All images by Tibor Simon. Used with permission.

“I thought a lot about how to take different, more interesting photos with a long shutter speed,” says Photographer Tibor Simon. “I once walked in a city when I remembered what it would be like if it wasn’t the subject moving during the exposure, it was me. I took some test shots as I moved and found the result interesting.” Tibor has some incredibly unique black and white photography that reminds us of drawings. But when you find out what he does to create these, you’ll be even more surprised.

The Essential Photography Gear of Tibor Simon

Nikon D4s

Nikon D850

Nikon 24mm f1.4

Nikon 60mm f2.8

Nikon 85mm f1.8

Irix 150mm f2.8

Tibor says:

“I live in Hungary and am 55 years old.

I shoot with Nikon equipment, especially I use a D4s camera because it is robust, weatherproof and extremely versatile. I recently bought a Nikon D850 camera, I’m still familiar with it, I have to get used to it, its lighter weight.

Over the years, I have used a wide variety of lenses, typically primary lenses that better meet my needs. My favorite lens is the Nikkor f1.4 / 24mm, which I have been using for 8 years due to its extremely high brightness, low depth of field, and excellent resolution. Due to its natural perspective, I also often use Nikkor 1.4 / 50 lenses. I have a portrait lens, Nikkor 1.8 / 85mm. I take a lot of macro photos with Nikkor 2.8 / 60mm and Irix 2.8 / 150mm lenses.

I don’t like to take a lot of lenses with me for photography. While that limits the possibilities, I don’t want to be able to photograph anything I see. Often, I select a lens, put it on the camera, and choose a subject for the lens’s field of view. This is always a big challenge.

I use B + W and Hoya filters, the stand, and the ball head are Benro type. For the D4s body, I use a Sirui L console for easier mounting. When I’m cycling in nature, I usually take photos with a cell phone.”

Phoblographer: Talk to us about how you first got into photography.

Tibor Simon: I was 8 years old when my dad bought me my first camera. He was also an amateur photographer, he taught to take photographs. At the time, I was still using black-and-white film, the products of the socialist system, Forte and Orwo negatives. I had a darkroom in the apartment, where I called up movies and photos. I think that’s why I love black and white images to this day. Later, when I became more seriously interested in photography, I was already using a color slide, mostly the Fuji Velvia 50 model. I had photographed nature a lot even then, and this film was the ideal raw material for me. When I was young, I used Zenit, Fujica, Pentax, Minolta cameras, I bought my first professional film camera in 1993, it was the Nikon F3, later the F4, then the F90x. My first digital camera was a Nikon D70s that I bought in 2006. I soon grew up with this type, bought a D300, later a D700, and then 7 years ago I bought a D4s camera.

Phoblographer: What made you want to get into doing surreal work?

Tibor Simon: I always liked surreal-themed pictures, but I had no urge to make them myself. I once bought an ND 1000 gray filter with which I started taking long exposure images. I’ve seen many of these photos on Flickr, but typically in one style: minimal-style photos taken on the waterfront using a tripod. I really liked them, but after a while I found these boring, they all looked the same. I thought a lot about how to take different, more interesting photos with a long shutter speed. I once walked in a city when I remembered what it would be like if it wasn’t the subject moving during the exposure, it was me. I took some test shots as I moved and found the result interesting.

Years later, as I was traveling on the train, I tried another idea: I photographed trees passing in front of the train window with a long shutter speed. During the exposure, I turned the camera over the passing trees and I liked the result. After a while, I took such photos regularly. So it was a long de...