Photofeed Profiles: An Interview With @manoldonchev

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Hey Photo Community!

As promised in our last update we will continue the old Photofeed format "Photofeed Profiles" where we will interview all types of different Photographers on the Hive Blockchain to give you a better insight view on who is behind a profile. For our first interview we are very honored to showcase @manoldonchev Manol Donchev from Bulgaria. He is not only a great photographer he is also a great writer and we are super exited to have him as our first guest on this revived interview series.

Photofeed: Manol, thank you so much for doing this interview with us!
To start with, we would like to know who is behind the profile @manoldonchev ? Where did you grow up and where do you live now?

^{Portrait Manol Donchev}

Manol Donchev: Hello, and thanks for the invitation! It’s an honor.

Well, recently I started actually using my real names for my username, not only on the blockchain. I am called Manol Donchev and I have been quite amused by seeing people try to discern where my first name ends. As in “Is it Manoldo?”. Nope. I am from Bulgaria, I was born 1985 and I remember calling my kindergarten teachers by the honorific “Comrade” or what translates as that. I thought it was reserved for kindergarten teachers, since in pre-school, which should have been 1989-1990 we no longer called teachers that Comrade thing, actually in our language Drugar(ka — for the female form) but they became Miss or Missis to us.

I grew up in Karnobat, a small town 50-ish kilometres inland from the Bulgarian Black Sea coast but we went to the sea very...occasionally. Two weeks in the summer and sometimes while visiting relatives.

^{Karnobat, Bulgaria}

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^{Karnobat, Bulgaria}

Karnobat is a town with mostly one or two-storey houses. Creeping towards a hill or two. With lots of fogs from October to December.

I live in the Bulgarian capital city of Sofia now. I’ve been here for the last fifteen years. Since I came to one of the Universities here. I studied Psychology and after that...a certain Master program in Psychology and also a Master program in Press Media.

^{Hometown Fogs}

PF: Can you tell us a little history about how you got started in photography?

MD: By studying Psychology at the University.

I am kidding. But also not. anyway, my interest started as a kid. First, of course, I wanted to draw and be an artist. A very close relative was one. or he must have been becoming one since he must have been in high school at the time. Both he, his father, and my father had Zenith or other analogue photo cameras and took pictures occasionally.

At a young age I “learned” that one could not live well as an artist. Define living well, dudes. By “dudes” I mean family and society...Drawing fell behind.

^{Bulphoto press agency 2010}

Then I had a Skina. Japanese plastic camera with a single small lens at the front, locked focus, automatic. Little I knew about anything else. I was not studying Photography in any form at that point, just experimenting with framing and various topics. People argued I should take more snaps of people posing than “postcards”.

edc_02_sn 1.jpg
^{Same period}

But I liked taking photos of things that attracted my attention. The trouble was...when I had a film loaded, inspiration was scarce. And each frame was kind of expensive to waste on just experimenting. In my mind, that was.

And so, I really became a photographer when I studied Psychology in the University of Sofia. Because I realized I can become whatever I want to become. No matter what other people thought based on their experience.

Also, a colleague of mine in that group of students of Psychology told me it would be worth it if i took photographs of moments instead of things. That was my first and most valuable lesson.

Two years later I joined that Press Media course. Then in 2010 I became a trainee at the Bulphoto agency for a short while. I began shooting pictures for the daily newspapers.

Protests, PR stuff, concerts, exhibitions, etc. Not enough sports for me, sadly.

^{Winner of a national competition 2010 and 2011 (European)}

During that same period I participated in whatever photo competitions I could find links to. I won some because I failed in many more but that did not stop me. A travel to Prague to receive my new camera body from OSCE officials was the second most memorable prize. Because the first win ever remains the first win ever. Oh, wait. It was the same picture! But the one I send to qualify for Prague was in Black and White. The color version had won the local (national) contest on the previous year.

I withdrew from actively working with the media during the 2012-2013 period and started freelancing which meant going for wedding photography first as a source of income. I worked too cheap because of the media standards here. It was more than working for the press but as I would later learn, not nearly enough.

PF: How did you find out about Steem (Hive now)?

MD: My photo clubmate Damyan, A.K.A. @lightcaptured had a lecture in front of the club in the summer of 2018. He spoke of ways to monetize your photographic content, including his experience with stock photography. He had just a few minutes reserved for the Blockchain option at the end of his lecture but there were things that ticked just right with my current mental state. I was very intrigued by the possibility to join something that could grow huge while it was still relatively new. Been happy about that decision ever since, especially now that I see some progress.

PF: What do you think about the current developments and the future of Hive?

MD: We should not lose momentum. We’re on a good path and things are developing quite well. Some necessary measures to eliminate dead weight was how I see things even if a certain deal had not happened. We have enthusiasm but it should go from us to the next generation of enthusiasts. We know many who try this blockchain thing are quickly disappointed. But that depends on their expectations. Mine were for a place where I could work a lot and see results. I do.

^Prague

PF: What Photo Gear do you bring on your trips?

MD: I have much less gear than some people would think. I rotate stuff. For the past couple of years I usually bring one DSLR with my favorite 70-200 F 4 lens, which is the heaviest thing in the pack. And a 24 mm “pancake” lens. Now, instead of a heavy tripod and a second DSLR with 17-500 mm F 2.8 lens, I started taking my landscapes with a mirrorless Sony Alpha 6000, a kit lens, a small flexible tripod...which came with me to Istanbul, Barcelona and Tenerife and then I lost it on hometown turf two months ago. I used to bring filter plates. Gradient. They are all pretty scratched right now. I would not recommend being an equipment of mine. You would feel as if i don’t care about you at all. Which is exaggerated.

PF: What was the most "crazy" situation in your photography career?

MD: A couple I can think of right now. Setting my hair on fire from the candles at the “newly married” table during a wedding. I was bending for a better angle and I had long hair back then.

A horse almost trampling me down during a traditional horse race. Those are held on the outskirts of villages a few weeks before Easter. I was lying on my belly on the soft grass and I saw the rider kind of charging at me. At first I stood still since I know my mother’s jumping horses to be quite touchy and easily startled. But we’re talking about one that was for sure used to being hit with sticks, probably daily. in this case, the rider was not quite in his right mind, obviously. “If a photographer is lying where I think he shouldn’t be, I have the right to go through him just to make my point.” So, when a horse is charging at you you don’t know how it will react, that’s why I waited for its last jump before rolling to my left. A hoof caught me in my foot but I was able to walk about 10-15 kilometres right after that to catch a train from a town nearby. The distance was greater than that but I hitch-hiked some of it. Fun times. And I remember almost the same time happening to a friend of mine one one of the previous years, in front of my eyes again. She was standing, though, and she was able to jump to her back safely. The thing is...those people have the mindset to hurt you for honoring their race with your divine photographer’s presence. Go figure...

^{"Time moves on. Only photographs of the old remain."}

PF: How hard is it to make a living with photography?

MD: Eh...A what? I have no idea. Still alive and shooting. You have highs and lows. I have not been very effective with managing my business. But I gained lots of experience and finally I can say some of that experience is also business related. It needs to be applied ASAP.

I think I am still in my Research stage. Since I started from scratch. Nothing. No knowledge, no equipment, no experience. And building some of that. Not only about the art and the craft, but about the trade.

I was recently in the stage where I learned that every train has its passengers. And I designed a lot of trains out of thin air. Time to evaluate my efforts and results. I know I would certainly want to keep doing workshops at cool locations. Experimental stage not over, though.

PF: What would you suggest upcoming photographers on "How to start with photography"?

MD: Take a short course. Even a free online one. Then get a cheap second hand DSLR because it still gives you lots of control. You need to get used to be in control of the camera and not the other way around. Find a mentor. It could be that friend of yours who would often invite you to roam together.

You will achieve things, you will learn what you lack in terms of equipment and after a while you will know what new camera you need. No such thing as buying one camera and one lens once and forgetting about it. If you forget about photography as a passion, then yes. But if you want to grow, cameras and lenses of choice will be changed like clothes and shoes.

PF: We would like to see one of your favorite photos and hear a little background story about it from you.

MD: Go to my very first post and you will find my favorite story. About the march of the bicycles which took me from Sofia in 2009 to Prague in 2011. And back again. And I have repeated the story in different contests at least once or twice. But let me find another one now…

The colony of cormorants was nesting on a group of trees above a swamp near the seashore. There was a grassy path around that swamp and it was not easy continuing by bicycle through that but we walked when we needed to, and dragged our bikes along. I discovered the trees near noon. I took some shots but I knew I wanted to get back at sunset as I did. So this became a planned session. It was years ago.

Just yesterday the Bulgarian Society for Protection of Birds published an article that authorities have cut down the nesting trees during you know which lock-down period. While the eggs were still unhatched. So the largest colony of cormorants on our territory was destroyed. What were you thinking, birds!? Go find some place wilder. Like in Romania which is less than ten kilometres away. Take responsibility for where you build your homes, duh...

^{"Same location - The new pier at Cape Shabla taking the place of that old one."}

PF: As last question we would like to know from you "What does photography mean to you"?

MD: You know, I give this as an exercise to the occasional student or workshop visitor. Even better with groups of people. I draw a circle and I ask them to brainstorm and write down whatever they can associate with photography.

The most important thing for me is...it’s a language in which stories can be told. It’s a strong language, suited for the modern world. It conveys much, quickly, and powerfully. Or it’s jibberish. Whatever you make of it.

PF: Manol, thank you so much for doing this with us! If people want to see more of your work outside of Hive, where can they find it?

MD: My pleasure! Thank you once more for your invitation!

Right now, Hive is the best place, although old content is not easy to find. If it were…

My other spaces are not maintained regularly at the moment. Not even my personal website. It’s there ,you can find some portfolio collections, some archives from events… All right, go there and see what you can find. I will work on improving the visitors’ experience later.

It is photoanthill.com

Cheers!

50% Rewards of this post will go to @manoldonchev / 5% to @peakd / 45 % to @Photofeed

Thanks for reading!

Photofeed