The Aesthetic of Adventure: Kristjan Stepančič’s Photography World

I am Kristjan, a visual storyteller from Slovenia, capturing lifestyles, landscapes and cars of our world. My journey started because I wanted to express my creativity somehow.

Picking up a camera felt organic because I wanted to document my travels, the fun stuff we did with my friends and all the beauty I saw, so I would say the outdoor activities were my first inspiration. My journey has drastically evolved since then, as I can happily say this is my job now, and the creative growth is very much seen over the years.

I had this idea in my mind for a long time, but as a lot of elements had to be in place for it to turn out how I wanted it and because there is not so much snow in Slovenia, I knew it would be difficult. We went out to explore with the jeep a few times in the past, but the conditions and the locations were never good enough. That winter, we got a really nice package of snow early in the season, and we randomly drove out to go see the surrounding forests.

Luckily, I took my drone with me as there was just enough snow on the trees but not too much on the path, so it could pop out of the whiteness. The evening blue light was soft and created a magical atmosphere - all it needed was an extra element to really showcase the scale and to make the image more interesting. The jeep's headlights were perfect for the job, and one of my favourite images to date was created.

Winning this award gives me extra motivation to push forward, go explore the world and just be proud of the progress I have made so far.

This is usually a pretty difficult task and depends a lot on the competition itself, as each one is usually different. But I think every photographer has a few captures in their mind all the time, that are special to them and that are always capable of winning something.

For me, this is one of those images - it's composed well, the light is beautiful, and it has a really interesting subject. I go with my gut and see what it brings.

The want to document my activities and travels with family and friends. As I mentioned, I've always been a creative person, but never really knew in what way I wanted to express that. A camera did that for me, and I fell in love with photography and videography.

That is a difficult one to pick, as I love to explore all types and not get bored with just one. But if I had to pick just one, it would probably be landscape photography, because there is so much to see and explore and because it is sort of the reason I picked up a camera.

My go-to setup now is a Sony Alpha A7III camera body paired with a 35mm 1.2 lens, 100-400mm lens and 28-75mm lens, a drone and a film camera. This way I can capture a variety of wide, middle and tele shots, get unique perspectives with the drone and all of that photo + video. It makes sense for travels and also for my projects, as I combine photo and video a lot. I'm currently looking into buying a new camera. My favourite thing would probably be the 35mm lens, because of its quality and look, but I do love the drones as well.

I'd want my images to make them feel the need to go out and explore the places they see in my photographs, or just inspire them to go outdoors.

Getting all the conditions to click. I needed the perfect amount of snow - just enough to cover the trees, but not too much, in order that the road was clean for the contrast, and to drive there, the weather had to be nice, and I had to shoot it in the short span of blue hour.

I don't think there is a specific place, as too many are close to my heart. But a subject I think would be a human, no one specific, just anyone going about their life in a cool place or doing something really interesting that I would love to capture. Pretty general, but I don't really have a more detailed one right now.

It's the photographers/videographers I look up to and the world itself, as it constantly inspires me to go around.

Don't give up participating in photography contests too quickly, because your work might get picked the one time you least expect it. I participated in a fair number of contests in the last years and many times unsuccessfully, but I keep on trying because I know I have quality work to show and that someone will recognise that.

I would advise them to try and stand out with their work as much as they can, check the categories and everything else thoroughly, so they know which work would be the best fit, mostly stick to their gut or if you need help speak to someone credible and most importantly, keep creating!

Don't worry about having the best gear, but rather put your energy into creating, failing, trying again, seeing what works and what doesn't, etc. It's much more important to invest in yourself and your skills, there's always a possibility to rent gear if you desperately need it for something.

They play a big part. I really enjoy putting that extra personal touch on my work, editing the content in a way that I see it, want it and be recognised by it. I give it my vision, but I always try to maintain a realistic look.

I haven't used it that much yet, but I see it being really helpful to speed up your workflow and get rid of doing the not-so-important things. I do think human creativity will always be needed and that AI can't just replace it.

I'd want to photograph Greenland. It has been on my bucket list for a while, and I'm waiting for the right opportunity to arise.