Gul Chotrani: Leica Talk

Photo © Gul Chotrani-All Rights Reserved

Gul Chotrani was just featured in an interview on The Leica Camera Blog, following his return from his July 2011 journey to Ethiopia's Omo Valley.

I met him when he joined my In Search of the Sufis of Gujarat Photo Expedition™ in 2011, and it was during it that he photographed using his M9, S2 and a Nikon D3.

Gul worked as an analyst/economist and later in investment banking in the UK, then spent several years in academia, teaching economics and finance in Singapore and South East Asia. He subsequently served as a consultant/advisor in trade, finance and development issues, and also participated in technical cooperation programs with several less developed countries in Asia, on behalf of the Singapore government, the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank.

"When I’m on a serious photography trip, my total gear consists of three bodies (Leica M9, S2 and Nikon D3X) with perhaps two lenses for each, all meant to complement each other."

He echoes many Leica owners when admitting that using its cameras in the beginning was frustrating, and that he almost gave up on it. However, realizing the superlative optics of the Leica M lenses, and presumably the resultant image quality, is what kept him hooked to the Leica brand.

Interesting thoughts (a second installment of the interview is due to appear soon on the Leica blog) by an enthusiastic and unabashed Leica aficionado, which may influence some photographers to jump in the Leica universe.

For further photographs by Gul, drop by his website.

CPN: Gary Knight: Advice To Young Photographers

Canon Professional Network has featured five Canon Ambassadors – photographers Michael ‘Nick’ Nichols, Gary Knight, Ziv Koren, Frits van Eldik and Paolo Pellegrin, and asked them what they’ve learnt from their years of experience and what advice they would offer to young photographers starting out on their photographic careers.

I thought I'd feature Gary Knight's interview here...this is purely a personal choice based on what he advocates "keep it simple...and don't think too much"; advice which I always follow and advocate, and since I met Gary in Bali some years ago...I know his advice is not a fluff piece, and that he speaks his mind. So his interview is highly recommended to young photographers.

"...keep it simple...don't think too much..."

Gary Knight began his photographic career in Thailand in 1987 and he lived and worked in the Far East until 1992. In 1993 he moved to the former Yugoslavia and documented the civil war there. In recent years he has covered the invasion of Iraq, the occupation of Afghanistan, the civil war in Kashmir and the Asian Tsunami. One of the founders of the VII Photo agency in 2001 his work has been published by magazines all over the world and he has been a contract photographer for Newsweek since 1998. He is one of the founders of the Angkor Photo Festival, a registered charity in Cambodia; a board member of the Crimes of War Foundation and a trustee of the Indochina Media Memorial Foundation.

Rahgu Rai: Interview With The Guardian

Photo © Raghu Rai- All Rights Reserved

"Most people don't see, they just glance. When we take a picture, we have to be aware of every inch of space we're dealing with" -Raghu Rai

An interview with Raghu Rai in The Guardian newspaper was published to coincide with his work being featured in a retrospective at the Aicon Gallery in central London and in a landmark exhibition at the Whitechapel gallery.

A gallery of his work is also featured on The Guardian's website.

Raghu Rai is a Magnum photographer who spent 40 years photographing India. Born in a small Pakistani village and moving to India during Partition, he was witness to some of the most significant events in his country's recent history. He was one of the first photographers on the scene after the 1984 Bhopal industrial disaster and has produced acclaimed documentary series on Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama and the late Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi.

Via Wendy Marijnissen's Twitter feed.

Ed Kashi's Interview (Silber Studios TV)

Screen Capture Courtesy Silber Studios

Ed Kashi is of course a well known photojournalist with a list of awards and achievements as long a man's arm, and then some. I thought his interview with Marc Silber would be of interest to my readers if they haven't caught it before I did.

In this video-interview,  Ed shares some ideas (tips if you prefer) on advancing one's photography. He makes many interesting points such as describing himself as a long form visual storyteller, and uses the phrase "candid intimacy" to describe his work.

The blurb accompanying the video interview mentions that when a photograph achieves that look, then its viewers can see into the soul of the subject...perhaps a little hyperbolic, but one that some of us travel photographers (and certainly the majority of photojournalists) relate to.

I'm not talking about "pretty pictures" here, but as far as I'm concerned, it's about what I like to call "travel photography meets photojournalism". ...a phrase I use to describe my photo~expeditions. I wasn't surprised at all to hear Ed say that more and more of his work is being shot from his hip or his shoulder, to avoid provoking people who are not comfortable with having a lens poked in their direction. I also smiled when I heard Marc Silber mention Morocco as being a difficult place to photograph people, as they disliked being photographed...it brought back my few photographic ventures to that part of the world.

Ed (and others like him) shooting more and more from his hip or his shoulder is something that camera manufacturers ought to keep in mind. Perhaps that's one of the benefits of owning and using an EVIL (Electronic Viewfinder Interchangeable Lens) camera which can be used like an inoffensive point & shoot. The Panasonic GF1 (now GF2) and Olympus E-PL1 are such cameras. I have the former with a 20mm f1.7, and have a lot of respect for what it can do.

Katharina Hesse: Human Negotiations (& Interview)

Katharina Hesse is a photographer who currently works in China and Asia, and has been based in Beijing for the past 17 years. She graduated in Chinese and Japanese studies from the Institut National des Langues et Civilizations Orientales (INALCO) in Paris.

She has recently uploaded some of her gripping photographs of Bangkok's sex industry unto a 6 minutes-movie which she titled Human Negotiations (above), and during which she also talks about her project in a Skype-interview with Elisabetta Tripodi, and which appeared on the blog e-photoreview.

Human Negotiations is an experimental two-year collaboration between Katharina and writer Lara Day, using images and text to explore the lives of a community of Bangkok sex workers. I cannot begin to fathom how Katharina managed to gain the trust and confidence of her subjects to such a degree...and she says as such in her interview, and that the most important task in her project was to gain the trust of the sex workers and their clients. All serious photographers agree with her advice, since only full and complete mutual trust gained over months and months can make such intimate projects possible.

Katharina's has an impressive background. Not only is she a self-taught photographer (always a huge plus for me), but she initially worked as an assistant for German TV (ZDF) and then freelanced for Newsweek from 1996 to 2002. In 2003 and 2004 she covered China for Getty’s news service. Her images were featured in numerous publications such as Courrier International, Der Spiegel, D della Repubblica, EYEmazing, Zeit Magazin, Glamour (Germany), IO Donna, Die Zeit, Marie-Claire, Le Monde, Le Monde Diplomatique, Neon, Newsweek, 100Eyes.org , Reporters without borders(yearbook 2010, Germany), Stern, Time Asia, Vanity Fair (Italy/Germany), and Wired (Italy) among others.

Katharina's photographs of Xinjiang, Kashgar and Urumqi are probably the best I've seen of that region....so go to her website after you watch the above movie.

Saiful Huq Omi: Interview

Screen Capture Courtesy World Press Photo

Saiful Huq Omi is a Bangladeshi photojournalist, whose photos appeared in The New York Times, Newsweek, Time and Asian Photography, among others. His work has been exhibited in galleries from Zimbabwe and Russia to Japan and his home country. He received a number of awards, including the All Roads National Geographic Award, and an emerging photographers grant from the Open Society Institute.

I thought his recent interview with the World Press Photo ** was one of the most honest I've seen in a long time. Saiful Huq spoke candidly, and tells his interlocutor something which resonates with many emerging photographers in the world...

"...the world has seen us through the eyes of white photographers from the west.."

Well said, Saiful Huq! That's true, but these days are now gone, never to return. It's now the time for local photographers to show us their cultures, their countries and their creativity...as indeed you and many others like you have already done...and will continue to do.

His Rohingya project gained him a grant from the Magnum Foundation Emergency Fund. He is represented by Polaris Images, and published his first photo book, Heroes Never Die - Tales of Political Violence in Bangladesh, in 2006.

** (The direct link may redirect you to the main World Press photo website. If so, you'll have to navigate to its multimedia library and then to "Meet its Participants")

Via Duckrabbit.

Gali Tibbon: Jerusalem

Photo © Gali Tibbon-All Rights Reserved

I like Gali Tibbon's work a lot, and her focus on faith-related reportage resonates with me. I found her interview (below) to showcase her images much better than on her website. She's an independent photographer based in Jerusalem, with over a decade of experience in photojournalism in the Middle East. Her work has taken her on assignments in Turkey, Cuba, Egypt, Jordan, Ethiopia, China, Spain and Ukraine.

Her work documents religion, focusing on faith through pilgrimage and rituals, and documenting the various Christian denominations in Jerusalem's Holy Sepulcher, baptism in the Jordan River, the ancient Samaritans, Ethiopian Christianity and pilgrimages across Europe.

It's with pleasure that I watched this interview with Gali on the Canon Professional Network during which she discusses her work.


A must-see!!

Rodrigo Cruz: Women Warriors

Photo © Rodrigo Cruz-All Rights Reserved

The reason I go out onto the streets with my camera is simple: I want to tell people's stories in an intimate way through powerful imagery. -Roberto Cruz

Rodrigo Cruz is a freelance photographer with a particular interest in abuses of human rights, especially against women and children in his native Mexico. His work was published by National Geographic and The Washington Post, and by NGOs such as Amnesty International. He was shortlisted for the 2010 Anthropographia Award for Photography and Human Rights; received an honorary mention in the photo contest ‘Global World: through the lens of human rights’; and was selected last year to participate in PhotoEspaña’s Descubrimientos in Guatemala City.

I met Roberto at the inaugural Foundry Photojournalism Workshop in Mexico City in 2008, and he was one of the indispensable members that made it such a success. Many of the photojournalists, whether instructors or students, relied on his knowledge, contacts and assistance for their projects and classes.

Have a look at Rodrigo's Women Warriors and Dance of Mice; these are two unusual traditions practiced in Guerrero in southern Mexico. One of his audio-slideshow projects especially relevant at this time when illegal immigration is being targeted in our southern states is The Promised Land.

For further details on Rodrigo, his projects and talent, drop by Canon Pro Network.

Justin Guariglia: A Leica Interview

Photo © Justin Guariglia-All Rights Reserved

Justin Guariglia has had a lifelong passion for documentary photography and Leica M cameras that eventually led to a distinguished career as a magazine and travel photographer.

He currently lives in Taipei, and was recently interviewed by the Leica Camera Blog, in which he says:

"Of course, one cannot travel without money, and that is how I discovered photojournalism. Even back in the late 1990s, unlike today, there was still a good amount of work available—a shoot here, a story there, a portrait needed…so magazine work became the way to pay my bills and to travel and see the world, but I always came back with lots of personal images that editors usually never saw. At that stage National Geographic Traveler and Smithsonian magazines ran short stories on distant countries, and that helped pay my way to see the world."

Naturally the interview lauds the qualities of Leica versus other brands of cameras, and highlights how unobtrusive it is in comparison to the large DSLRS currently used by many other photographers. Justin's lenses consist of a 24mm f/2.8, a 35mm f/2, and a 50mm f/2, although he tries to only carry the 35mm f/2 Summicron.

For Leica fans, there's also a Leica contest with the grandiose name of In The Footsteps of the Great Explorers, which calls for adventurers and travel blog writers to submit their entries, and travel with Leica from mid-January 2011. A very fancy website!!!

Justin Guariglia's interview via The Click

LENS: Stanley Greene Talks To Michael Kamber

Photo © Stanley Greene/Noor-All Rights Reserved

Stanley Greene’s Redemption and Revenge on the New York Times' LENS blog is one of the most interesting (and candid) interviews with a photojournalist/photographer I've read in a long time.

Having met Stanley Greene in Mexico City, I don't think I'd be wrong in describing Stanley as an iconoclast, as someone who doesn't mince words and who doesn't imitate. His opinions and responses as expressed during this interview confirm my view. This interview is a no platitudes no bullshit zone...and may rile some "lemmings", but for those who appreciate iconoclasts, it's a must read.

Excerpts that particularly resonate with me:

"When journalists start to distort reality, then I have a real problem with it. And when everything starts to look like a cartoon, I have a problem with it."

"When we get to the point where we start digging up graves to make photographs, I think we are in trouble."

"You need to be able to communicate with people. You should know a language. But even if you don’t know a language, you should at least be decent enough to understand what you are about to photograph, instead of just going, “Pow, pow, pow.” Because when you do that, then you are a vulture, and then you are what a lot of N.G.O.’s call us: “Merchants of misery.”

"I don’t own an apartment. I don’t own a house. I don’t own a car. I don’t have any stocks and bonds. All I own are my cameras. That’s it. And some cowboy boots."

Michael Kamber has worked primarily as a conflict photographer and covered a dozen wars including Afghanistan, Somalia, Liberia, Darfur and the Congo. He photographed the war in Iraq for The New York Times between 2003 and 2010. His photos have been published in nearly every major news magazine in the USA and Europe. Michael is the winner of a 2007 World Press Photo award, the Missouri School of Journalism’s Penny Press Award, American Photo Images of the Year and an Overseas Press Club award. He has been nominated three times for the Pulitzer Prize–twice for photography and once for reporting.

As I said, one of the best interviews I've read in a while.

The Daily Beast: Veronique De Viguerie

Photo © Veronique de Vigurie-All Rights Reserved
One of my favorite photojournalists, Veronique de Vigurie, was featured on The Daily Beast blog in an article/interview titled The Bravest Photographer.

Veronique de Viguerie is based in Paris and, at the age of only 32, has already won prestigious awards including Canon’s coveted Female Photojournalist of the Year Award in 2006. Her photographs regularly appear in Newsweek, The New York Times Magazine, Marie-Claire, and The Guardian.

She's known for her empathy with her subjects, and that trait got her in hot water in 2008 when she photographed a group of Taliban fighters who had killed 10 French soldiers. Paris-Match published her photographs, and her critics accused her being used to spread Taliban propaganda.

I recall writing about this, and suggesting that if anyone was to be accused of anything, it should have been the Paris-Match editors.

The article quotes Régis Le Sommier, deputy editor in chief of Paris Match, that he believes de Viguerie is "one of the most daring and promising photographers of her generation."

More of de Viguerie's images are on Getty Images Reportage website.

Jehad Nga Talks to BJP

Photo © Jehad Nga-All Rights Reserved

"I respond more to fashion and fine-art, carrying these fields and variables in photojournalism." -Jehad Nga

The British Journal of Photography (which revamped its website) published an interview with Jehad Nga, one of my favorite photographers. This blog featured many posts on Nga, and his distinctive chiaroscuro style.

Titled From Kansas To Nairobi, the recent interview sheds a light on Nga's decision to join the Institute for Artist Management instead of VII and Magnum.

Nga first visited the Middle East in 2001 spending months in different medical volunteering positions in Gaza. When he interned at Magnum Photos in 2002, he was also training to become an Emergency Medical Technician. But since 2004, when he moved to East Africa, he's been dedicating most of his time to photography, working regularly for the New York Times.

Via photojournalism links

Interview: The Travel Photographer on the Matador Network

In a new series on Matador Network's Notebook which features periodic interviews with professional photographers, MatadorU faculty and travel photographer Lola Akinmade caught up with me to discuss my perspectives on travel photography, and my insights on the industry as well as on my photo~expeditions. You can also leave your comments if you wish.

Read the interview, in which I confide that

"it was almost like having two personalities; one being a “starched” banker during workdays, and a more relaxed personality befitting that of a travel photographer during the weekends."

I have a bunch of other interviews, which are listed under My Other Websites on the right.

Peter Turnley: A Life In Photography

Photo © Peter Turnley -All Rights Reserved
Peter Turnley just penned an introspective published on The Online Photographer, which he describes as one of the few times he so exhaustively expresses his connection to the passion of seeing and photographing.

Here's one of the most insightful excerpts:

"People often ask me how I keep my spirit from becoming cynical, jaded, and pessimistic about the human condition after having witnessed so much despair, so much suffering, and so many conflicts. I try to respond honestly and truthfully, that there are many actions of man that sadden me, distress me, and challenge my optimism. But each time I mentally calculate the sum of what I have seen, I am reminded of the many times that I have seen people of all kinds persevering despite tremendous adversity, and their example leaves me with hope."

A couple of months ago, I met Peter Turnley over a tapas dinner hosted by my friends Wink Willett and Neal Jackson in a neighborhood West Village restaurant. The conversation was interesting; mostly about photojournalism and its ethics, spiced with some of Peter's experiences. All I knew about him at the time was that he was a celebrated photojournalist, having published his work in publications that were and still are household names. I also remembered that he had a twin brother; fact that frequently confused foreign authorities when they showed up to cover the same story.

I also had a flashback to a moment after September 11, 2001 when, finding that I couldn't bring myself to photograph at Ground Zero, walked back through Tribeca and saw Peter (or perhaps it was his twin David...or perhaps even someone else with some resemblance to the Turnleys) on his way to photograph the site. Having a bunch of cameras dangling from our shoulders betrayed us as photographers, and we looked at each other for a second or two, perhaps with a flicker of recognition...but we each went our separate ways. I forgot to mention it to Peter.

Outside Magazine: Antonin Kratochvil

Photo © Clay Enos-All Rights Reserved

"Antonin detests the notion of self-aggrandizement that photographers make a living off of," says Gary Knight, a colleague of Kratochvil's and co-founder of VII.

That's a statement that made me pay close attention to the interview with Antonin Kratochvil published by Outside magazine. I've been gnashing my teeth and rolling my eyes at this very attitude which is exhibited by so many photographers these days; especially those who are deemed to be "conflict" or "war" photographers. And here's a interview which tells us that Antonin rejects the "war photographer" label outright and hates the self-promotional concept of bearing witness that's in vogue among some photojournalists....a feeling just up my alley.

A very unusual man, with an interesting history. I won't repeat the details here, but encourage you to set enough time to read and savor the interview. You'll enjoy it.

Antonin Kratochvil's website.

Interview on James Robinson's Blog

I'm privileged to have been interviewed by James Robinson for his outstanding blog, which you can find here.

Thank you James for including me on your roster of photographers.

Simon Norfolk: Future of Photography

My apologies for spoiling your Sunday, but here's a sobering interview by Simon Norfolk on the World Press Photo website.

I would say that two of his predictions for the future are ones that forward-looking photographers have certainly realized for a while, and have acted upon already. There are quite a number of "masterclasses" that have sprung up recently, such as Gary Knight and Philip Blenkinsop Master Classes for instance. I have no idea if these are aimed at "wealthy orthodontists" or not, but that's the general idea.

Simon Norfolk:

"So my predictions for the future? More "name" photographers will be cashing in their reputations to teach "masterclasses" to wealthy orthodontists.

None of us will be saying "no" to wedding photography or lucrative teaching posts which sell to young students the rarely-realized dream that they’ll one day have jobs as photographers."

Some of us will perhaps deem Simon Norfolk's view as being too pessimistic or cynical. I, for one, see it as realistic.

However, let me also point out there are some of us who accept short-term teaching posts for no pay...such as those who have lined up to teach at the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop.

NPR: Reza: War And Peace

Image © Gerard Rancinan-All Rights Reserved
Reza Deghati is one of the world's eminent photojournalists, who traveled the world for nearly 30 years, bearing witness to wars, unrest, great leaders and the courage of ordinary people trapped by history. He has won countless awards, working for publications such as National Geographic, Newsweek and Time.

NPR has an interview with Reza, to publicize his latest book, Reza War and Peace: A Photographer's Journey. It is "a retrospective of that work, drawing on his own tale of exile and giving voice to those he met along his journey, those without means or audience, who suffer the injustices of war and disaster".

Véronique de Viguerie Under Fire

A couple of weeks ago, a group of Talibs in Afghanistan killed 10 French soldiers (attached to the NATO forces), and were subsequently photographed by Véronique de Viguerie, a photographer working with the French news magazine Paris Match, wearing the French soldiers' uniforms.

A firestorm erupted in France following the publication of the photographs in the Paris-Match magazine, finding it indecent for a French magazine to show such images. Accusations that payment was made to the Talibs by the photojournalist were made, but rejected as false.

In the above clip (in French), De Viguerie explains her meeting with the Taliban fighters. 'It took some time, and we used some of our contacts out there'. She used a fixer/interpreter to get to the Taliban fighters, who will only meet with women reporters as they believe that men could be spies.

In her thirties, de Viguerie says that she wasn't too comfortable meeting them. 'But, when you follow the rules and when you have the authorization of their leaders, we become their guests'.

I'm not sure why it's Véronique de Viguerie who's under fire. Isn't it the decision of Paris-Match editors to publish?

Via The British Journal of Photography's blog (link)

Nat Geo's David Griffin Speaks

A worthwhile lecture by David Griffin of the National Geographic Society on the impact of photography. David, the photo director for National Geographic, knows the power of photography to connect us to our world. In a talk filled with glorious images, he talks about how we all use photos to tell our stories.

I briefly met David during the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop, and he came across as an extremely cordial man, and as befits a National Geographic photo editor, with a deep understanding of the current photographic environment.