I have been getting a lot of e-mails and messages with similar questions recently, so I thought I'd do a FAQ list. I hope it'll be of a use for some of you and please let me know if there is anything you'd like me to add. I'll have it as a page in the pages section so that you can look it up anytime!
FAQ
Life
What is
your name?
This is
just to clarify that my name starts with an “I” (as in ice-cream) , not an “L”.
I don’t mind it too much, but it’s way nicer to have my name spelled correctly
in all the messages and e-mails I get. So here it is, my name is Ieva and not
Leva.
Where/what
do you study now?
I study at
the London College of Communication, BA (Hons) Graphic and Media Design.
What is
CRS?
CRS stands
for “Camp Rising Sun” and it is an international leadership summer camp I have
attended two times as a representative of Lithuania and that has changed and
influenced my life a lot.
Why/where
did you study in Italy?
I studied
at the United World College Adriatic, one of the UWC movement schools. I won a
scholarship in 2009 and went there as a representative of Lithuania. Check the
UWC Lithuania website for more info.
How do you
manage do make so many things?
Time
management. Procrastination disease is known for everyone, but it is possible
to plan your life and make yourself do things. I still don‘t understand how I
managed to survive 6 years of art school along with the most difficult years at
school and also making crafts, taking photos and learning Japanese all at the
same time. But small tips would be – use every minute. Make lists. Think of
little awards for yourself once the task is finished. Never do one thing until
it gets boring. Listen to advices and try to improve. Try, try and try once
more. Things go much smoothier when you have the skills.
Why do you
like Asia so much?
A lot of
people don‘t really understand why I am so obsessed with Asia. Well, the simple
answer is that I find all the pieces of myself I cannot find in my own cultural
surroundings. I love their joyful culture, their artistic culture, their music.
Another
side of all this matter is my own personal story. I was very sick 5 years ago,
with a disease that destroyed my self-confidence completely, as well as took
away most of my friends and all that planned life I had before. Slowly
recovering I found myself in need of something new, something I could work-on
constantly and maybe find some new interesting aspects in life. That‘s when I
started learning Japanese, got involved with the Asia/Japan lover community in
Lithuania, found some amazing and true friends and basically had my life
rebuilt from a scratch. Therefore, what for some people might look as a weird
obsessions, for me is a base of my current life and of what I am now.
How did you
learn Japanese? Is it hard?
I am
self-taught (and I'm not really good anymore, but anyway). It was a little difficult in the beginning, but mostly because I
was really upset with the fact that I lived in a small town with no
opportunities to study Japanese with a teacher. I think this made me even more
persistent though... I studied with simple textbooks I got from the Internet,
later listening to music and watching movies. My very first experience of
actually speaking Japanese was an interview at the Japanese Embassy... It
really took a lot of courage, but once you overcome the fear barrier, learning
a language is much easier. I never managed to get that with my Italian though,
haha.
Have you
been to Japan? How did you travel there?
Yes, I went
there in the summer 2010. I managed to save up some money from making and
selling my handmade accessories in various street markets, of course my parents
helped me too, but it took me around 3-4 years to finally be able to fulfil my
biggest dream. I planned the trip myself, stayed mostly with my friends from
the college and camp, as well as a lot of couchsurfers. I travelled alone most
of the time too. The planning took me a very long time, but it was definitely
worth it!
How do you
manage to maintain so many accounts everywhere?
I do not
use all the accounts all the time. My most active ones are my blog, my twitter,
my facebook and both of my tumblrs. The others I update just time to time. But
a clever thing to do is to link the different accounts. Twitter can be linked
to almost anything and would help you spread the news about the new updates in
the other websites, such as facebook or tumblr.
What other
hobbies do you have?
I‘m very
much into literature, juggling, yoga, I like cycling and I also love the sea.
Your life
seems to be so awesome/fun/amazing.
I get a lot
of messages like that. I know that it might look as if I don‘t do anything but go
around travelling to such awesome places like Japan or living in Italy on the
coast of the beautiful Adriatic sea. First of all, I do not post any negative
things on my blog. Everyone has their ups and downs, but I don‘t think that
everything has to be public. My blog is for sharing my happy moments with the
others and not bothering them with my problems. Another thing is that I do work
a lot. Not always as much as I‘d like to, but I really try to do my best. Apart
from my wonderful family, I don‘t think that I got anything for granted.
Photography
Where have
you learnt photography?
I am
self-taught. I have been to some photography events/camps where I got some
advices regarding my photos, but honestly, nothing is better than simply a lot
of practise. Go out, experiment, change settings, learn from your favourite
photographers. As for the composition skills, I think this is what one has to
be born with, but 6 years of Art school might have formed a base for me.
What
equipment do you use?
I use Canon
EOS 400D with Canon Ultrasonic 28-135mm Lens, Canon EF 50mm Lens , Canon
Speedlite 430 EXII external flash and a simple reflector. I also have a Bamboo
tablet. My laptop is a simple Dell and so I screw up all of my photos because
the monitor is not colour calibrated *sad laughter*
What
software do you use?
I use Adobe
Photoshop CS5, Adobe Bridge for selecting the images and usually Lightroom for
editing RAW images. Yes, I always shoot in RAW, unless the pictures are just
for keeping the information, e.g. texts.
How do you
adjust the colours/tone, etc.?
I use PS5,
as I mentioned before. I usually play with Curves, but in this stage the
picture should already be edited in RAW. There is no rule or anything, the best
is to try and find your own way.
How do you
find models/designers, etc.?
Some of my
models are my friends or relatives, but I do write to random people on facebook
or other websites if I think that their features are what I want for the
photoshoot. I have found many models simply by browsing photos on facebook. I
also use ModelMayhem when searching for models abroad. Stopping people on the
street is also a good way. Just don‘t be afraid, most people feel really happy
to have pictures of them taken.
How do you
get your pictures published?
I haven‘t
had that many photos of mine published, but the way I do it is again, write to
people. I have written countless amount of e-mails and messages to random
people – models, artists, designers, publishers. Most of them won‘t reply, but
the ones that do usually have something to offer. Some others might not reply
at that time, but remember you later. It is all about being seen and
recognised.
Can I ask
for advice on my portfolio/photography?
Yes, of
course. I try to answer every single message I get, even though it has become a
little difficult recently since I have quite a few personal and uni projects I
have to be working on and most of my friends are all over the world and I
really want to keep in touch with all of them. In any case, I'm not an expert and it would only be my personal opinion...but if you're happy with that, I'd be glad to help!
What is “I
dream here too”?
‘I dream
here too’ is my new 365 photography project about people and their dreams. Read
more here and visit the project’s tumblr here.
Art/Crafts
Do you sell
your works?
Yes, I do.
My works are available at the Ameli boutique, you can also drop me a line
anytime for commissions or works that you want to buy. I used to sell things at
Etsy, but it is inactive now.
What materials
do you use?
I mainly
use beads, leather, fimo clay, feathers, metal details, fabric, etc.
Where do
you get your materials?
My mum buys
most of the things in various craft shops, since I‘m away all the time in
different countries...but I also use a lot of recycled materials or reuse old
clothes, shoes, etc.
Where have
you learnt making things?
My mum has
taught me how to crochet and knit, but the other things came with practise. I
am totally horrified when I see my own designs from a few years back, but oh
well, at least I‘ve changed for the better.
How long
does it take to make accessories?
It really
depends. Some earrings might take 15 minutes to make, some of the beaded works
take the whole day or two. It also takes longer when I experiment with new
shapes and constructions.
Where do
you get your ideas?
I observe
the surroundings. The list of my inspirations can also be found here.
