Text by Charlene Winfred. Photos courtesy Tang Chun Cheuh. Tom White contributed to this article
It’s been about three weeks since Parallax’s inaugural community event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We were very fortunate to partner with the great folks at Zontiga photography hub, who generously offered their cosy venue for the evening, and also with Vignes (Vig) Balasingam, Obscura Festival‘s director. All in all, we had a blast at the Parallax-Zontiga-Obscura Evening Of Conversation.
Ian Teh and Tom White on photography in a time of environmental crises
Kicking us off was Ian Teh. World Press Photo judge, National Geographic contributor, photojournalist and documentary photographer, Ian has worked on projects with some of the world’s largest media outlets and agencies, telling human stories within the most important environmental and social issues of our time. Ian spoke with our Editor-In-Chief Tom White about going from working on documentary in general, to working more closely on projects related to climate and the environment. They discussed how being informed, researching in depth and building frameworks around projects helps make the work happen, and how being in service of a cause, partnering with people such as NGOs and institutional researchers affects the role of the documentarian.
The conversation rounded off with Ian’s latest work in the lush jungles ringing greater Kuala Lumpur, and how vital their biodiversity is to the health and wellbeing of the people in and around this area. Ian came to this project — Line of Least Resistance — from his personal appreciation of the same environs. As a committed outdoorsman who lives in KL, this is a landscape that is very much close to his heart. Involving a team (of which Tom is a part) this project is an ongoing work in progress supported by National Geographic. Stay tuned!
Annice Lyn on photojournalism and advocacy
It’s hard to think about Malaysian photography and not have Annice Lyn come to mind. A highly commended photojournalist who focuses on sport for major international media outlets, she’s covered both the summer and winter Olympics, co-founded the Women Photographers Malaysia community, and of course, photographed Red Hongyi’s art on that memorable cover on TIME magazine’s Climate Is Everything issue. Annice spoke to Vig about how she came to photography, how her work and approach have changed over the years in the business, and her journey in the industry.
She spoke passionately and at length about life as a working professional and as a human being with a camera, and the importance of making time and finding funding for personal projects alongside assignment work. Annice reminds us that the classic role of the photojournalist – reporter, advocate, storyteller – is still essential, and she chooses to wield the enormous power of the instrument in her hand as a force for good.
Zarif Ismail and Hafiz Hamzah
After a short break, we were back with Hafiz and Zarif. Vig was on fire at this point in the evening and asked a string of questions as Zarif took us through the creation of his book Rekah Fajar (Rift of First Light). As the recipient of the 2022 Zontiga Photobook grant, Zarif worked closely with designer and publisher Hafiz and it was clear that this process was about more than selecting which images would go into the publication, and how it would be designed. It was an ongoing dialogue about many things to do with their lives.
We were brought to a place where photography can mean something deeply personal, becoming inseparable from the photographer’s own engagement with their unfolding personal history. What we then bring to that as viewers as we negotiate the pages creates the connection between us and the author, and each other.
In many ways this was the theme of the evening. Everyone who spoke from the front cares enormously about what their photography is trying to do in the world, and in this sense, is a testament to the power of the medium. From their histories to affinities and corresponding motivations, we got to hear personal stories of how the photographers came to do this work, and how they continue to tell the myriad vital stories in ways that only they can. It was an insightful evening for everyone. As photography continues to become mundane, casual and throwaway, manipulated through AI and thrown into social feeds and chat apps, we occasionally need to be reminded of how it can inform and move us personally, socially, politically. As Annice said of getting her dream gigs photographing the Olympics — working at that level means years of constant slog, but it also gives her the privilege of sharing in people’s lives, and getting to share their stories with a wide audience. As a room full of engaged people might tell you, this is priceless.
We could not have done this without you
The room was packed. Photographers, writers, artists and people from all walks of life came to hear our guests speak. If you joined us that evening, thank you for making it a success! The good folks at Zontiga assured us that they’ve never seen their space so crowded. Many people hung around afterwards to look at books and chat, to catch up with old friends and make new ones. At some point, remembering that we were hungry, a big group of us went to the mamak across the road to continue chatting over maggi goreng and teh. We did, however, have to wait with grumbling bellies as our Editor-in-Chief bought copies of Zarif’s Rekah Fajar and Api Husien’s Mencari Rumah Untuk Pulang, getting them signed for, in his words “Yorkshire’s first Southeast Asian Photobook library.”
Community is everything.
We couldn’t have done this without the efforts of everyone in Zontiga, and huge thanks to Vig, the night’s emcee. Kudos to our featured photographers for the work they do, and shining a light for the rest of us. And thank you to Chun, whose fantastic photos of the evening grace this post and our social media accounts (hire him!).
Can’t wait to do it again.
See you all next time!
Charlene Winfred is a photographer, media producer, writer, editor, humanitarian and a raft of other things in-between / around. Born and bred in Singapore, she has spent over two decades working and travelling as a photographer in Australia, Europe and North America. Prior to returning to Singapore in 2020, Charlene worked with refugees and internally displaced people in northern Iraq for a US aid organisation. She is passionate about community, and in her work as a producer and editor, has championed important social issues, supporting practitioners in the field to tell stories of those most in need, as well as those making an impact. Much to the chagrin of cat people like Tom and Matt, she really likes dogs.
