Jakub Polomski is a self-taught landscape photographer from Poland. He specializes in mountain photography and aerial photos taken by drone. His portfolio is filled with beautiful photos from locations around the world, with a heavy dose of European landscapes. I recently had the opportunity to interview Jakub about his work, and you can read his responses below. You’ll also see several of his photos showcased throughout the interview.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started in photography.
I live in Cieszyn – a small town in the south of Poland. I am 32 years old. Twelve years ago I saw some pictures in an issue of National Geographic Magazine. They inspired me. I borrowed a camera from my friend and I have started my own adventure with this field of art (never before had I had my own camera, because I hadn’t been interested in photography). I have never had any “formal” training. I also didn’t learn photography in any school. I was uploading my photos onto many photo portals and I was reading feedback to them. These constructive critiques helped me to improve my skills.
What draws you to landscapes and nature?
I especially love mountains. When I am trekking in the mountains I feel great respect for nature. By taking pictures of the mountains I want to show how great they are, and how small human is in comparison to them. This is some kind of giving honor to the greatness of nature.
What advice do you have for photographers who want to get started with drone photography?
Photographing by drone in my opinion is more difficult. Mainly because you have unlimited in no way composition capabilities. The second difficult thing is that you have to focus not only on photographing, but also, and primarily on piloting drone safely, so stay focused.
What is the best advice you’ve ever received from another photographer?
Once I got this chart from someone. That was the best advice for me without saying a word when I realized it to be so true about photography. I was then just after “the HDR hole”.
What are the biggest challenges you face in your work as a traveling landscape photographer?
I think the biggest challenge in landscape photography is weather conditions. In most cases you cannot predict the weather, especially in the mountains or in locations like Patagonia, which is known for extreme conditions. It’s far different from taking pictures for example in a studio. Another issue is that when photographing landscapes you cannot take all the things you own. You have to prepare your backpack optimally because every kilogram matters if you go on your feet.
What locations do you plan to visit in 2018?
I would like to visit Iceland, and Argentina again. For sure I want to travel to Montenegro this year.
Do you have a dream location that you have not been to yet?
After visiting Patagonia and Iceland I don’t dream about more locations. These are my favorite connected with great memories.
What are some common mistakes that you see new photographers making?
They have no patience in taking pictures and making their pictures better. They want everything to happen immediately. Besides they rely too much on social media hunting for likes and making thousands of photos just to get more and more likes.
Aside from photography, what hobbies do you have, or what do you like to do for fun?
I am very interested in cinematography, not only watching but also making movies. I like snowboarding and winter sports.
Connect with Jakub
If you’d like to see more of Jakub’s work or get in touch with him, please use the links below:
All photos used in this post are © Jakub Polomski, used with permission.