“Unintentionally, it became a part of my life and barely my main preoccupation.”
Bogdan Radenkovic (born 1989) is a contemporary photographer from Serbia.
He’s currently finishing with his medicine studies, but he learned a lot of things from a photographer who works in local museum, he attended some art university somewhere in Croatia.
Artist statement
“My main preoccupation is contemporary photography, I also lead a music project where I sing and guitars and synths.”
Interview with Bogdan Radenkovic
Bogdan, why did you become a photographer? And what does photography mean to you?
I got my first cam in ”99 – year of NATO bombing on Serbia, and camera was intended to distract my attention from war.
Unintentionally, it became a part of my life and barely my main preoccupation.
How would you describe your photographic language and creative process? How do you plan and execute a project? Both technically and conceptually?
Some of them I did with a plan, like the “Manufactured Landscapes” and “Interpersonal”.
I had idea in general how it will look when it’s done, but often I take a lot of photos intuitively, then try to figure out what led me to take them and try to discover a link between them.
Which photographer has inspired you most?
I was endlessly impressed when I discovered Ansel Adams, mainly for his stunning zone metering system, deadly stable compositions and his precision when it comes to light control.
Now I have a huge list of photographers I really admire, but Ansel was an initial impulse for me.
What’s your favorite inspirational quote about photography?
I didn’t have a clue how to answer that one so I checked my friend’s facebook profile, he is a definitely the most prolific photographer in our area – Nemanja Knezevic, also a treasure for quotes, here is the one I really dig:
“Project is dangerously close to assignment.”
“From the beginning there was no such thing as a ‘project’. I simply photographed things I found interesting and collected the pictures in boxes.
There were no exhibitions and no books, so there was really no need to end any project. There were ‘themes’ of course, but they were kept open, there was no need to finish them.
I sometimes miss that feeling. Nowadays, I feel a bit forced, mostly by myself, into this project thinking, which is a magazine or art world influence I guess, and I don’t like it. People keep asking ‘what are you working on now’ and ‘what your next project is’.
I hate those questions! Project is dangerously close to assignment.”
Gerry Johansson, 2013
What kind of camera and equipment do you use?
I was used to film cameras, but these days I’m completely digital.
I use Canon 5D mk2 with manual Carl Zeiss lenses. I’m so impressed with Zeiss that I sold all my Canon zoom lenses.
What’s your favorite website about photography?
I think that the most important milestone of online photography is Andy Adams’ Flakphoto. It’s literally the best photography resource I’ve stumbled on.
There are so many amazing photographers nowadays that can make you really frustrated.
What book about photography would you recommend?
“You can learn more from Hopper than from any photography book.”
I had Eggleston’s Chromes in my hands, wonderful one.
Also, not directly connected to photography, I often come back to Edward Hopper’s paintings; you can learn more from Hopper than from any photography book.
Which advice would you give someone who wants to get started with photography?
It’s more important to see what others do than to take a bunch of plain photos.
My younger sister is currently taking her first frames, and she drives me mad because she never thinks or analyzes the photos she took, only frantically takes them around.
