Official photographer for Second Layer is Marko Samec from SAMINO, my love. He is doing photography for more than a decade. He started out because of his interest towards visual arts when he was a kid. At the beginning, he was an amateur but through the years he wanted and searched for more. He invested his savings in professional gear, all his free time in researching photography, and after a while started doing photography professionally. I love his eye for photography (which some say is “something you have to be born with. It can be cultivated or honed, but you must have that “X” factor in the first place”). Sure, knowledge and gear are important because with better gear you can get better results if you know how to use it. But an eye, that indescribable feeling is even more important and you can’t buy it anywhere. What to frame and how, when, from which angle, with which lens. And Marko has all that.

Many professional photographers have that feeling. They need it in order to succeed in the flood of photographers and that feeling distinguishes them from “professional” photographers. The latter usually try to impress by looking like they are more. When they are on an event, they jump around with all of their gear (many times with a camera flash on, even when the photos would be better without it), and they don’t mind if they block everyone else’s view all the time. Others don’t know where to stand and look frightened.

But you hardly notice the best ones. When they work, they can’t smile to everyone all the time, and you might think this is arrogance but it is not – it is focus on the light, angles, and moments that need to be captured. When you get to know them, you see that they are really nice people. With some of them, you become friends. We experienced this with Matjaž Očko from House of M20, a great fashion and wedding photographer. We met at two weddings this year and he is a really nice guy. He even sent us this beautiful photos of us from one of the weddings. Thank you, Matjaž! 🙂

One more thing I want to mention when talking about photographers. I don’t like when people don’t give credit to their photos. Even the simple ones that you post on Facebook or Instagram. That really pisses me of. If somebody made a photo, it is nice to mention him or her with the photo. The photo didn’t just make itself – photographer needed to take the time to take a photo, to do post production. It’s his or her personal work. So, in the future please sign the photographers under their work. You will still get all the social media likes and comments and other attention but at least photographer will get some credit. They deserve it.

 

Photos by Matjaž Očko

HER
Dress from Asos
Body chain from Zara
Clutch bag from Accessorize

HIM
Suit from Zara
Tie from Zara
Shirt from Christian Berg
Watch from Pulsar