As a full-time architectural and hospitality photographer, I don't often get the chance to shoot for fun in the locations I love. But summer vacations are the perfect time for me to relax—no busy schedules, client briefs, or deadlines to chase. So, I decided to travel back home to Slovenia, a place where photography is a pure delight. I spent most of August just driving around and exploring select parts of the country with my trusty Fujifilm GFX100 II, two lenses—a Fujinon GF20-35 and a GF 45-100—and a Nisi JetMag PRO filter kit. CPL filter is what I used on 99% of my shots. That's it! Nice, portable, and light camera kit. These two lenses covered most of the range I needed for landscapes and the occasional townscapes. I did wish for a longer focal length sometimes; the GF 100-200 lens would've been perfect for getting a bit closer to distant subjects. Maybe next time.
I left Slovenia at the age of 23, when it was still Yugoslavia, and honestly, I didn't know it very well back then. I really only knew my hometown and the Primorska region, where I spent my summers as a kid visiting my grandparents. Plus, I wasn't a photographer then, so there was no "pressure" to discover and shoot new places. This time, however, I decided to explore the south of the country, and one spot in particular caught my eye: the mysterious, intermittent, and hauntingly beautiful Cerknica Lake (Cerkniško jezero).
Here’s what Wikipedia says about the lake's intermittency: "The lake, which under ordinary conditions has an area of about 26 km² (10 sq mi) and a mean depth of 6.1 m (20 ft), communicates through a number of openings with a series of subterranean reservoirs or caverns, some of which are above the lake level in the surrounding hills. In the summer, when the rainfall is slight, the lake is completely drained into the reservoirs lying below its level, and its bed is speedily covered with rich vegetation. With the returning heavy rains in autumn, the surrounding higher reservoirs are filled and discharge suddenly through the subterranean passages into the lake, so that the latter very rapidly regains its ordinary volume and may even inundate the surrounding country. The changes in level are, however, very irregular. Sometimes the lake does not disappear for several years, and it can remain dry for over a year, as it did in 1834–35. It is rich in fish, which disappear and return with the water." Fascinating, right?
The fields of water mint stole the show, their sweet, minty scent drifting through the warm afternoon air.
I found the lake about half full of water, and it was an unbelievable green wherever you looked, just bursting with plant and animal life. There were many small boats and people fishing, and swans just chilling. The air was saturated with the fragrant aroma of water mint (Mentha aquatica), which smells like a mix of peppermint and vanilla and grows abundantly around the lake. The scenery was bathing in golden and glowing light; the air was balmy and buzzing with the sound of bees collecting honey. It felt like walking inside of dream. I spent two, maybe three hours exploring its surroundings, most of it was spent finding the right spots. I had no plan, no specific shots in mind. I just drove, hiked, and shot what I saw along the way. What an amazing day. I hope that you will enjoy this gallery. Leave your comments and say hi!
