Saturday December 2, 2006
One-to-one photography
By Tan Lee Kuen
Portrait photography can be tricky business because it involves temperamental human beings. Fortunately, handling people is something Soraya Yusof Talismail does with aplomb, due in large part to her genial disposition.
A well-known portrait photographer, she has been photographing royalty, dignitaries and artists for the last 15 years. In her final year at the Mara Institute of Technology in 1989, she was appointed personal photographer to the Permaisuri Agung then, Tuanku Bainun, and has taken photographs of such figures as Britain’s Queen Elizabeth and the late Yasser Arafat.
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A portrait of Soraya Yusof Talismail. |
“There is no communication between you and your subject, and I love the interaction. It’s so much fun doing shoots with people,” she enthuses.
Her first portraiture commission was of the past presidents of the Harvard University Alumni Club. Her father had given her a loan of RM6,000 to buy the necessary equipment, and she bought a Mamiya RB600. Among the sitters was feng shui expert Lillian Too. Impressed by Soraya’s work, Too commissioned her to do a family portrait. Soon word of her talent spread.
In the early days, Soraya would cart a vanload of things to the shoot, experimented with everything and was technically fastidious. Finally, she realised it just tires out the sitter, so now she’s more relaxed.
“Don’t make it a habit that you neglect the sitter,” she advises. “I learnt a lot through my mistakes.”
From 1992 to 1997, Soraya was involved with an arts group called Matahati Garden of Art which influenced her work. During this period, she produced a lot of surrealistic-type photography before finding her calling in portraiture.
In 1999, veteran photographer Eric Peris approached her about doing the Petronas 2000 calendar. This sparked off her interest in black and white landscape photography, and she’s been pursuing it on the side since.
“I make money to spend on my art,” she says with a smile.
Soraya’s latest exhibition was called Angin, an exhibition on the traditional folk arts of Kelantan at the Petronas Gallery. It was a collaborative effort with her husband, fellow photographer, Mohd Arif Awaludin.
“It is our responsibility as artists to preserve the other arts,” she says.
She is also working on another arts project, compiling a book of portraits of Malaysian artists.
“I’ve been working on this project for the last few years. Artists do not always want to be photographed, but I think it is important we have some kind of documentation of them and their work.” W
| The “Malaysia @ 50 National Photography Contest 2006 – A Day in the Life of Malaysia” is held in conjunction with the country’s half century of nationhood next year and Malaysians are invited to send in photos that capture the Malaysian way of life. The best pictures will take the top prizes and, together with other selected entries, will be compiled into a book and become an exhibition in time for Merdeka 2007. The contest is organised by the Culture, Arts and Heritage Ministry, the National Art Gallery, Heritage Department and The Star. Sponsors are Nikon, Epson, Photo Creator, Click and Advanced Images. o For more information, e-mail malaysia50@gmail.com. For contest rules and regulations, visit www.artgallery. gov.my or www.thestar.com.my. The closing date is Feb 28, 2007. |
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