Henrieta Haniskova Photographer

Photographs are like snowflakes - no two can ever be alike.  The expressions on peoples faces are like places seen in different seasons, or years down the passage of time.  Fractional, subtle deviations in position or lighting can dramatically alter the focal points of perception.  It's this incosistancy of all things that can be so captivating.  The precision and adaptive skill of photographer, Henrienta Haniskova is built upon the creative principal of this captivity - unique permanence."I like constant change," Haniskova explains.Ten years ago, Haniskova purchased her first camera - a silver OM 10, 35mm Olympus - with her first paycheck, and eagerly snapped images of her new home in Canada to send back to curious relatives in Slovakia.  Today she's building an impressive portfolio, with her old hobby clearly her profession, and her sights set on capturing new people and places to share with curious people well beyond her family.To better understand how she transformed from personal photo-jouranlist, to celebrated and still blossoming artist, Klublife asked Haniskova a series of related and unrelated questions.

Marc:  What is so appealing about photography?

Henrienta: I can talk about that for hours. For a workaholic like me, I will never run out of things to do. For my short attention span, I never do the same thing twice and if I have to, I will never do it exactly the same way - that's for sure. If you like physics, chemistry, technology, design, art or telling stories, than I say, do photography! I like being challenged in a number of different ways, and I find that this profession fulfills all of my needs to use my intellect, creativity, technical knowledge, people skills, and even my physical abilities. The best thing about it is that you can create your life to be pretty much anything you like it to be. There are so many aspects to photography, and there are no two photographers that will deliver the exact same image, given the same tools and the same setting. If you like working by yourself, you can shoot still life. If you love fashion, you can become a fashion photographer. If you feel strongly about human rights, you can travel and photograph people that live in some very intense conditions. If you love nature, you can shoot landscapes. So as you can see, your life can be just what you want it to be if you create the opportunities for yourself to make it just that.

Marc: Did you study photography formally - if so, where or with whom?

Henrienta: Formal photography training can only take you so far. I studied nursing; I learned to appreciate everyone; I heard a lot of stories - some sad and some happy - but even if I'd forgotten their stories, the peoples faces were still ingrained in my mind. I think that the face says a lot about a person's life. I studied fine art at the Toronto School of Art, which taught me how to look at things and see beauty in everything that surrounds us. I think it was a very important period in my life - there I first started thinking of photography more seriously. At TSA I did drawing, painting, and sculpture - and I am pretty good at all of those things. But when I started taking their photography courses, I realized that it was not just a fun hobby for me, it'd become my passion. My teacher (a great artist and a photographer), Simon Glass, was a big catalyst. He inspired and challenged me enough to make photography my main path. After that I studied part time at the Ryerson University and did their Still Photography studies. I learned a lot of technicalities. But the best education for me was, and still is, working with professional photographers and learning from them, on a job.

Photo of Corey by Henrieta Haniskova

Marc: Whom are your biggest inspirations - in terms of photography - either photographers, or people of other occupations / influences?

Henrienta: One person that I admire most, for their endless source of imagination and creativity, is Steven Klein. He brakes all the rules, and twists them to his idea of visual stimulation - it never ceases to amaze, shock or impress. Another is Czech photographer and artist, Veronika Bromova, for her ability to invoke emotions through her images, from the point of view of a woman - and I think that every woman can relate to (her photos) in one way or another. She opens up the doors to a woman's psyche in a visual way that is very emotional. Ami Vitale - who has the drive to travel long distances to find her subjects and capture them on film in their surroundings (where she is the alien) - has the ability to be the fly on the wall, and show the world (where most of us will never go experience life), so that we can get a taste of their reality.

Marc: To which locale would you most like to take your camera on a photographic journey?

Henrienta: My photographic journey of a choice at the moment would be Peru. I must see and walk the paths of the oldest civilization on earth - hopefully this winter!Marc: What's the strangest food you've ever eaten?Henrienta: Hmmm, I could say cow brains or frog legs… but to tell you the truth, I would eat those again. The strangest food that I ever tasted was on a hiking trip in the mountains in Slovakia  When I was 16, my cousin and I were running out of food, but we were having too much fun to go home, and the only food we had was oatmeal and mustard. For your own good, I will not go into any more details.