Photographer Peter Kolejak was born and raised in northern Slovakia. While he has always had an appreciation for the arts, he only discovered his passion for photography in 2018 when he took a break from his career and left Slovakia to live in New Zealand for the year. During this time, he quickly fell in love with the diverse and breathtaking landscape of the country. Wanting to capture memories and the beauty of New Zealand he purchased a very basic camera. Not knowing a lot about the intricacies of the art form, Peter took to You Tube and books to learn the foundations of photography. Captivated by what he was learning he decided to fully immerse himself in his new world.
Photography wise New Zealand was a dream coming true for emerging photographer. From the exotic fauna and flora to the endemic landscape, Peter had a never ending choice of subject matter. In this beautiful country, within a two-hour drive, one could photograph volcanoes, hot pools, geysers, forests, caves, fjords, glaciers, mountains, rivers, lakes, waterfalls, and seascapes. For this novice photographer, he found more than just a passion for photography. Being out and surrounded by nature brought Peter immense joy and inner peace – essentially it became a meditative experience.
Wanting to explore his new found passion, Peter moved to Western Canada in 2019, where he could further develop his photography skills. Struck by the beauty of the Canadian Rockies, Peter spent the next two years focussing on this geographical area. Much of his work from this time captures time spent at the glacier lakes and the incredible views from mountain summits.
Loving the challenge of new subject matter, Peter expanded his portfolio to include breathtaking city scenes. From a narrative standpoint Peter is always considering the message behind his work. Conversely, from a technical perspective he is always looking to get absorbing subject, interesting composition and that special light into one frame. Peter describes it best as he shares that in the moment of witnessing and capturing the beauty and power of nature one finds awe, humility, calmness – one finds inner peace.
In 2021 Peter returned to Slovakia, where he currently is photographing the stunning scenery of his homeland. Still fascinated by the locales he has visited to date, he plans on visiting and photographing more of the Alps and the northern parts of Europe, especially Iceland and Norway.
Naughty 9ine Fast Facts with Peter Kolejak
I have been creating… since 2018 when I bought my first camera and discovered landscape
photography.
It takes me… a few hours to a few months to create a piece.
When creating my go to drink is... white wine.
My play list when creating includes… mostly electronic music from various artists .
One famous person I would love to meet for dinner… would be Trevor Noah.
I am currently binge watching… “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction” with David Letterman.
The last book I read is… “Prisoners of Geography” from Tim Marshall.
Outside of the arts, my interests and passions include… hiking, travelling, jogging, music, books, and videogames.
My go to comfort food is… chocolate.
