Stoica Dragoș – from Engineering to Photographic Art and the Story of Creative Wizards

Discover the story of Stoica Dragoș, engineer and photographer, founder of Creative Wizards – a true example of passion, courage, and balance between technology and art.

Stoica Dragoș followed, as his main career path, engineering. A graduate of Automation and Computers at UPB, class of 2008, he worked for 5 years as a SCADA/DCS systems engineer in major companies such as Honeywell – in process automation for oil refineries – and later at Carrier, in refrigeration and HVAC systems. Then, in 2014, he made the switch to IT, as a DevOps – Cloud Engineer – more plainly put, an automation engineer in software.
His second job, that of photographer, took shape – on the side – from a passion born in childhood, which over time turned into his second occupation.

C&B: How would you describe yourself in a single sentence, in such a way as to spark the curiosity of those who don’t know you yet?
Stoica Dragoș: A very curious being, eager to understand the universe beyond this planet. The frustration generated by the current impossibility of doing so led me to turn my attention and focus toward the nature of this planet. From there came the drive and love for the art of photography.

C&B: If we were to look at the narrative thread of your career or business, what were the key moments that defined you?
Stoica Dragoș: Referring, of course, to the photo/video services company Creative Wizards, without a doubt a key moment was meeting my current friend and partner, Rusu Dumitru Costinel. There are 7 years between us in age; when we first met, he was in the latter part of high school. But as nothing happens without reason, the universe brought our paths together in life so that we could become very good friends and partners in this field, where we work with passion and dedication.

C&B: What were the main challenges at the beginning of the road in such a creative and competitive field?
Stoica Dragoș: When we were developing between 2010-2015, there was certainly no abundance of information and channels like we have today. They were just starting out as well. For those born after 2000-2010, it sometimes seems hard to imagine life without the internet or Google, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, etc.
Socializing, making yourself known, this obsessive “networking” we now use frenetically, was done more slowly, with visits and direct, live, face-to-face interactions.
As in almost any field, progress is slow but steady if you don’t give up. Acquiring better tools, gaining experience, and building skills takes years.
What is bothersome and still lacking in our market today, more so than in other countries, is the clientele’s desire for quality and the understanding of the cost of professionalism. In more trivial, vulgar terms, Romanians want it cheap and good. That’s impossible! That’s not right! If you want a Porsche, you pay the corresponding price, you don’t negotiate for Logan prices. The lack of education and common sense among the people is reflected in everything.

C&B: Is there a dream or ambition that has always guided you, regardless of obstacles?
Stoica Dragoș: The classic “life is too short to do or be anything other than what you love.” And if you wisely choose to do what you love, then clearly you have all the motivation and aspiration to do it very well, to perform any activity at the highest level of performance and quality.

C&B: What did you look like at the beginning of your journey, and how do you feel you have transformed up to the present?
Stoica Dragoș: Definitely like anyone starting out: more immature, less experienced, more timid, not very learned, more gullible, more scattered… these things and traits are part of the beautiful and rightful process of maturing. Let’s not wrongly consider that maturing means stopping being children, stopping playing, stopping enjoying life, or being funny and mischievous in moderation for relaxation. Rather, it means becoming responsible, experienced, and accepting the reality that anything can happen anytime, both good and bad. Having expectations or placing trust without substance helps nothing. Be skeptical, reserved, cautious, weigh things carefully and choose wisely. But with courage and accountability. Without risks, there is no life. Once you choose, keep going no matter what. Whatever the consequences or outcomes, be happy with the path you have taken, learn from both failures and successes, and keep moving forward.

C&B: If we were to meet your team or collaborators, what do you think they would say about you?
Stoica Dragoș: Only they know, but I hope they would speak honestly, whatever they might say. Overall, I wish they would be glad to know me and to have interacted with me, as we all are, with strengths and weaknesses. And that, even in the smallest measure, I have brought them something positive in their lives and in who they are today as conscious beings in this beautiful and mysterious universe.

C&B: What is the most important decision you have made that changed your trajectory?
Stoica Dragoș: Not to remain stuck in my first jobs – they required a lot of travel, and I wouldn’t have had time to achieve everything I have in the past 10 years. When something is not fully to your liking or requires too many sacrifices, CHANGE IT!

C&B: What are Creative Wizards’ long-term development plans?
Stoica Dragoș: We very much want to train, develop, support, and promote young talents, as I mentioned earlier, those born after 2000-2005 who resonate with the visual arts. And, of course, we want to succeed in having as diverse a clientele as possible, both locally and especially internationally.

C&B: What sets Creative Wizards apart from other photo studios on the market?
Stoica Dragoș: A classic question, but I don’t think it’s easy to give a fair, honest answer. Some may come across as arrogant or too banal no matter what they say. Let’s bite a little into the harsh reality as it is.
No one can work solely out of passion and pure pleasure 100%. In today’s society, you must earn the currency of exchange so that you can have the necessities and enjoy life’s pleasures: travel, material things, raising a family, etc.
Work, especially quality work, must be rewarded accordingly.
From one perspective, which I’ll detail immediately, we can divide those working in this field into two categories:

• those who ended up providing such professional services starting from a passion for this art;
• those who started out only with the thought of making money.

That’s why, worldwide, passionate people are always set apart from those merely eager for profit by their level of dedication and desire for quality.
Many people learn how to swim. How many reach the performance level of David Popovici? Do you think it’s only about an innate magical talent, or is it also about a lot of work? You have to love it. You have to feel fulfilled doing that activity. You cannot have the ultimate motivation that leads to the best results without loving those moments spent doing it.
We are by no means the only passionate or serious ones. We are honest and transparent about what we can and know how to do and what we cannot. There are others at least as good. We just want to become better and better.

C&B: What does a typical day look like for you now, and what moments bring you the most satisfaction?
Stoica Dragoș: The fact that you wake up again in the morning should already bring you great joy and fulfillment that you’ve lived another day. If you’re healthy, that’s wonderful. If your loved ones are also well, then you are completely happy. If the conditions mentioned earlier are fulfilled, then anything else can be worked for and pursued day by day.
A typical day – Monday to Friday, I work my IT job. I do sports as often as possible, not daily, but it’s very important not to take more than 2 consecutive days off. Photography activities take up a good part of the rest of my free time, combined as much as possible with traveling.

C&B: What values or principles guide you in what you do, and how do you apply them daily?
Stoica Dragoș: To always take responsibility, with anyone, in anything you do. Be at peace with who and how you are. Accept yourself, love yourself – if you’d like others to do the same. They can’t, until you do it yourself. Whatever you choose to do, do it well, not halfway. Don’t start something if you don’t intend to finish it. BUT – don’t persist if it isn’t healthy for you. We will always make mistakes or less inspired choices. Learn and move on. Don’t continue down a toxic path. We never stop learning. If I had the luck to live 100,000 years, every single day I would still learn something new and refine myself a little more.

C&B: How did the idea of Creative Wizards come about, and what made you start this photography company?
Stoica Dragoș: “Photography studio” is not quite accurate. It sounds as if we have a room where we do… photographic stuff. Yes, we are a firm/company because we need to operate within a legal framework, regulated by the – good and bad – laws of this state, far from being very well organized, but that’s the situation. We are a team of passionate and serious guys who provide their photographic services and activities, 99% outside of a “studio.” We most enjoy being on the move – in the mountains, at the seaside, in the plains, on construction sites, out in the fields.
It was therefore obvious we needed a company within a legislative framework – so we chose this funny name, we hope, that represents us: some creative wizards.

C&B: What advice would you give to young photographers or entrepreneurs who want to build a successful studio?
Stoica Dragoș: I think it’s nicer to call it a successful business or activity. I can certainly share from my hard-earned experience that there are a few vital and important aspects: Learn how to learn. Strive to achieve excellent results, but don’t accept to deliver them for free or for a pittance. Make yourself known. In today’s society, we cannot rise without connections.

Stoica Dragoș’s journey is about the courage to follow one’s passion, about finding balance between a technical career and photographic art, and above all, about building something authentic with people who share the same values.