About me

My name is Melinda ugrai. I was born and raised in Hungary, studied in London and live in France.
I had two love in my life, if we talking about work. Aviation and Cinematography. I've passed 20 years in aviation & tourism than I quit my flight manager job, and I created my own photography business.
While I worked in tourism, I had the opportunity to travel a lot and discover the most beautiful places in Europe. But wherever I went, the first thing that put into my suitcase was my camera. I have always been very interested in photography and I also knew that it would be my profession in the second part of my life. I could perhaps compare this kind of passion to music. When someone picks up a guitar at a young age and just plucks the strings for the first time. they feels the strings start to cut their fingers after a few minutes and cause pain. But they are absorbed by the energy of the instrument. Later, they starts practicing the chords and as they practices more and more, the already well-known melodies comes out. As the years go by, they feel that  they still have something to do with it and express all their joy, pain and love through the instrument.

I came across the term still photographer by accident. I started researching what this could be because I had no idea. But the more I read about it, the more it began to absorb me and worm its way into my thoughts on a daily basis. I came into contact with several well-known still photographers, such as; Gareth Gatrell, Jasin Boland, John Wilson or Nicola Dove, and on their advice, I contacted the students of the Sorbonne University in Paris, who were happy to see me on their set. I remember the first time; from the outside it looked a bit like when someone enters the airport and sees only total chaos. Where everyone is running with their suitcases in hand, stressing, shouting and pushing each other. We see couples and families crying, laughing, hugging, arguing, panicking. however, behind the scenes there is serious organization and order. Where hundreds of people work to ensure that the flight can take off on time and safely. 
I felt the same way on my first day of shooting. Apparently, chaos, but the minute the director stood up ˝ACTION˝, everything falls into place, everyone becomes quiet and concentrates only on their own task. After a few minutes I felt that this is it. This is my way! This is what I have to do, develop and prove myself in this.
The airline industry taught me patience, discipline, teamwork and discretion. My work ethic is excellent and I work hard, not only for the sake of the project and the team, but also for myself. But most of all, I want to prove to my daughter that she can achieve anything with hard work. I want her to be proud one day of what I will leave her here as a legacy.

My role is to sell your movie through my images. I want to to address the audience with my pictures. Convince them that your film is great and worth going to the cinema to see it.

I speak three languages: English/French/Hungarian. So I'm a great candidate who you can easily work and cooperate with during the work.

Recently done Nicola Dove's Film STILLS ACADEMY.

If you are a producer, publisher or director and looking for a still photographer to your next project, please don't hesitate to contact me.  I work hard and I can represent you to the best of my knowledge. 

I hope I'll meet you soon!