A Perfect Dance Photo?
Of course there is no such thing. Well,
beyond that. It’s not just about probabil-
that was a short article!
ity. It’s about so many other factors - the
mood of the dancer, the mood of the pho-
By: Maani Vadgama, London based writer and photographer,
It’s just like those vacuous questions
tographer, the audience, the lighting, the
also a patron of the Belly Dance Art
such as - “What’s your favourite book?”.
chemistry between dancer and photog-
Unless you’ve only ever read one book
rapher, the props, the sincerity of both
the question is impossible to answer. Just
protagonists etc...... I instinctively know
like books, images are far too diverse to
when a dancer is feeling confident or has
narrow down. The diversity and subjec-
a rapport with the audience.
tive appeal of images negate any possi-
bility of identifying one single image as a
Props are a very important factor to me.
favourite.
Veils, wings, sticks, skirts and the like, al-
low me to create images that focus on
But maybe what I’m trying to identify are
the dancer yet provide pillars and corner-
the elements that contribute to an image
stones that suggest movement (I hope
that flirts with perfection. Trying to under-
the images in this article provide proof of
stand the ingredients that are imperative
that).
to achieving the pinnacle that dance pho-
tographers endeavour to realise. Those
I’m a messenger. However, I want to be
attributes that photographers strive to
the best messenger I can be. The only
bring together in order to capture that
way that I can do that is by immersing
timeless image that all can identify with
myself and understanding the art that I
and would want to view over and over -
am attempting to document. For that un-
never boring of it. This is where dancers
derstanding I thank dancers, my friends,
and photographers celebrate together.
my heritage, my love of music, and my
heart.
In my line of work I encounter other pho-
tographers who bore me senseless with
discussions about “Aperture”, “ISO”, “Ex-
posure” .... blah blah blah..... Yes! I have
no idea what they are talking about ei-
ther. What they seem to have complete-
ly forgotten about is the romance, the
beauty, the passion. I’ll give you a dance
analogy. We’ve all seen dancers who are
technically magnificent, yet they leave us
cold, not that enthused. Conversely, I’ve
seen dancers who are not that capable
but whose performance I’ve enjoyed im-
mensely. Photography, like dance, is not
just about technique and technicalities.
It’s about being enthused and enthusing.
It’s about understanding the world that
you are in and introducing the audience
to it.
When your personal passion and joy are
undeniable they become irresistible.
© 2009 NAFOURA Magazine All rights
In our digital age anyone can take a good
reserved
photo. Take a million shots and prob-
Copying this article is not permitted un-
ability will ensure that you’ve registered
less with written permission by the Chief
a few good images. Yet, for me, it goes
Editor.
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