About Bara And Her Portfolio
Bara came to Ireland from the Czech Republic in 2006 to work as an au-pair. She stayed with a lovely Irish family near Tipperary taking care of their twin boys. After some time, she left and moved to Waterford City. Initially she worked in a meat factory but wanted to improve her English and so she went to study Food and Beverage Skills and started working in a hotel.
After some time working as a waitress, because Bara had previously studied tourism in the Czech Republic, she decided to return to college full time while still working at the hotel. In 2008, she graduated with a QQI Level 5 in Tourism and Front Office Skills qualification from the Waterford College of Further Education.
While she enjoyed working at the hotel, her true passion was photography. She would always look through magazines and old photographs, looking for the stories they told and wishing to be able to capture some as well. During her stay in Ireland, she met and married the man of her dreams and, coincidentally, had twin boys herself and later on another baby boy. With a small compact camera, she began taking photos of her children growing up, but she wanted to do more. She made the decision to return to college to receive professional qualifications in both QQI Level 6 in Advanced Photography and QQI Level 5 in Digital Marketing. She invested in a DSLR camera and hasn’t looked back since!
After receiving her professional qualifications in 2011, Bara opened her own photography studio. She has spent years perfecting her skills and has experience working with babies, children and families. In the past few years, she has specialised in women’s portraiture and professional headshots. Bara became known as a ‘daylight photographer’ as she enjoys the beautiful soft images that natural light provides. Her photo sessions were special occasions with clients enjoying hair and makeup styling in a relaxed atmosphere. She produced portraits for life and she loved every minute of creating them. Bara was nominated for Network Ireland Businesswomen of the Year and has received multiple awards from the Irish Professional Photography and Videographers Association for her portraits.
Bara also loves to give back, and in 2016 she and videographer Jan Lukac—in association with the South Eastern Cancer Foundation, Solas Centre in Waterford—volunteered to create an awareness project featuring a short documentary and 2016 calendar. The project featured portraits and stories of Solas Centre clients whose lives had been affected by cancer. Participants enjoyed a fabulous photoshoot day at Waterford Castle, given a glamorous experience with hair, make-up, and jewellery provided, and treated like royalty for the project launch a few months later. It gave them an opportunity to share their experiences and provide hope and inspiration for others who might also struggle with the challenges cancer poses. Launch night raised much-needed funds for the organisation and TG4 also recorded a television piece about the event. To see the documentary, click here.
In 2020, due to the Covid pandemic and a subsequent house move, Bara unfortunately had to close her studio. Because Bara loves sharing her photography skills and knowledge, she went on to get a QQI Level 6 Special Purpose Award in Training & Development allowing her to start teaching.
Now Bara offers private and group courses for photography enthusiasts and businesses. With over ten years’ experience running a photography studio, she knows how best businesses can promote themselves using photos and videos. In her ‘Photography Skills For Your Business’ Course, she teaches the importance of visual presence, how to easily create content, and how to stand out and attract the right clients.
The ‘DSLR Photography Course for Beginners‘ course aims to help participants on the journey of discovering the magic of photography, learning how to use their camera and seeing opportunities in every moment.
To Bara, photographs are life’s moments frozen to treasure forever. Portraits capture the essence and inner beauty of a person, in which stories can be told for many years to come. They are proof of each person’s existence and uniqueness.