An exclusive interview with Saniar Rahman Rahul

Saniar Rahman Rahul lives in Chowdhori Para, Malibag, which is a few miles from the center of the city of Dhaka, Bangladesh. He grew up in a family where photography was part of everyday life. His father was so passionate about photography. Rahul became interested in photography from his father. He was fascinated by seeing his father taking pictures with a camera while his family was in Iraq during his childhood. Later in life, in 1997, while he became very much attached with his profession of ‘graphic design’, Rahul rediscovered the creative side of photography. He started his career as a professional graphic designer in October of 1995, in a pre-press house called Color Scan, which is one of the pioneers in the pre-process printing media in Bangladesh. Afterwards, he moved to Power Point, another pre-press house. Before he finally settled into advertising, he also worked in an IT company called Abtab IT. Moving to advertising from printing media was a big step for him. In 2005, he joined G3, a special wing of Gray Worldwide. Two years later, he moved to Paper Rhyme. Now he is working as the Associate Art Director in Pearl communication, one of the leading advertising agencies in Bangladesh. We will discover more about him and his forays into photography in the following interview with him.

In this “Exclusive Interview” section, today we have the opportunity to talk with Saniar Rahman Rahul, as his photograph was winner of Photo of the Month – 1st Month, 1st Place. Let’s discover more about Saniar Rahman Rahul, and his forays into photography in the following interview with him.

Light & Composition: Rahul, what about Nature Photography attracts you to it?

Saniar Rahman Rahul: Nature is always among the most popular of subjects for photography. A sunset arrives exactly when you expect it to and you often need to do little more than point and shoot to capture all the beauty of the sunset that you can see. You might not have to go and look for it. A photogenic scene can strike you anywhere, anytime. However, you might not be able to get it at your demand. You have to take it as it remains in nature. And as nature has thousands of colors and shapes, so you have to sort out the best frame and texture from that. All this uncertainty is very much challenging to me, and I feel very much thrilled with it. And especially this excitement with nature grew my interest in nature photography.

L&C: One of the keys of nature photography is visualization; could you please tell us how you start this process and what you plan to do afterwards?

Rahul: In nature photography there are so many objects. And in those objects you might find an important subject. Moreover, to get a good photo you have to careful about proper lighting and also about proper framing of the subject. But to do that, you have to visualize it. As you know, visualization is the art of seeing, which is a concept that creates an image in your mind before you take it. For me, I start imagining different interpretations of the image that I conceptualized. Then I try to create what was in the photo concept, which is such a valuable tool to help create a personal interpretation and record it in the final click. And to have beautiful nature photos I must conceptualize images by taking control of this picture making process. So, once my needs are clear and defined, and mixed with my artistic passion and light sensitivity, my goals get defined and I take the photograph.

Install Industry, by Saniar Rahman Rahul

L&C: You have been into bird photography for a long time. How hard it is to cope with the inadequate environment while doing bird photography?

Rahul: Though in the beginning I felt trouble, but now I have overcome that. In fact, it was a matter of struggle. First thing is, you need to have a good telephoto lens. However, this will not be enough. You must know about the mystery of the subject. You have to know how it reacts. You have to follow it and find its nature. If you pursue birds with regularity, you might get a lucky opportunity where you can get a great shot. But you have to have patience. Then you also have to know about the place where you have gone to shoot. Also to attract them towards you, you have to find out about their regular food. Food can be a great way to attract them towards you. And of course you have to become the part of the nature to take a good snap shot of a bird. So with a good preparation, you might be able to overcome all these situations and take the picture.

L&C: What camera gear aids you a lot, and which lens and camera do you find yourself using most of the time?

Rahul: Actually, different types of people are habituated in different types of gear; it is a matter of habituation. But it is easy to handle Cannon, for it’s lightweight. That’s why I personally prefer Cannon. And I use the Cannon gear. Cannon7D, D60, and Lens-300mm f4 L-IS, 400mm f5.6 .

L&C: Rahul have you ever exhibited your work? If yes, then tell us about your first solo exhibition experience.

Rahul: Yes, my first solo exhibition was held on the 15th of December 2008, and it was only on birds, and the name of the exhibition was `Kuhutan’. Honorable Hashem Khan inaugurated the exhibition, and that was a great pleasure for me. So many people appreciated that exhibition. During the exhibition there was an important part which was to introduce the birds to the viewers. Because, I did not put any of the bird’s name on the photographs. It was intentional, and the audience asked me the names of the birds and I introduced them one by one along with their habit and nature. In that way the viewers became more familiar with the birds, which was so enjoyable for me.

L&C: You are involved with lots of photographic organizations in Bangladesh. How do you see the future of nature and wildlife photography ?

Rahul: Not so many actually. I am working very closely with BBC(Bangladesh Bird Club). I have some contributions in Bangla Pedia, Encyclopedia Flora & Fauna – Birds, and Encyclopedia Flora & Fauna- Mammals. It is great to see that people are getting more interested in it, and this number is growing. I want to see that everybody loves nature and the wild directly or indirectly. And Bangladesh, with so many enormous natural beauties, has a huge prospect waiting in nature and wildlife photography.

L&C: Your style is different and non-traditional. What advice would you have for our readers to become a nature photographer?

Rahul: I do not want to give advice but want to request that, “Please come to save the nature, love the nature. Let’s do something for our future generations.”

L&C: Thank you Rahul for sharing with us.

Rahul: Thanks to Light and Composition team and its subscribers.