I am a visual story teller
My specialty is people-centered documentary photography. What I am interested in is people’s motivations, joy, sorrow, choices, lives. Essentially, I want to understand why people do what they do, and as an eyewitness, I want to report on this honestly and authentically. My mother tongue is photography, but occasionally I also make film and sound recordings, and amalgamate them into a multimedia production. I freely exploit the different genres, the purpose always being to “get the message through”. A friend of mine once said, there are people who shine in the darkness; I want to tell their stories. Because it is them who motivate both you and me to do good, to live up to our potential, to be happier.
Click on the image to see the winner series of Pictures Of the Year International "The postman who asked to work the slums”!
Click on the image to see the winner series “Cataracta” of the Pictures Of the Year International, USA, 2019!
Click on the image to see the winner series of the Hungarian Pictures Of the Year, 2018!
Then there are also some stories which simply have to be presented as they are. These are often difficult in human terms, mixed up, complicated, shocking, but we still have to talk about them, because we must not turn our heads away.
I know this from those people who shine in the darkness.
My working method is extremely simple.
Everyone knows Robert Capa’s statement, that “If your pictures are not good enough, you were not close enough”. Capa’s motto also applies to my “old-school” working method, though the ‘hajdu d’. style methodology was best summed up by a Romany woman living in the segregated part of Pécs, when we came face to face in a dark alley at midnight, and with wide eyes she yelled at me: “Jesus, you’re still taking photos here at this time??!!”
I constantly reiterate to myself and my university students, they should get immersed in subjects which really interest them. From there, they “only” need to put a lot of time and energy into the project, and it will be sure to work.
The photo was taken in 2012 in Baia Mare, Romania. Its title is “The girl with the red dress”. With this began a new period in my life, when my long term series were launched. I won the André Kertész Grand Prize for this series at that time, then the Pécsi József scholarship for the third time, and this set me on the path to start thinking in terms of film and multimedia.
The short film linked here is made together with my colleague Balázs Ivándi-Szabó, we worked on it for months as first time filmmakers, we won the Hégető Honorka Grand Prize in recognition of film/TV work, and the film was featured in international film festivals.
Click on the menu if you would like to know what I am currently working on.