An Interview With Photojournalist G

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An Interview With Photojournalist

G.M.B. Akash

by Seshu | Connecticut's Best People Photographer on November 11, 2010

in Interviews, Photojournalism

This is a very special interview with an international,

award-winning photojournalist G.M.B. Akash. He is based in Dhaka,

Bangladesh and represented by Panos Pictures. Wrangling him into finding the

time to answer these questions took some doing because he was always on the

road working on one project or another. So, I am truly honored to host his

images and his responses to a few of my questions here on Tiffinbox. If you have

any questions or comments for him, please do submit them at the end of this

post!

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself. Where are you from? How old are you?

I grew up in a home far removed from my profession. Throughout my childhood I did

not have access to photographers, their work, or even a camera. Photography did not

exist for me in theory or in practice. Then a decade ago I found my fathers old

camera and my life took a different turn. My fascination for the captured image was

uncontainable and overcame everything even my inexperience. Not knowing what

I was doing or why, I went everywhere shooting anything and everything that caught

my attention. The only thing I was certain of were the subjects I photographed. I

concentrated on people living on the edge of society because their faces, lives, and

living conditions held a particular fascination for me. Gradually I became absorbed in
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their daily lives for months on end, learning from their experiences. My desire to

capture it all on film pushed me to go to places and to meet people I never would have

encountered otherwise. Each visit gave me a deeper understanding of humanity.

I am from Narayangonj, a city which is 200 km away from Dhaka. I come from a

middle class, very ordinary family. I was born in 1977. I was always a last bencher inmy school. I always felt inside that I have no talent like other kids. But photography

gave me a new life.

2) Some would consider you Bangladeshs best known photojournalist. What has

led to that success?

Hard work, honesty and respect towards the people whom I photograph.
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3) Where were you trained as a photographer? And why, photojournalism? Why

not advertising or travel?

My passion for photography began in 1996. I attended theWorld Press Photo seminar

in Dhaka for 3 years and graduated with a BA in Photojournalism from Pathshala. I

believe that the formal study of photography is necessary to survive in the industry

today. But most important things are to be really passionate and dedicated.

The formal study helped me a lot but most of the time I learned from other

photographers. I have learned from painting, songs and movies as well. Everyday I go

through the work of other photographers and I learn from them. I have learned from

many photographers.

Photography pushed me to go to places and to meet people I never would have

encountered otherwise. Each visit gave me a deeper understanding of humanity.

Today, I count myself blessed, having become a photographer. To be able to articulate

the experiences of the voiceless, to bring their identity to the forefront, gives meaning

and purpose to my own life.

In 1998, I saw a photo exhibition on AIDS victims, titled Positive Lives at gallery in

Dhaka. And realized for the first time how images can influence social perception.

My first reaction, on seeing the exhibit was a complete subversion of my original

perception of AIDS patients. It struck me how patients with AIDS are alienated and

scorned by us because of social misconceptions, and I realized how I as a

photographer could help dispel these misconceptions. I discovered the power that

images have over us.

To me, photojournalism is a huge responsibility and a tough job. A photojournalist

must be honest, hard worker, punctual, and he or she must respect other people.
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I believe photography can bring lot of changes in our life. It can bring positive

changes. In my case, my images are my voice, I want to show the things that should

be corrected or should be appreciated.
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4) What drives you to make images? Do you see it as a job or as a calling?

What I find most amazing about the work I do is that it opens my eyes to all these

little pleasures of life. There is great pleasure in meeting people who are despised by

the world, in sharing a cup of tea with them, and discovering that they are still capable

of affection, though they themselves go unloved.

This is not a job about making money or succeeding; it is about pursuing art, andopening peoples eyes. That is the responsibility of every photographer.


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6) There is great sensitivity to people in your images? How did you cultivate it?

How do you approach people when you are doing stories?

With every picture you take, you enter a space that is unknown to you as a

photographer. In the beginning it feels like forbidden territory, a place you are not

supposed to enter surrounded by borders of privacy you are not supposed to cross.

You, the photographer, are there at a factory, an old home or a brothel with yoursimple black bag hanging from your shoulder, eying everything around you as you are


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eyed by the people there. The first days following these intrusions I never take

pictures because they would not be good. I wouldnt know the people I met, wouldnt

understand the place I had just entered my photography would be stale and

meaningless. But there is always that moment when it feels completely natural to

open that bag. And also there is no way of telling why it comes. Suddenly, I have a

friendly conversation, or the afternoon light makes everybody around me relaxed andmellow, or someone looks at me in a trusting yet familiar way.

Then I take out my camera, and for me and everybody around me it is the most

natural thing to do. There is consent. People dont accuse me, or reject me or pose in

unnatural ways. They are just there, doing what they normally do. Then I click away,

and it feels like a conversation, a conversation between me and the people, between

me and the location, between me and the light, between me and the souls that make

this place alive. In such moments a landscape becomes a soulscape.

After such moments, life where I am working becomes trivial again, and the next day

everybody asks for their photographs, and there is no difference if the people are girlsfrom a brothel, children who work in a factory or farmers from the countryside. But

these little exchanges bring us closer to each other, and the ties between us, which

started with small talk and conversation and continued with the first pictures I took,

will begin to become deeper and more meaningful, and so will the pictures I take.

And the closer I get to them and the deeper our friendship becomes, the simpler my

photography gets. I am no longer looking for special angles or artistic points of views;

I just open myself to these people, take a good look, frame and wait for the right

moment. When I walk home, I have all the moments that I missed in my head, and

they will become my source of inspiration in the days to come.

I see the beauty of people and the human soul in the pictures I take. And though the

circumstances of some of the people I portray may be grim, back-breaking, depraved,

the people themselves are always remarkable characters and souls. And it is my duty

as a photographer and artist to point with my pictures at every aspect of existence in

the society and world I live in, to show what can be shown, to go deep into every

milieu and also into every aspect of poverty, deprivation and hardship that I encounter

because the only sin for a photographer is to turn his head and look away.


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7) You keep winning award after award and you are very good about making it

known that you were either nominated or you won. Where did you learn such a

basic marketing strategy that is, to be in forefront of everyones mind when it

comes to photography? What or who inspired you to follow that template?

I am very much alone in the Bangladeshi photography industry. I do not even have

photographers as friends. I learned everything for my survival. I keep doing the hard

work. And my God was always so kind to me and my friends and family.


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8) What is the photo world like in Bangladesh? Does most of it revolve around

Dhaka? ArePathashala and Drikstill the only resources for emerging

photojournalists?

Lot of people are getting interested in photography in Bangladesh. It is becoming a

very popular art form. Pathshala is one of the main photography schools. But there are

many other schools which also

give a very good education.

It is very tough to survive as a freelancer now days. Especially in Bangladesh. Wire

services like AFP, Reuters, AP, EPA capture all the markets. They are very fast and

very powerful. They have a huge investment and network. They have their staff

everywhere. It is really hard to publish your work as a freelancer.

But what I believe is this: if you remain true to your work then your work will

remain true to you
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9) Do Bangladeshi photojournalists have a network? Is there a sense of

camaraderie and competition between photographers?

We have huge competition and huge politics in Bangladeshi photography. Lots of

groups and nepotism. Few people control the whole system and they only favor their

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10) What challenges do you face when you are commissioned by magazines or

newspapers around the world?

Every assignment is a new experience to me. Till today, I have received more than 40

international awards from all around the world and my work has been featured in over

50 major international publications including:National Geographic,Time,Sunday

Times,Newsweek, Geo, Stern, Der Spiegel, The Fader, Brand Eins, The Guardian,

Marie Claire, Colors, The Economist, The New Internationalist, Kontinente, AmnestyJournal,Courier International,PDN,Die Zeit, Days Japan, Hello, and Sunday

Telegraph of London.

It is challenging to work with so many international magazines. Bangladesh is not an

internationally important country. Ive met so many people who even dont know

where Bangladesh is. Magazines seem to only want photographs from Bangladesh

when there are big floods or big disasters.

We have also lot of problems in acquiring travel visas. If something happens in India

or Pakistan, we cannot go there instantly. It takes a few days for getting the proper

visa. It is so easy for a photographer from a developing country to get a visa but thatsnot the case for Bangladeshi photographers; it is almost impossible to go into a

conflict zone.

But all these awards and publications bring lot of attention on those issues that I have

been working. After seeing my work, so many individual people and organizations

have shown their interest to help/improve the situation of child labor in Bangladesh

and other issues.

My work on home for elderly people in Nepal has been printed in a German

magazine. After it got printed so many individuals and organizations came to help

them. We raised lot of money for this old home. The situation at that old home was
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://www.time.com/time/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/http://www.newsweek.com/http://www.geo-international.de/http://www.stern.de/http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.thefader.com/http://www.brandeins.de/http://www.guardian.co.uk/http://www.marieclaire.com/http://www.colorsmagazine.com/http://www.economist.com/http://www.newint.org/http://www.amnesty.org.uk/http://www.amnesty.org.uk/http://www.courrierinternational.com/http://www.courrierinternational.com/http://www.courrierinternational.com/http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/index.shtmlhttp://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/index.shtmlhttp://www.zeit.de/indexhttp://www.daysjapan.net/e/http://www.hellomagazine.com/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/http://tiffinbox.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/akash-14.jpghttp://www.nationalgeographic.com/http://www.time.com/time/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/http://www.newsweek.com/http://www.geo-international.de/http://www.stern.de/http://www.spiegel.de/international/http://www.thefader.com/http://www.brandeins.de/http://www.guardian.co.uk/http://www.marieclaire.com/http://www.colorsmagazine.com/http://www.economist.com/http://www.newint.org/http://www.amnesty.org.uk/http://www.amnesty.org.uk/http://www.courrierinternational.com/http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/index.shtmlhttp://www.zeit.de/indexhttp://www.daysjapan.net/e/http://www.hellomagazine.com/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/


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very bad and the elderly people who lived there found it hard to get food three times a

day.

11) Are you mentoring anyone interested in pursuing a career in

photojournalism? Have you considered conducting workshops in South Asia?

I am trying to help a few of my friends. But no workshops at this time. I am very busy

with assignments, traveling and working on my personal projects. And I really wantto keep taking lot of photos. I need more time for organizing and giving workshops.

12) Have you ever been tempted to work with video? Will still photography

always be your main mode of communication?


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I have never tried video but I really want to start making short videos. I mainly

concentrate on still photography now.

13) What are you trying to say with your photography?

I see the beauty of people and the human souls in the pictures I take.

An Interview With Photojournalist G

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