THE ROCK STORIE'S

ALJOSA PETRIC

Work, work and more work. If you want to improve or become a professional, you just have to spend hours doing what you want to become be. If you want to learn and be successful that’s the only path to follow.

Where are you from?

Im originally from Slovenia, but I live in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, Spain.

Before being a photographer, tell us what you wanted to be?

It all started with my father’s camera. As a child I loved talking photos with his camera and later on I would always take photos when going on a trip or at any kind of celebration. That was the time I could only dream about being a photographer. I enjoyed doing it, however I couldn’t really imagine that it would become my profession due to the circunstances I was growing up in. Actually, I can say it didn’t even sound like an option, therefore I firstly decided on a different career.

Tell me about the moment you decided to become a photographer?

I had a full time job and at the same time I kept photographing as a hobby. To be honest, my job at that time was not something that would make me happy, not in the short term nor even in the long run. For me it was quite boring following the same routine every day, it was definitely not my cup of tea. I realized I’m that the kind of person who needs a lot of freedom and that’s when I decided to become a photographer.

What was the best advise you received when you started your photographer carrier?

Work, work and more work. If you want to improve or become a professional, you just have to spend hours doing what you want to become be. If you want to learn and be successful that’s the only path to follow.

Can you define photography?

A very good question that made me think quite a lot. However, the answer is really straight forward: catch the moment through your camera.

 

For you, what makes a good photographer?

There are many photographers that control very well the techniques very well, they have a wide range of photographic equipment, they know every single function on their cameras and they really know how to catch the right moment. Moreover, they work very well with people. To become a good photographer you need both knowledge and passion. On the one hand, you need the right equipment (not necessarily the best) and you have to know how to use it. You have to be creative and have “a good eye” for the composition and the light. On the other hand, what is really important is the photographer’s personality – you just have to know how to build a relationship in a very short time with your clients and make them feel comfortable and confident.

For you, what makes a good photograph?

There are many factors that determine the quality of the photograph. A good photograph just has to stand out: Sometimes it might be because of the story that it tells, other times because of the emotions, perfect light, interesting compositions or the subject.

What is your biggest challenge today?

We definitely need challenges to improve and to keep developing as professionals. This is true for anything in life – It’s the challenge that keeps us moving forward, motivated and better.

I personally always set a goal at the beginning of the year and this year my biggest challenge is to become internationally known and work as a destination photographer in Europe. 

Tell us about the day you felt most proud about your work?

This was some years ago when I decided to leave Slovenia, my home country and I moved to Spain. At that moment I also decided to spend 100% of my time on photography and try to start living as a photographer. That was the day when I really felt proud of myself, especially, because I consider it is really tough to develop your own business and become successful in a foreign country. 

If I have to highlight my best piece of work, that it would definitely be the moment a few weeks ago when I was informed that IWP selected one of my photos in the TOP 10 of “epic locations”.

Tell us about the relationship you have with other photographers? How important you feel that is.

I personally have a very good relationship with other photographers. I feel like we are a team and I’m always open to any kind of collaborations.