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Interview of Victor Zamanski

Could you introduce yourself a little, talk a bit about your background?

I was born in 1970 in the former USSR. In 1990 I moved to Israel where I still live, work as a software engineer in a big worldwide company for living. I started to take pictures as a sort of hobby, but eventually it became much more than that – today it’s a way of self expression, creativity and even therapy …

When, how and why did you begin to make photography?

I started it as a kid with an ancient soviet Zorky 1 camera that I received from my father, continued then with Zenit 11. As many of us enjoyed very much taking pictures of relatives and friends, then developing the pictures in a home dark room. That moment of a black-and-white image revealing itself in the red light is still magic for me (although today it’s been quite a while I had this experience …).

What do you like in this form of expression?

I like the process and the result, I like to produce images that reflect my own feelings, vision and philosophy, to show the beauty as I define and understand it. I like the interaction with people, each time it’s different stories behind different personalities that I wouldn’t otherwise meet if not the photography.

What are the themes that you like to photograph?

Mostly it’s portraits and nudes, “nude portraits” – as an opposite to “erotic” nudes -, an attempt to convey a real, true feeling of the portrayed person. The face and the body are an endless source of feelings and emotions, beauty and expressions.

What are you looking to share through your photography?

An expression of the human beauty – inner and outer -, sensuality, human vulnerability, an expression of the true person’s feeling or state of mind through the body language.

What is your idea of sensuality?

Talking about the photography it’s an image of a person that appeals to human senses, rather than to the brain, an attempt to express feelings rather than “thoughts” or “ideas”. It can be a portrait, a nude, or even a fragment of a person’s shadow …

What photographers fascinate and / or inspire you?

Jeanloup Sieff, Christian Coigny, Dmitry Kuklin, Ilya Lis … and many others.

How do you prepare a session of shooting?

I talk to my model(s), trying to establish a good rapport with them before the session. In general, the interaction with the model is the most important part of any session.

What (s) camera (s) do you use ?

Canon DSLRs and an array of Canon prime lenses.

What (s) techniques do you prefer?

I prefer working in studio using both available (big window) and artificial lighting. Usually I try to keep the lighting scheme very simple, one source of lighting (a window/speedlite), very few props, a simple background. The major effort should be put into the interaction with the model.

How and why did your photography changed?

The most prominent change was after the course of portrait photography by Ilya Lis I took last year. It changed the way I took photographs today as well as the way I see the photography in general.

What brings you the internet media?

Obviously it’s communication and exposure, both of my works to other people and of the work of other photographers to myself.

What do you expect from a website like Sensual Photography?

Great site, a wonderful collection of excellent works of outstanding authors, a source of inspiration and beauty. It would be nice not to limit the works to feminine beauty only, I’d like to see male portraits and nudes as well as couples or groups.

What are your plans?

My plans are simple, to continue to take pictures that I like, to enjoy both the processes and the results. In particular I’d very like to try out cyanotype and other old processes.

What would you add?

Peace and love to everybody … might sound banal and well worn but still very actual today… everywhere …