Hi Ayhan, it’ s nice to meet you. You’ re living in Turkey, tell us about life in Turkey, what do you do for a job or are you studying?
I live in Istanbul. I have a Business Administration degree, after finishing my masters degree in Australia, I completed my PhD on Organizational Behavior. I work as a trainer, professional coach and university instructor. My work is basically about listening, understanding and communicating with people.
How did you get started as a photographer?
I was always interested in photography and cinema, but did not actively take pictures. The only exception is a short period in my late teens when I had a SLR camera and was interested in taking portrait shots, but that lasted only a few years. So, basically my creativity had a long winter period until 2 years ago, when both of my parents died in the same year. It made me realize that nothing is repeated in life, that moments have a special soul which can only be experienced as they happen. This event had a profound impact on my photography.
And how would you describe your photography?
I try to see the stories that are hidden in fleeting moments. I try to spot and highlight the poetry in what feels to be mundane at first sight. I’ m interested in contrasts, unusual behaviors, hidden links, near misses, accidental encounters because they add to my story telling.
My subjects are usually people who are on the move, who are experiencing a moment that will disappear in a few seconds.
I especially care about their emotions, whatever they are at that moment. But my favourite theme is the feeling of freedom, where you feel constantly moving and evolving, knowing no borders or attachments.( or sometimes people who lack that kind of freedom) I quite often use symbols like birds, sea, sky, floating hair, wind etc because they remind me of that sense of freedom.
I have to ask, tell us about the birds that often play a role in your photos...
Istanbul has a huge bird population. They are literally everywhere, hovering above your head in every street. Birds were a forced choice at first, because they usually photobomb your pictures. But soon I picked up on the qualities that they add to anything they fly past. I love birds because they symbolize almost everything about my photography: freedom, wisdom, motion, emotions, grace. I can’ t imagine living in a city without many birds.
What areas in Istanbul do you like to photograph in? Why..?
I love spending time in Karaköy, Eminönü, Galata, Beyoğlu. Because almost nobody actually lives in those neighborhoods, the people there come from all walks of life for a temporary purpose with the intention to go back home at night, so you see lots of contrast and drama; since its near the sea, there’ s excitement or sometimes total indifference in people’ s faces, people’ s faces talk; the walls are talking too, with many layers of texture and graffiti; it all adds to my themes.
A lot of your photos also feature the ocean, is this something that draws you?
We call it Bosphorus, basically it’ s a strait, like a giant salt water river going through the heart of the city. It is constantly flowing, moving the waters from one side of the earth to the other. There’ s also an undercurrent which pushes the waters back in the opposite direction. The Bosphorus also attracts northerly and southerly winds. When I take a boat ride along the Bosphorus and breathe in the fresh breeze, I imagine the air that fills my lungs came all the way from Scandinavia, it touched he hair of a kid playing on the beach, or went through dark enchanted forests, it helped a seagull soar and now it’ s in my lungs. It gives a sense of“ borderlessness”, a sense of constant motion and collision. I believe it shapes the character of my people, and it also shaped the character of my photographs.
Browsing your Instagram feed, you have a gift for capturing moments. People relating to each other, living life, and your post processing style is very different. Talk us through how you go about taking photos and then what happens at the end of the day when you are finished shooting.
I’ m interested in people. I can look at a crowded street and immediately spot a person that has potential for a story. Then I get my camera or phone ready and wait for them to do something interesting. And they usually do.
When shooting, I set aside all my worries about composition, framing, timing etc. These are all worries of the mind and they can all be fixed later. I only concentrate on seizing the spirit of that moment, which can only be done by seeing from the heart. I trust my gut feelings and give the controls to my fingers rather than my mind. My fingers autono-
77