Marina Karpiy is a Ukrainian photographer, the hero of the film "Air", the wife of the leader of the Mgzavrebi group, Gigi Dedalamazishvili.
Marina told us about the profession of a photographer, about her favorite shot that remained only in memory, about being honest with herself and others, and also about how important it is to pursue your dream despite all stereotypes and boundaries. Marina listens to Mgzavrebi and Coldplay, watches films with Audrey Tautou and reads what Gigi advises her to do.
Each photographer has his own handwriting, unique taste.
The first acquaintance with the camera happened when I was four years old. It was then that I first picked up a Polaroid and felt the magic - because I could just press a button and in a few seconds get a “moment” in the picture.
Dad brought Polaroid from abroad. And then he talked about how important light is for photography and generally talked about different technical specifications which I tried very hard to remember.
Each photographer has his own handwriting, unique taste. Many people think that I only photograph people, but I have to admit that after a trip to Georgia, I liked shooting landscapes. I realized how organically people interact with the area in which they live. Here, for example, how can people with straight noses live in the mountains? That's right - no way. :) I'm joking, of course, but there is some kind of subtle connection in everything that I like to catch and realize.
Recently, people lack some directness, honesty. I'm not afraid to express my emotions. If I want to cry, I cry. If you want to laugh or scream, I do it. If you want to speak loudly in a cafe - why not? I am honest with myself and others - this is perhaps the peculiarity of my work.
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Recently, people lack some directness, honesty. I'm not afraid to express my emotions.
Every photographer should have a little psychologist. When they tell me on the set that it’s better to shoot “like this”, I still do it my way. But I will do it very carefully, inventing arguments in advance as a sign of my innocence. Maybe I'll "grab", but I'll create a beautiful, my own frame. Of course, there are situations when you want to stop and say: "People, don't make me nervous." But this happens very rarely. You know I never regret anything. After all, if something doesn’t work out for me, then I just didn’t want it enough.
My parents didn't mind me being a photographer, they just wanted me to have a full-time job, for example, in an international company.
Parents' doubts are a challenge for me. After all, it was thanks to this situation that I was able to prove not so much to my relatives as to myself that photography is my main profession. This was crucial moment in life, because then everyone saw how much I want to be a photographer.
I studied at the institute for exactly two weeks - and all the time in class I did nothing but photograph students. This was my protest. I showed with all my appearance that I did not want to study at the Faculty of International Relations, but simply wanted to photograph people.
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I am honest with myself and others - this is perhaps the peculiarity of my work.
It seems to me that there is an opinion among the people that a photographer is a person who runs after the bride and groom in a T-shirt with a print of the logo of his website or phone, and all the time he feels hungry because no one wants to feed him at the wedding. Today I showed my loved ones that a real photographer is a person for whom the wedding date is postponed only because there was no free time to shoot. I still think that I am being deceived when they say that a wedding in an old chateau on the Cote d'Azur is postponed by a few days due to my busy schedule. This is a great honor for me.
My dad rarely says anything or shows emotions about me. But his tears at the premiere of my film "Air" were something inexplicable. I didn't see him crying and would hardly have believed it if I hadn't been shown the photo. Daddy's tears - that I do not need any extra words. I understand everything.
When I bought my dream camera, the Nikon, I literally slept with it. This feeling reminded me of the joy of the first donated videos that my parents brought from Poland. I liked them so much that every night, when everyone was already dreaming, I went into the hallway, put them on and went to bed in them.
Every photographer should have a little psychologist.
I am always included in the “here and now” process and I really want to learn how to stop some moments. Here we are now sitting with you in a coffee shop, someone near the window is reading a newspaper, a barista is frothing milk, and a young guy is bringing out a beautiful cake, because the client has a birthday today. These are the moments I want to remember in photographs.
A good photo can be taken on mobile phone. It is not always necessary to have a backpack with photographic equipment with you, it is enough just to notice what is happening around.
I really regret that I can't draw. Because there are moments when my phone is dead, there is no camera, but there is such a beautiful shot, which, alas, remains only in memory. I remember when I flew out of Simferopol, I sat in the waiting room and watched the dawn outside the window. It was pouring heavily, when suddenly I saw a tired man with an orange plastic sword in a cool work overalls. He walked straight along the golden ratio towards the empty plane, looking at the dawn. My brain almost exploded from the picture I saw. Only now do I understand that I had to take a loudspeaker and say to the entire airport: "A person who has any photographic device, please come to exit number 5."
I studied at the institute for exactly two weeks - and all the time in class I did nothing but photograph students. This was my protest.
There are no laws in photography. A lot of legendary works were shot not according to the laws of composition. That is why I love this area so much. Full freedom! It is very important!
I would really like to shoot Vakhtang Kikabidze, because I deeply admire him. But I still do not have enough courage or, in the common people's way, "iron eggs" to make this dream come true. But I'm sure it's not far off.
I listen to Mgzavrebi. I love and adore Ukrainian music - Okean Elzy, Boombox.
My favorite band, of course, after Mgzavrebi, is Coldplay. I dream of going to their concert.
I'm such a pop girl - I won't say anything new. But, given that we don’t watch Ukrainian cinema much, I advise you to watch a film about the famous architect Sergei Makhno “The Life of Ideas”.
My favorite movie is Forrest Gump. I also like to review pictures with Audrey Tautou - "Amelie" and the film "Fatal Beauty".
The last book I read is White Nights by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. I'm ashamed to admit it, but I didn't read it in my time at school. By the way, my husband orders all the books for me - thanks to him for that.
And I advise all photographers to read the book by Alexander Lapin "Photography as".
I really like Tbilisi - I always feel at ease there. In this city, I could raise children, take them to school, and then go to my favorite cafe and eat Adjarian khachapuri. After lunch, eat khinkali or drink coffee on the roof overlooking Tbilisi.
I love Lviv very much — it is so cozy. It wants to walk and love.
There are a lot of plans that I can't talk about yet.
Mountains, khinkali, khinkali mountains, drinking songs and amazing people are waiting for us. But first, a brief briefing from photographer Marina Karpiy, who will lead you through the back streets of one of the most delicious countries on the planet Earth.
What to shoot?
1) Old Tbilisi photogenic at any time of the day and from any angle. Excellent panoramas are obtained from the top of Mtatsminda and at the walls of the Narikala fortress, which stands on a rock (a funicular goes to the first, and a cable car is laid to the second - and right above the old city).Marina Karpiy
It is necessary to catch the color on the streets of old Tbilisi: there are carved balconies-shushabandi, and creaky steps, and grapes on the walls - every frame is a postcard!
Let's go to Georgia in October!
2) Sighnaghi easily confused with an Italian town. Tiled houses stand on the slopes of the hill, and paved roads run down past them. The local architecture - all warm reds and yellows - looks great against the sky and green valleys around, so try to fit both the houses and the surroundings into the frame.
Marina Karpiy
3) A textbook perspective on Mtskheta- from the top of the mountain on which stands the monastery of Jvari. This place is not missed by any traveler. The road here is short, the monastery is very beautiful, and most importantly, an amazing view of the valley opens from here: far below, at the foot of the mountain, Aragvi and Kura merge and the old city is visible.
Marina Karpiy
When to go?
Any month is suitable for filming - even winter, but it is especially good in Georgia in autumn: the grapes and fruits are already ripe, and the summer heat and crowds of tourists have receded.In October 2018, Marina Karpiy, a talented photographer and Canon Ambassador, will lead a photo tour of the most beautiful corners of Georgia. It will be warm, beautiful, sincere and very tasty -
Talented Ukrainian photographer whose work can be looked at forever. Marina has a unique ability to convey in the photo not only the appearance of a person, but also the soul. Many people dream of getting her as a photographer at weddings and other events, but the tight schedule does not allow everyone to do this. Today, Marina has a lot of stunning wedding photo reports of Ukrainian celebrities on her account, and the handwriting of her work can be recognized even without knowing exactly who the author of the pictures is. Now Marina is raising her beautiful daughter Lizi together with her husband, the well-known Georgian musician Gigi Dedalamazishvili, the soloist of the MGVZAGREBI group.
On choosing a profession
At the age of 16, I realized that any literature or magazines that came into my hands, I flipped through, while paying attention exclusively to the pictures. And that, in principle, I perceive this world in pictures. One day I thought: if all this is so interesting to me, then maybe I can create it? After that, she completed all the courses that existed in Kyiv at that time, starting with the Kyiv School of Photography. During this year I understood what photography is, how it works, how to work with light, how to see the right angle and create a composition. I began to apply knowledge in practice and realized that I wanted to be a professional.
About the secret of success
I constantly say these banal things and repeat in all interviews. But for me, this is the truth: I believe that if you are doing what you love, then this is a way of your life that you do not accept as an ordinary job. Photography and the profession of a photographer is my life style and I can't imagine myself without it. And it seems to me that big success. And even if you don’t have any super achievements, you still enjoy what you do, respectively, you are still in the black.
About the difficulties in the work of the photographer
Of course, I would like to spend more time with my family. Return from the wedding not at 12 at night, but at 6 pm and have time to buy a child. Yes, and rather it's not a difficulty, it's a reality. You are simply ready to make these sacrifices in order to achieve results and profit, in the end. On the other hand, I really love weddings. And you always have to sacrifice something, for example, free time or summer vacation, as summer is wedding season.
About the first exhibition
My first exhibition was called hot.doggy. It was 2007, the exhibition was held at the Hudgraf Gallery and I was 17 years old. The story of the idea is as follows: I was given a dog, and all my life I dreamed about it. And I “broke”, I just went crazy from how great and cool it is to realize that you are now responsible for someone. After that, I began to notice that all my friends and their dogs are very similar. I wanted to convey this similarity of dogs and their owners with the help of photographic portraits.
About funny cases at work
There are actually a million of them. The most memorable was when I was told to go to the bride in the morning in the village of Vishenki and did not fully specify what area it was. I arrived in this village 15 minutes before the appointed time, but it turned out that there was a village with that name in the Kyiv region around 9. In general, I was on the other side of the city, 60 km from the bride, 15 minutes before the start of shooting. This, of course, never happened again, and now I always ask you to clarify the address. But such difficulties are beneficial and I perceive them as life lessons.
About how the shooting of Jamala's wedding went
It was just incredibly cool, and this is one of my favorite weddings. Previously, I did not know Jamala, we met at her wedding. I had certain expectations - after all, a popular personality, a star. I didn't think it would be so easy for her. She turned out to be a wonderful friend and the brightest person I know. I am a fan of her not only as a performer, but also as a person. Bekir (husband of singer Jamala - ed.) is also an amazing person, they found each other. Of course, for me it was a huge responsibility, because I was entrusted with capturing such an important event in their lives. By the way, I set my own record - I filmed a wedding that lasted 17 hours. It was a real Tatar wedding. The Tatars have a tradition: young people should dance with each guest, and if there are 100 guests, respectively, with each of them.
About popularity
About how the idea of the #phototurcarpy project came about
How the day starts and ends
My shooting day starts at 8 am. I have breakfast, get dressed and leave. I return late when my daughter and family are already asleep. After each shoot, I make sure to upload all the photos to my laptop: I can’t sleep until I see everything that I shot during the day.
Day off in the morning I spend with the child. At 12 Lisey has her lunch nap and while she sleeps I can work for about 3 hours. I select photos, edit and check my deadlines. Then my daughter wakes up and we come up with something to do, for example, take a walk, go to the nursery or jump on a trampoline. Then we return home, have dinner and I bathe her. This is our rule: when I'm at home, I always bathe her myself. I put the child to bed and I can continue to do my work.
About meeting my husband
The husband organized his first concert in Kyiv. I came for a walk with the girls, and met my wife (laughs). Then he took me to Tbilisi - I went there to celebrate New Year, and as a result did not leave for about a month. I remember my mother was very worried about this, she called all the time, worried and waited for me at home. By the way, now mom and husband are best friends.
How it all fits together
Does not work. But as for self-care, it still sometimes turns out to break out to dye your hair. My personal care is as follows: hair coloring - first of all. This is important for me, I can skip a visit to the beautician - but my roots should always be in order. Otherwise, I feel uncomfortable.
I also try to visit the beautician regularly, about once a month. The last visit was expensive, apparently, I'm getting old and more procedures are needed. I guess next time I won't be back in her office soon (laughs).
At home, I take care of my skin myself. All my skin care products are from the Institut Esthederm brand. It's quite an expensive brand, but it's the best cosmetics I've ever used.
From time to time I get a small rash on my chin, for this I have one very cool product that I apply locally - Lacrima brand clay. I wake up in the morning with a perfect face. This is a medical professional cosmetics and I like it very much.
Last but not least is hair care. My master advised me the La Biosthetique brand and I am satisfied - I have the entire care line of this brand. I also use Moroccan Oil hair mask.
About the features of self-care during the flight
The only thing I do in flight is keep my eyes moist with artificial tears since I wear optical lenses. I also try to just drink plenty of water on the plane. So to say, I moisturize the skin from the inside.
About how it turned out to get in shape after giving birth
I didn’t do anything for this, moreover, I left the hospital with a baby in my arms 2 kilograms less than I weighed before pregnancy. How it happened - I do not know. Probably the bottom line is that I worked, being pregnant, 3 times more than usual. I was so thin after giving birth that now I'm even thinking about getting pregnant again to lose weight (laughs). But this is, of course, a joke.
About your favorite cosmetics
I am a fan of BB creams. My favorite is Clarins BB Skin Detox Fluid. It fits perfectly, it is not visible on the skin. I also love this brand of concealer. Well, in general, I practically do not use cosmetics.
By the way, let me tell you about my recent discovery. In my life I did not know how and did not like to paint my eyes with shadows. Recently, my friend, Georgian makeup artist Yana Bendeliani, applied Armani liquid eyeshadows in 11 shades on my eyelids, which cost all the money in the world and I had to buy them! They are just very comfortable to wear. All you need is just to apply a small amount of shadows on your fingers and then randomly transfer them to the closed eyelid. And you are beautiful!
I don't use mascara, I wear contact lenses and I have very sensitive eyes. There is only one way out: eyelash curlers. If I remember to do this in the morning, then I have beautiful eyelashes all day long.
How to pamper yourself on your day off
Of course, I could now say that I pamper myself with spa trips, but no. On my day off, I try to spend all the time with my child. Well, or, for example, as today - I can go out to dye my hair.
