Photography in Bangladesh

First light

To describe GMB Akash as a photographer in the conventional use of that word is perhaps a bit of an injustice. Yes, he does have some of the most prestigious international photography awards in the bag. He did indeed become the first Bangladeshi to win the coveted Master Class award at the World Press Photo in 2002, following it up with a World Press Photo award this year. His work has been published in such prestigious magazines as Time, Germany’s Der Spiegel and London’s Sunday Telegraph, and as with all photographers of quality, his images capture moments — special moments, rare moments. But this can be said of many other photographers. What sets Akash’s work apart is that his work stands out, even outside the context of such moments as they describe. His portrait of a woman stranded on a raft in pouring rain during the Bangladeshi floods has a powerful resonance in telling of the devastation that nature can wreak, but it also tells of human vulnerability and desperation – a context that is universal and timeless. If Akash is humble and self-deprecating in person, on assignment he is invisible, leaving little proof that he was ‘there’ save his photos. He talks little, smiles a lot, and as a rule, goes the extra yard in bringing home the ‘special moments.’ This month as Akash’s first book of photography, First Light, is published, it is these special moments that will be borne out by the 26 black and white images the book features. And is it any wonder that the preface to First Light is written by none less than Amy Pereira-Frears, the photo editor for Newsweek, which has published Akash’s work on numerous occasions? ‘Most of the work in this book represents some of my earliest work as a photographer — in black and white — and taken without any goal in mind but for my own satisfaction,’ says Akash. According to him, this fact lends the images an innocence, an honesty, and an eye for detail that professional photographers, including himself, sacrifice as they mature. ‘During the era in which these photos were taken, I would save two days worth of lunch money in order to buy a single black and white film, on which I took photos that I often did not have the money to print,’ Akash remembers. All the images in the book are in black and white, and as Akash puts it, each was selected for its ability to tell a story, on its own. The book itself has very high production values, printed on embossed card, carrying strong captions and plenty of empty spaces to accentuate the object of the book i.e. the photos themselves. Laura Bonapace was responsible for the book’s concept, design and art-direction, a role that makes her ‘the mother and the father of this book,’ according to Akash. one of the toughest challenges for her and Akash was in choosing the 26 pictures that would grace this book among the innumerable that Akash had shortlisted as possibilities. ‘Some of these photos were taken for their technical detail, some for their value as fine-art compositions, some for the emotions they will evoke in viewers, and others because they are humorous,’ says Laura – who has held staff positions at Vogue and Vanity Fair and was creative director of Revlon Cosmetics worldwide, before she threw it all in and moved to Dhaka. ‘If it wasn’t for generous sponsorships from Siemens and Bangla-Cat, this book would not have been the high-end production that it is,’ says Laura. ‘Akash’s photos do more than “capture a moment”,’ Laura says. ‘There is a richness about them. They have different combinations of emotion, expression, intensity, and composition. Many images are deceptively simple at first glance. Then as you look and study the image, it begins to unfold and engages you,’ she adds. ‘The other really difficult aspect of this work was writing the captions,’ Laura says, crediting journalist Reena Abraham, for the precise and evocative text that accompanies each photograph. First Light is being launched later this week and will be available at all good bookstores in the week of April 17.