Two Worlds, One Vision: Mountains, City, Black & White

Could you start by introducing yourself, and which interests or creative activities shape your life beyond photography, such as hobbies, sports, music, dance, or the arts?
My name is Mateusz Kuca. I am from Poland and currently based in Kraków. My creative work is entirely focused on photography — I don’t pursue other forms of artistic expression. Of course, life is not only about photography, and from time to time I need to recharge. I usually do that during long, solitary walks — most often in the mountains, but not only. Movement, contact with nature, and long routes help me slow down, organise my thoughts, and often become a source of photographic inspiration.

How did your interest in photography begin, and what first drew you to it?
When people ask me how it all began, I always say: everything started in the mountains. That is where my first photographs were made, where I first felt fascination with light, and where I realised that a frame can capture more than just a view. I return there whenever the world becomes too loud —there is a certain simplicity in that rawness that brings clarity and helps me look at things more attentively.

In what way has the camera become a tool for documenting your everyday life, the streets you walk and your travels?
In my life, travel came first. Then came the desire to share the beauty I was experiencing —moments that were difficult to put into words. The camera appeared naturally, as a way to preserve those moments and share them with others. Over time, photography stopped being only a record of special places and became a way of looking at everyday life. I began to reach for the camera more and more often on city streets, in ordinary situations and brief moments between one point of the day and another. Today, the camera accompanies me both while travelling and in daily life —it helps me observe the world more attentively and build my own visual narrative from those observations.

What led you to focus more deliberately on street photography as your main photographic approach?
For a long time, the natural environment of my photography was the mountains —that is where I learned to notice light and composition. Over time, however, I became increasingly drawn to what happens closer to me, here and now, in the everyday rhythm of the city. The street turned out to be a space full of subtle moments, short stories, and contrasts that happen right in front of us but often go unnoticed. It is a less “controlled,” more intuitive form of photography — one that requires attentiveness, patience, and readiness for what may happen in a split second. I think it was this unpredictability that made the street my main photographic direction.

What inspires your work?
I am inspired by two very different worlds: the mountains and the city. In the mountains, I find silence, rawness, and space, which teach me to look more slowly and attentively — it is where my thoughts become ordered and the need for simplicity in the image is born. The city, on the other hand, offers a completely different energy — the rhythm of the streets, chance encounters, fleeting moments between people, light, and shadow. These two worlds are very different, yet they complement each other and shape the way I photograph today — balancing between silence and chaos, space and detail.

When you walk the streets with a camera in hand, what are you actively looking for, in terms of moments, light, gestures, or atmosphere?
When I walk the streets with a camera, I am not looking for one specific thing. I try to stay attentive towhat is happening here and now. Most often, I am interested in the moment when light, space, and human presence come together to create a brief, unrepeatable situation. I react intuitively — I don’t stage scenes; I allow the city to “compose the frame” on its own.

What motivated your decision to choose the OM System OM-3?
What led me to choose the OM System OM-3 was primarily its mobility. In street photography, I want the camera not to become a barrier between me and the situation — it should be fast, light, and discreet. I often hike with a camera for many hours, so its mobility and low weight are crucial to me. Another important aspect is weather resistance. Both in the mountains and in the city, I enjoy photographing in challenging conditions — fog, rain, snow. I expect reliability from my equipment regardless of weather or terrain, and that is exactly what the OM-3 gives me. Thanks to that, I can focus on observation and framing instead of worrying about the gear.

Which lenses do you typically use with your OM-3?
My current core lens kit consists of the M.Zuiko 7–14mm F2.8 PRO and the M.Zuiko 40–150mmF2.8 PRO. These two lenses give me great freedom of work, both in the mountains and in the city, from wide frames to more selective, isolated scenes. At the same time, I am testing the M.Zuiko Digital ED12mm F2.0 prime lens, which forces a different, more conscious way of thinking about framing and distance to the subject. Nevertheless, the vast majority of my photographs are made with zoom lenses — I value them for their flexibility and the ability to react quickly to changing situations in the field.

How do you approach the choice between zoom lenses and prime lenses in your work?
I approach the choice in a very practical and intuitive way. Zoom lenses are my main working tools because they provide flexibility and allow me to react quickly to changing situations — especially in the city and while travelling, where everything happens dynamically and unpredictably. Thanks to them, I can focus on observation and the moment rather than constantly changing position or equipment. I treat prime lenses more as a conscious choice for working at a slower pace. They require greater discipline in framing and movement in space, which can be very refreshing and creatively stimulating. I don’t see this as a conflict — rather, as two different working modes: one more reactive and documentary, the other more focused and contemplative. Depending on the subject and my mindset, I choose what better suits the story I want to tell.

What do you see as the main advantages and disadvantages of the OM-3 for the type of photography you practise?
The main advantages of the OM-3 in my work are its mobility, discretion, and resistance to difficult conditions. I photograph both in the city and in the field, often in rain, snow, and low temperatures, so weather sealing and reliability are extremely important to me. Thanks to its compact size, the camera does not attract attention on the street, and its low weight allows me to hike for many hours without fatigue. On the other hand, as with any compact system, the smaller body and sensor involve certain compromises. One has to be aware of this and learn to work with the camera more consciously. For me, however, the benefits of mobility and reliability in the field clearly outweigh these limitations.

How important is the Micro Four Thirds system in keeping your camera bag light enough for travel, without compromising image quality?
The Micro Four Thirds system is crucial to me because of the overall mobility of the kit. A lighter body and smaller lenses mean that the camera bag does not become a burden but something that naturally accompanies me on trips and long hikes. Thanks to that, I don’t have to choose between comfort and the ability to photograph — I can carry gear that I actually use in the field. At the same time, the image quality offered by the Micro Four Thirds system is fully sufficient for the kind of photography I practise — both in the city and in the mountains. This balance between kit weight and image quality is the ideal solution for me and allows me to work freely, without the feeling that I am sacrificing something.

Which software do you use to organise your image library and to post-process your photographs?
For browsing and initial image selection, I use OM Workspace — it is a convenient tool for organising my material and making the first edit. For post-processing, I work in Adobe Lightroom, where I refine the final look of the images. This division of workflow allows me to separate the calm selection stage from the conscious work on the image, making the whole process more structured and efficient.

Why do you tend to favour high-contrast black and white in your work?
High-contrast black and white allows me to simplify the image and focus on what is most important tome in photography: light, form, and content. Colour often distracts and imposes an interpretation of the scene, while black and white makes it easier to bring out structure, rhythm, and tension betweenlight and dark areas of the frame. In street photography, black and white helps detach the image fromthe literalness of place and time — the scene becomes more universal, and small gestures or moments gain strength. For me, it is a way of telling simple stories in a more raw and timeless form.

Could you briefly describe your post-processing workflow, including any presets you use?
My post-processing workflow is based mainly on the basic tools in Adobe Lightroom: Basic, Tone Curve, B&W Mixer, and simple masking and local adjustments. I try to get the exposure right in- camera so that I don’t have to spend long hours in front of the computer