Photography the growing industry in Zambia

Photography in Zambia is quickly becoming the highly sought out and lucrative business, and rightfully so.  With various photographers being booked for large events, weddings, wildlife, landscape, corporate adverts and billboards and more. One can only wonder where the photographers have been all this time. The obvious factor being that, without the photographers; individuals, organisations and businesses would not be in a position to capture those special moments, or get their brand across to the vast clientèle they have today.

For the Global Zambian, this is an exciting time as it is long overdue for the arts of Zambia to be explored and taken seriously. Businesses need the arts as much as the arts need businesses, and if we are to look at the bigger picture, a country needs the arts to be on the same level as businesses in order to attract tourism and help generate employment and assist in the growth of the country’s economy. Dating back to the 1800’s photography captured the attention of many scientists and artists from the time of its inception. Scientists have used photography to record and study movements, such as Eadweard Muybridge’s study of human and animal locomotion in 1887. Artists are equally interested by these aspects but also try to explore avenues other than the photo-mechanical representation of reality, such as the pictorialist movement.

Military, police, and security forces use photography for surveillance, recognition and data storage. Photography is used by amateurs to preserve memories, to capture special moments, to tell stories, to send messages, and as a source of entertainment. High speed photography allows for visualizing events that are too fast for the human eye.

With such a rich history and platform to explore,  it is no wonder that the world can never be short of photographers, and Zambia is no exception. The global Zambian took a look at some photographers based in Zambia, and it was such a delight to find a vast talent in the motherland.  A few names we came across and the TGZ recommendations are as follows :

Patrick Bentley: A wildlife photographer who is not only based in South Luangwa but grew up in the remote area of North-Western Province of Zambia, where his passion for wildlife and photography were developed.

Stephen Robinson: Stephen Robinson first went to Zambia in 1975.  He came to Africa as a construction professional, but spent extended periods in Zambia’s Luangwa Valley as a walking safari guide.  His keen interest in nature photography grew from this.

Jason J Mulikita:  A Zambian artists with a passion for photography, aside from photography Jason doubles in web design. His photography is focussed on a variety of genres from lifestyle, to wildlife, to landscapes. Jason’s photography can also be found on the National Geographic, a great platform for wildlife and landscape photographers to showcase their work.

Enoch Kavindele Jr: Based in Lusaka, Enoch’s photography ranges from fashion, commercial, wedding, product, food, advertising and event photography. With a modelling agency to boot, Enoch is definitely not short for artistic flair when it comes to his model’s portfolios. His work has been utilised for Television and Billboard adverts all over the country by high end clients. Enoch has set a great precedence for Zambian photographers and we would be lying if we do not put our hats out to him for being a part of the movement that has paved the way for future Zambian photographers.

Vincent Banda: Self taught fashion, event and portfolio photographer is the proud owner of Kreative Kingdom, Vincey as he is known; is The Global Zambian’s one to watch following in the footsteps of the more prominent photographers listed above. With a knack for capturing a sense of mystery in his work, it is safe to say that there is a niche in the Zambian photography industry that is waiting to be snatched up by Vincey.

Edwin Chibanga: Edwin is the brain child behind the Ethan Kaed brand, a photography, video and graphics service that stretches not only in Zambia, but includes bases in Kenya and Botswana. Ethan Kaed comprises of several photographers with the main photographer currently being Edwin. As well as a great talent that he is, Edwin has provided a platform through Ethan Kaed that enables various photographers to work together on different projects and share ideas.

Paul Mfula: Talented photographer Paul, in our opinion never seems to miss ‘that moment’ in his photography. The saying a picture says a thousand words is definitely how you can describe Paul’s work. With every photograph, you can truly tell an entire story and that is what we love about this young man. As the owner of Pomac Media his services range from not only photography but Music videos, TV Commercials as well as movies, his work can be found on Billboards as well as the Zambian TV commercials.

Gareth Bentley: Lusaka based Commercial and editorial photographer Gareth has a love for Africa that inspires him to photograph its beauty, its hardships and achievements. Gareth found this to be a privilege as not many have the opportunity to be surrounded by such unscathed beauty and be able to capture those precious moments. Having worked on a large number of projects for major organisations, Gareth’s work has certainly not gone unnoticed.

Jamiel Banda: The multi talented designer, motion graphics artist, photographer, cinematographer, D.O.P , Vfx and 3D Animator Jamiel is a photographer based in Lusaka is and the head of production in the design and production department of Adlab Zambia. Jamiel, Whose work stands out to us due to its random nature, seems to capture the elements at the right angle with the right amount of lighting, giving us a view of what we only need to see nothing more and nothing less, and that is something to appreciate.

Peter Langmead: Social documentary photographer, Peter Langmead can only be described as a legend in the photography industry, and overall Renaissance man. Peter’s work takes photography in Zambia to a whole new level as his documentation really captures the lives of his subjects, providing that added inside look into the beauty of Zambian life and it’s people. Known for his book ‘Postcards From Zambia’ which is a reflection of his broad experience, and his observation and exploration of the Zambian culture between 2008 and 2012, and showcasing it in such a positive light. A true inspiration to us all not only in photography but the arts.

Having read our brief descriptions of the photographers in Zambia that have captured The Global Zambian’s lens. We would like to think that many aspiring photographers have been inspired or have at least been provided with additional knowledge on photography. There are a number of subjects you can focus on as a photographer, you could choose to focus on one, or several, and this all depends on where your passion and your eye lies. You could be great at taking portraits and completely awful at taking landscapes, normally this is what helps photographers discover what their “thing” is, you could have an eye for only specific genres or all, so long as you have that passion, those moments will find you, you will not need to go looking for them. You need to however be willing to put the hours in so that more people can find out about your work.

Below is a list of photography genres we extracted from Wikipedia, for those looking for even more diversity in what to experiment in with their photography, it is clear there are plenty of genres to go around. So let us keep inspiring by capturing those moments. TGZ

► Aerial photography
► Astrophotography‎
► Black and white photography‎
► Environmental photography‎
► Erotic photography‎
► Fashion photography‎
► Flash photography‎
► Landscape photography‎
► Nature photography‎
► Nude photography‎
► Photojournalism‎
► Pictorialism‎
► Social documentary photography‎
► Stock photography‎
► Vernacular photography‎
► War photography‎
► Wedding photography‎