Discovering the art of monochrome photography, where moments come alive in elegant simplicity with photographer Rafique Sayed.
With over three decades of experience, numerous accolades, and a myriad of unique yet captivating captures, Rafique Sayed is renowned for his exquisite mastery of black-and-white photography. He truly stands as a master in the realm of visual storytelling. In a conversation with Vidhi Arya from Professional Beauty India, Rafique Sayed delves into the intricacies of his vision and the profound thought process that establishes him as a prodigy in the domain of photography.
We asked Rafique Sayed about his idea behind black-and-white photography, and how he makes it work in the beauty and fashion industry which is saturated and obsessed with colour. He told us:
Every artist has a medium of photography. I have chosen black-and-white. I think black-and-white is something that lasts forever. Colour has cycles of saturation and desaturation. Black-and-white photos, on the other hand, go on forever. People still remember such photos taken nearly 500 years. They consider them masterpieces.
Initially, I used to tell people ‘I am colour-blind’ and it used to shock them. That was until I explained to them it was a joke. I cannot explain to everyone that black-and-white is a medium that’s appreciated all over the world.
Globally, if you will see galleries, you will realise they hardly have coloured works. They mostly have black-and-white pieces. And, those sell as they have everlasting value. People really appreciate it
With a hope to discover his creative process, we asked Rafique Sayed how he collaborates with his subjects, If he allows them creative space or if he works with a concept in his mind. He explained:
I am a conceptual guy and I create my own ideas. Usually, I like to choose models, makeup artists, and stylists. And many times, I don’t have a stylist because I like my photos simple.
I don’t want anything to ever go overboard. I like simplicity. I used to have 20 lights. Now I have 10, but I use still use one light at the shoot. And, people always want to know how I use one light to create a black-and-white picture. I don’t want to say if anything I do is good or bad. I don’t judge my own work because I am still struggling to get good work out of me.
We also asked Rafique Sayed about his quest for the perfect work. What will count as a perfect shot for him? To this, he replied:
Buddha has reminded us of three beautiful things —observation, awareness and containment. The first two things are very important for a photographer. Third, however, is the most dangerous. Once a photographer is content, the growth comes to a halt. A photographer should be always observing, s/he should be always aware. Whether it’s in a street, or while driving, or while travelling — always. Being aware and absorbing the surroundings can help recreate the concept through photos.
There is no way one can rate their own photo as good or bad. It’s always the viewer. One should not just look at a picture, one should feel it. A viewer should study an artist because their journeys add a story to every photo they click.
I cannot say ‘I am great’, but I have an undying passion to create something every day. I shoot a lot, I shoot more than four days a week. But, I am never satisfied. One thing about me is that whenever I finish a shoot, I come back and think I could have done it better. This thought process is what keeps me going to do better every day. And another thing I believe is one should always be humble and full of humility because that keeps you going. Not knowing is knowing. So I always believe in a very simple thing that I know nothing, and I am going to learn till I live in this world.
We also spoke to him about how over the last 30 years, photography in the beauty and fashion industry has seen so many changes. With the involvement of sophisticated technology, reliance on editing and filtering has heightened. He expressed his take on the same and said:
I like my pictures to have a character. Without that, the picture is going to die the next day. Beautiful pictures are looked at and they remain in the memory for a short span. However, a picture with a character is going to last for years. You remember the picture of the Afghani girl by that famous photographer. It still remains in the memory of people. That’s because it has a character.
Today, everyone wants everything to look beautiful — the model, make-up, and setting. That’s okay, but why is nobody looking for character? Your picture without the character is nothing.
