June 11, 2011

Interview with budding Mangalorean photographer Adil Akbar.

Tell us a little about yourself and what got you started in photography?

I am a native of Yermal Thenka (Udupi district). Right from my school days I have been very curious about photography. Seeing the photos in the newspapers and magazines I used to think how they could get such wonderful images. When I entered college I found National Geographic Magazine in the college library and I was amazed to see the photos and it still continues to amaze me. When I got my first film point to shoot camera all I wanted to do was take better photographs than others, hence I started searching online and found a number of websites and photographers with their outstanding work and that helped me a lot to enhance my skills.

I used to view all the amazing images taken by photographers I found on flickr, and realized that I too could capture images of the same caliber.

One of my roommate’s cousins is a photographer and on a weekend we went together for photography. He showed his macro composition on his SLR of damselfly mating and it really made me fall in love with photography.

Is photography just your hobby or are you a professional photographer?

Just a hobby as of now. I have done diploma in electrical engineering from Nitte and presently working for a private company in UAE.

Who are the photographers from South Canara whose work you admire?

Apart from top class photojournalists in South Canara there are a few young budding photographers, and all are inspiring.

Have your photos been published anywhere or have you participated in any exhibition?

 Yes, UAE's leading daily 'Gulf News' encourages readers to publish photos in its 'Reader's Photo of the Day' section. I submitted my entries a few times and three of them have been published. I am yet to participate in a photography exhibition.

Can you share with us your most memorable moment of photography?

Bad ones or good ones... Well, I enjoy each time I go out with the camera, seeing nature at its best, talking to people I meet.

Do you use Photoshop and how important is it in your final images?

I use Photoshop only to do minor adjustments such as crop, change levels, curves, saturations, sharpening and borders. This digital era has really been a boon for all the photographers, still I like the depth of the film era. If digital photography had not existed I would have opted for 35mm film photography.

What time do you prefer for the shoot and what is your favourite subject?

Landscape, nature, macro, silhouettes, people and night photography. Usually I take it up on early mornings on weekends. I have captured a few sunrise and sunset scenes in the UAE as well as in India. It’s really interesting to see through the macro lens  those small, tiny details of insects, bugs, flowers etc, which are not usually visible to the naked eye. I am interested in doing street photography and portrait of common people.

What camera do you shoot with and what is your dream camera?

I am using Nikon D90, a decent DSLR with a few lenses. Several branded models emerge every six months and tempt us, but as of now I will be saving for the lenses and trying for better utilization of the camera I have.

What is your favourite lens?

50mm normal lens, and the macro lens

Do you shoot in aperture priority, shutter priority or manual?

It depends on the situation. For landscape I use manual mode, for macro-birds I use aperture mode as there is no time to change settings and for events like sports I use shutter priority.

Do you think that you have learnt enough to be a professional photographer?

Well, learning never ends, does it? Whatever I know about photography is through experiments. To be a professional photographer, I think I need to go a long way and I hope some day I will make it big.

What are your future plans, do you plan to open a professional studio in Mangalore?

Well, I am not so keen in fashion or model photography, so the chances of going for a studio is very bleak. In the future I would like to acquire lenses and identify the genre which suits me and stick to that particular field, may be nature or sports.

Any tips for our readers? Where can they find more about you?

Don’t give up on your photography. It’s so easy to get frustrated with your level of growth or lack of growth. Just keep clicking in different angles and in different settings. Keep on pushing that shutter button. I’m in love with that shutter sound. It’s music to my ears!

You can all find me on Facebook by searching my name and also on Flickr. My contact number in Dubai is: + 971 555534125.