronghold of Eastern Orthodoxy in the region. It is also the point of departure in my intention to pursue of a project that explores the current relationship between the Serbs and the Orthodox Church."

This was the beginning of the last draft of my story proposal for World Press Photo's See Masterclass. It is a vast and complicated theme. This project will be nothing more than a visual exploration of this theme, as I am sure that by late November - our deadline for the masterclass - I will only be able to catch a glimpse of such an intricate topic.

I will try to keep a brief journal of my project here, consisting of photos, random thoughts and casual descriptions of my Serbian experience. Comments are always welcome!

Kicked Out

2010-09-21T02:12:00.006-05:00

Recent waves of expulsions of Roma from France have drawn severe criticism from the EU to President Sarkozy. However, the police has kept on dismantling Gipsy camps all over France and sending Roma people back to their countries of origin. Most of these people come from Romania and Bulgaria.

Through Agence France Presse, I got this assignment for the Guardian to tag along with reporter Lizzie Davies and fixer Rupert Wolfe-Murray on a trip to Barbulesti, a village in Romania where most inhabitants are Roma. According to the local police officer, about 90 percent of the people in that village have been abroad (mostly Spain, Italy or France) at some point in recent years.

We met several people, most of which were relatively reticent to talk to us. Understandably so, as they have been interviewed so much lately. The Roma are pretty pragmatic, so it came as no surprise to me when some asked for money in exchange for access. We did not pay anything, but it was a hard thing to do last week, just a few days after a German newspaper had paid a guy somewhere around 200 Euros (about $260) for an interview.

We got lucky and met a school teacher in the nearby city of Urziceni, who knew the community in Barbulesti pretty well and could smooth things for us.

My plan was to photograph unobtrusively, but I soon realized that was impossible when I could only spend a few minutes at a time with each family. Plus, everyone stares directly into the camera and asks to have their picture taken. That lead nowhere, so I changed the approach and asked people to pose for me, so I could take their portraits. This worked a little better.

The biggest problem we encountered was that almost none of the people we met had recently come back from France. Even though almost everyone had a family member who had been there at some point and had sent money back, there was no direct connection with the recent wave of expulsions.

This changed when we met the vice-mayor, who had brought along a guy who had come back voluntarily from Montpellier the week before, for fear he would get kicked out by the police. The guy, obviously aware of our presence in the village, showed up wearing a France t-shirt. His name was Romica Raducanu. He was kind enough to take us to his home, where I could not only make portraits, but also shot around a little bit while he was talking to Lizzie and Rupert.

Here is how the story that Lizzie worked on appeared in the Guardian. Below are pictures from the Raducanu household and also a few portraits of people who were willing to have their picture taken in our short encounter with this community.

What We Do

2010-08-15T04:09:00.004-05:00

Just a couple of days ago I met a friend of mine who is a lawyer, that I had not seen for almost two years. In our conversation, there were a few times where I recognized the attitude that people who have office jobs tend to have towards photographers in general and freelancers in particular.

Up from the start I knew I was in for a great treat when he asked a question he also answered at the same time. "So what have you been doing since we last met? Not much, have you?"

Then he launches into a description of his latest vacation in the Danube Delta in Romania. "Oh, it was great. Have you ever been there?" I say yes and mimic taking a photo with my hands, as if to explain that I was there to work. "For pictures?" he replies, with a tone in his voice that so clearly indicated both the futility of my trip and his contempt for what it is that I do for a living, in general.

You can probably imagine why we don't meet that much. If you do read this, my lawyer friend, please do not get offended. To me, it is simply interesting to notice how far apart our worlds really are.

I remembered this after reading a great blog post by Justin Mott about a freelance photographer's lifestyle. You can read it here.

Vertical Pigei

2010-08-12T09:17:00.003-05:00

It's been a while since I shot such a vertical. Such a vertical person, that is. You can read more about this great photographer and adventurer on his webpage.

Ikuru's New Blog

2010-07-30T10:26:00.002-05:00

The great and fearless Japanese has just changed his blog address, along with the country of residence. You might want to bookmark this http://www.ikurukuwajima.com/blog/

Vama Veche in Print

2010-07-26T07:56:00.005-05:00

First of all, I apologize for the huge edit that I'm throwing at you here. It is a large project that I started working on sort of without realizing it. I've been going to Vama Veche for a few years, but most times I did not work while I was there. That changed about three months ago, when DOR magazine asked me to do a photo essay about the place.

In between then and now I went there quite a few times. The idea was to document how or if the place has changed since it was famous for being deserted and somewhat exclusive, a hideout for the bohemian. The writer and myself worked separately, so what you see here is my own interpretation of the place. It is hard for me to show what the place was like, as I was not here during its golden times. Therefore, I tried to understand the place, then attempted to make pictures that would somehow show what it means to me. I like to plan things when I work, to avoid getting lost between ideas, but of course there are always surprises that throw me off the plan, or, better said, episodes that add to the original sketch, such as the kids in the previous post.

I've found a couple of pictures that I took three years ago that fit this story as well (first and fourth in the series), but most of it has been shot over the last two months or so. The first nine pictures represent the edit that has just been published a couple of days ago in the magazine. The rest are pictures that I liked that somehow represented a mood I wanted to convey, but were maybe a little too vague for the magazine. I'll keep working on this story in the upcoming months. I'll try to focus a little more on the lives of the people who are not there for fun, which is something I feel is incomplete in the pictures I've taken so far. Thanks for looking!

PS: If you can get your hands on DOR magazine, don't hesitate. The article about Vama Veche, among many, is a great read.

Vama Veche IV - The Love

2010-07-19T09:54:00.005-05:00

Back in Vama Veche for this project I'm working on. Heavy clouds made me take my camera out today for the first time in four days. As these things tend to happen sometimes, I ran across this couple making out in the water. They see me taking pictures from the shore. When they get closer, I ask if it's ok to take pictures. They agree: "You mean you're going to get in here with us, with those cameras in your hands? Sure, come along!" I'm grateful and get in the water before they change their minds, wearing regular clothes as I was not expecting to swim today. Then things start picking up speed. They make out, I walk and swim and take pictures at the same time, trying not to get my camera soaked. They unaffectedly forget about me. When they decide to take a break, I ask: "So what are your names?" They both start laughing like crazy. "The thing is, we just met a couple of hours ago, we don't really know each other's names". Ana-Ruxandra and Marius. "Really, that's your name?" they both say to each other while they start kissing again.

Out of the water, we exchange emails I thank them again and leave, hoping we could catch up later tonight. Amazing!

Doctors' Migration for Esquire

2010-07-15T02:27:00.009-05:00

Some time ago, Esquire editor Gabi Dobre calls me and says "We want you to illustrate this larger story about young doctors leaving the country because of the state of the Romanian medical system. The narrative revolves around this couple of doctors, who have been together since med school and are planning to emigrate in the upcoming future. The only catch is that they don't want to be photographed, for fear they might get in trouble at work for speaking so openly about the system."

So I read the first draft of the article and then meet again with Gabi and writer Simina Mistreanu, to come up with something that might work. The story is really told through the experiences of Cosmin and Andreea, the two young doctors, so I refuse to photograph other doctors, to confuse the readers. Shadows, silhouettes and ouf of focus are also out of the question from the beginning.

After a couple of hours of brainstorming we decide to use the fact that they don't want to be photographed and somehow make that count in our visual interpretation of the story. That's how I found myself looking for details to photograph that would somehow add something to this story and move it furhter rather than hold it back because the lack of access to subjects' daily lives. The story was just published. Here are a few pictures:

These baseballs lie on Cosmin's old TV. He bought them as souvenirs on his first trip to the US that he and Andreea took together, in med school. The trip was what triggered their thoughts about leaving the country.

Though he is out of med school, Cosmin still cannot affort to move out of his parents house, where they share a bathroom.

Equipment in an opticians office, where Andreea works her second job, besides the one at the hospital.

Cosmin says young doctors need to invest their own money in their education, may that be books, workshops or classes.

Andreea says supplies are always scarcer in the state system than in the private clinics. Pictured here, equipment from the optician's office.

Beauty Pageant

2010-07-10T08:51:00.002-05:00

Floods II

2010-07-09T06:25:00.005-05:00

As the Danube levels has reached its historical high and the news reports indicated a possible catastrophe was on its way, AFP sent me back to Galati, along with AFP writing intern Palko Karasz, to document how the city was preparing to face the floods. As it normally happens around here, the facts looked less dramatic than what we were told on TV. The locals were far from terrified. Soldiers were working around the clock to construct a sandbag dike to protect the city. So far the few households that seem to be in some sort of danger were those in IC Bratianu, a village across the Danube from Galati. Some villagers have come up with a way to turn this whole mess into something positive: they charged tourists and journalists for boat rides.

Postcards

2010-07-02T08:15:00.005-05:00

Istanbul

2010-07-01T11:12:00.002-05:00

Floods

2010-06-30T08:15:00.006-05:00

Heavy rains have recently killed 21 people in Romania and hundreds of people were evacuated from their homes. I shot these on assignment for Agence France Presse yesterday. People in this village - Sendreni - were trying to pile up sand bags to prevent the floods from expanding.

Sezgi

2010-06-29T13:27:00.004-05:00

Hilal's best friend.

Hilal at Foundry

2010-06-28T06:58:00.003-05:00

Back from the Foundry Workshop in Istanbul. It's been a really interesting experience, there were some great people there. I went in with two story ideas. One of them came through. My image of Turkey through mass-media was that of a very traditional state, where women are extremely conservative in appearance and behaviour. I was interested in and wanted to document the life of a non-traditional Turkish woman and was lucky to find Hilal, a 30 year-old teacher with a very active social life that to me resembles that of any Western woman of her age and condition.

The following slideshow is what my part of the final presentation in Istanbul looked like. In the following days, I'll keep posting images I shot while working on this story, which did not make it in the final edit. A great thanks to Hilal and her friends, who gave me access to their lives, and to Jared Moossy, my instructor, who guided me through the process!

Another Postcard

2010-06-23T14:02:00.000-05:00

Postcard From Istanbul

2010-06-22T05:51:00.001-05:00

Que te vaya bien

2010-06-18T03:01:00.003-05:00

My friend Andreea - pictured in Prague, below - is about to set off alone on a journey through South America, that will take her a couple of years. Best of luck!

Vama Veche III

2010-06-17T03:46:00.004-05:00

After three consecutively failed attempts to wake up at four in the morning, I finally got on the boat with the fishermen who supply the seafood restaurants in Vama Veche.

Vama Veche II

2010-06-16T07:53:00.000-05:00

Vama Veche

2010-06-15T08:53:00.003-05:00

We're Not All Cut Out for The Dark Side

2010-06-08T09:07:00.003-05:00

Long Weekend

2010-06-08T08:48:00.007-05:00

Dacia

2010-06-03T05:21:00.003-05:00

Dacia is a Romanian car manufacturer, founded by Ceausescu in 1966 with assistance from the French car manufacturer Renault. The French company now owns Dacia. Here are a few pictures of older models, that I shot for a story that ran in Esquire about the past and future of the Romanian car. First photo is taken on the highway, while the other two in a place that dismantles cars for the "Cash for Clunkers" program.

Gay Pride Parade, Bucharest

2010-05-31T05:39:00.001-05:00

The Greek Model

2010-05-19T10:04:00.003-05:00

Tens of thousands of public sector workers demonstrated in Bucharest against proposed austerity measures. Last image: Marcel Hoara, a politician from the ruling party, is escorted by the police while an angry mob tries to attack him.

Hassle

2010-05-11T08:00:00.003-05:00

Shaorma

2010-05-10T09:10:00.004-05:00

Decat O Revista is an independent magazine that I contribute to. For their second issue, they came up with this crazy idea of a fashion shoot that combined expensive designer clothing with shaorma, a Middle Eastern sandwich wrap, a type of fast-food that tends to be very popular in Romania, especially within the working class. I guess this was my first fashion shoot. Weird as it may seem, it was a lot of fun. And very tasty.

Freelance Conundrums

2010-05-09T04:03:00.002-05:00

I've recently quit my steady job at Mediafax, after working for them for about four years. It's been great for what it was, I am grateful for the confidence they have always shown me and I am positive that it still is the best place to be in, for a news photographer, in this country.

Nevertheless, I felt it was time to move on. I hope to stray a little bit from news photography and devote more time to working on stories and perhaps improving the way I make portraits. This freedom I now enjoy does not come without a price, of course. Freelancing - some down-to-earth friends call it unemployment - brings up a challenging conundrum: how do you shoot what you like and at the same time keep paying your bills on time? Hopefully the answer to this question will not prove to be too painful.

Strongly Recommended: Carry Me Ohio

2010-05-06T04:22:00.004-05:00

This is a lovely book by a great photographer, Matt Eich. Here's how you can get one of these limited edition books. Keep in mind that a way to promote great photography is to support each other's work.

Cobain

2010-05-04T10:42:00.002-05:00

Each year on May 1st, a lot of rockers, punkers and basically everyone else in Bucharest who's got nothing better to do heads for Vama Veche, a small village/hip resort on the Black Sea coast. I went there to photograph the crowds for DOR magazine. Shit hit the fan when people started a bonfire competition. It's the first time I have seen a bar floor pulled apart and set on fire.

A Moment in Time. My Contribution.

2010-05-04T09:19:00.004-05:00

Here's my contribution to NYT's project called "A Moment in Time". Mircea Mitran, 77 year-old, plays with two of the kids in his herd, in the village of Limanu, approximately 260 km SE of Bucharest, Romania.

Floral

2010-03-31T13:40:00.002-05:00

Happy Easter!

2010-03-29T15:51:00.002-05:00

The Easter lamb in Romania is pretty much like the Thanksgiving turkey in the US. Except that around here there's no Presidential pardon for any of these guys.

Ode to Brandon

2010-02-12T10:33:00.002-06:00

and anyone else who's been using this particular reflection technique. Businessman Bobby Paunescu poses for a portrait. One of Paunescu's companies has recently bought Evenimentul Zilei, one of the most prominent Romanian newspapers.

2010-02-12T10:30:00.001-06:00

People walk slowy on an icy street downtown Bucharest.

Miruna

2010-02-06T05:08:00.001-06:00

Ceausescu

2010-02-05T03:32:00.003-06:00

Emil Barbulescu, nephew of Romania's former communist leader Nicolae Ceausescu, poses for a portrait in Ceausescu's childhood house in Scornicesti (photo 1). A mere 150 kilometers from Bucharest, the quiet town of Scornicesti is attracting foreign tourists interested in the house where Nicolae Ceausescu was born.

Protester

2010-01-26T07:21:00.003-06:00

Wrap up of a rally.

Frozen

2010-01-26T05:56:00.000-06:00

Sunday to Monday night was the coldest night of the year in Romania so far. Thermometers recorded -34 degrees Celsius (-29Fahrenheit). Dozens of people have died of hypothermia. All of these people were homeless. Authorities are trying to put them in shelters. However, there are a few that either do not know about these shelters, or simply refuse to go. I've started documenting the work of an NGO that's helping people in this situation. Below, Danut Cretu reaches out for a cup of hot soup delivered by social workers. Cretu lives on the streets and sleeps underneath heating pipes at night.

iPhone Alps Apps

2010-01-23T13:23:00.003-06:00

The phone went skiing as well.

If There's a Heaven

2010-01-20T05:32:00.004-06:00

I hope it looks like the Austrian Alps and they'd better have Atomic skis there.

iPhone: Snowfall

2009-12-28T14:25:00.002-06:00

iPhone Portraits

2009-12-28T14:18:00.008-06:00

I shot some of my friends. With an iPhone. They survived.

Snowed In

2009-12-19T19:14:00.001-06:00

Platon for The New Yorker

2009-12-02T02:57:00.003-06:00

This past September, when nearly all the world’s leaders were in New York for a meeting of the United Nations, Platon, a staff photographer for this magazine, set up a tiny studio off the floor of the General Assembly, and tried to hustle as many of them in front of his lens as possible.

Here's the link: http://www.newyorker.com/online/multimedia/2009/12/07/091207_audioslideshow_platon

Bookfest Backstage

2009-12-01T16:41:00.001-06:00

Yet Another Rally

2009-12-01T16:31:00.002-06:00