Fab style 101 WITH ATHENA meets NABEEL ABED,south african fashion
photographer as he tells us more about fashion photography and the
intriguing part of it,know more about fashion photography and learn how
to speak through the eye of photography.
Its FAB STYLE 101,here are our FAB questions:
*WHO IS NABEEL ABED:
NABEEL: Nabeel Abed is a qualified and experienced fashion photographe
from Durban South Africar,ive worked on projects such as the Miss India
South Africa and Miss India worldwide pageants,this is obviously where
my photography career started 7 years ago,the pageants opened up many
doors to me,also working with the MTN Durban fashion week,allowed me get
my name into industry and move forward locally and
internationally.Aside from being a professional photographer i am also a
recruitment specialist,English language instructor and events
producer,and in a way i am lucky because each of the professions im
involved in is related to each other in some way or the other.
*WHAT SHOULD PHOTOGRAPHER CONSIDER FOR PHOTOSHOOTS AND RUNWAY PHOTOGRAPHY?
NABEEL: There are many things photographers need to consider when on a
shoot,technically you need to make sure you have the correct equipment
for the job,aside from this is the creativity,because no publication
wants the same shots all the time,they want something different and that
is why being creative and original is very important.Aside from the
actual shoots the other factor that matters is communication with the
team that you would be working with,there needs to be respect and
understanding with each team member so that any shoot or business
discussions may flow in the manor that it should.
*WHAT MEANING SHOULD PICTURES GIVE?WHAT MESSAGE SHOULD IT PORTRAY?
NABEEL: Pictures to me are made,and they should be made in such a way
that just by looking at an image,you should feel the emotion radiating
through the model.It needs to tell a story.
*HOW HAS LIFE BEING A FASHION PHOTOGRAPHER BEEN and IT INFLUENCES ON YOUR STYLE OF WORK?
NABEEL: The fashion industry is all live for,being a fashion
photographer the industry becomes your life,it consumes you,you want
more of it everyday,the fact that you are working with all these
creatives every day inspires you to better and push harder to try and be
the best.
My style of work which aside from focusing on fashion,brings in a lot of
photo manipulation as well,to the industry its something fresh and
vibrant where by a lot of the younger photographers would look to,my
play of colour and contrast and style of lighting has been much
respected and has given rise to many younger talents tryinh their hand
out and doing the same.
*TIPS ON GETTING A GLAMOUROUS SHOT
NABEEL:
*Make up and hair should be in order
*posture and pose is important
*Be comfortable with yourself,when your comfortable with your body it
will always shine through,no matter what shape or size you are.
* being able to connect with the camera,dont be afraid of the camera,if you are afraid it will definitely show.
*Being confident is key,You should always think that youre the hottest girl on the planet.
*TELL US MORE AbOUT FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY?
NABEEL: Fashion photography is one of the most demanding forms of
photography out there,its fast paced,challenging and competitive ,and
ure always in for a surprise in fashion,on the other hand its fun and
exciting,when i talk of fashion photography guys think its the best job
ever coz you are photographing women all the time,we also do photograph
men  women think is glamorous, sure it is a very glamorous,fun and
rewarding job.Shooting early mornings and late afternoons is
great...waking up for earl morning shoots at the beginning but you get
accustomed to it and everything thereafter just flows naturally.
*WHO ARE YOUR MENTORS AS A PHOTOGRAHER?
NABEEL:I look up to many photographers,South African greats such Peter
Magubane and Ranjith Kally,Overseas i look at works from Nigel Barker in
USA, As well as chase jarvis, and over in India i look a lot at the
works of Atul Kasbekar and DabbooRatnani.
*WHAT IT LIKE WORKING FAR fROM YOUR COUNTRY:
NABEEL: Working away from South Africa was tough in the beginning but
thanks to social media and technology it has helped me carry out my
tremendously and of course there’s the fun part of flying so often for
work, anything new at first is hard, but then it becomes easier as the
days go by.
*WHAT Is THE BEST CAMERA,YOU RECOMMEND FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS:
NABEEL:I don’t think that there is a “best” camera out there for
pics,people have different taste,some prefer Nikon and some prefer
canon, others may prefer a hasselblad,ive always preferred Canon.But
again it isn’t always about the camera i believe its about the
Photographer as it is the photographer who makes the image,the camera is
just a tool,sure the camera does have a purpose but if you are going to
look for “the best” camera that will do everything for you then you
cannot call yourself a professional photographer or a photographer at
all.
Today you will see many professional photographers experimenting with
mobile photography (photos shot and edited on your smartphone)...but we
will leave that topic for another day....
*WHAT YOUR ADVICE TO UP and COMING PHOTOGRAPHER?
NABEEL: My message to up and coming photographers is that you only get
better with every shot that you take,shoot as much as you can,don’t be
afraid to try something new,if it doesn’t work at least you know it
doesn’t work,and most important,NEVER allow anybody to tell you that you
don’t have what it takes,because you do have what it takes,u just gotta
dig deep down and bring out the photographer in you to prove to
everybody that you can be who you set urself out to be.
THANK YOU FOR READING MY BLOG.
Enjoy your meal
