This Festival is currently taking place at Expo Centre. It started on February 9th and is expected to end on February 15th.
Photography has come a long way and has been seen as a method of communicating visually. With the use of a camera, artists capture essences, places and people to tell intriguing stories and enhance the understanding of the world around us. Now that we have moved from daguerreotypes to roll films and from Polaroid to digital camera systems, it seems absurd to imagine that an image could have formerly required such a lengthy time to create when we can instantly shoot a high-definition picture with our phones.
African photographer Michael Aboya, 27, is currently showcasing “The Light Within” at the 7th edition of the Xposure International Photography Festival, to share his views on how people can explore the light within themselves.
According to Bored Panda, Michael is a self-taught photographer from Accra, Ghana. He was born and raised in Nigeria and, at the age of 13, migrated to Ghana, the country of his father. When Michael was studying software engineering in 2014, he started to develop an interest for the arts and photography. He lost his father to an illness and chose to pursue his passion of becoming a photographer since he understood that life was too short to spend it doing something he didn’t enjoy. Shortly after quitting programming school, Michael pooled all of his meager savings and money (which were intended to cover his tuition) and purchased his first professional camera.
During an interview with Khaleej times, he said that Xposure would allow him to learn from other amazing photographers and share the knowledge he has with others. “I believe that the more creators we have who share their stories with Light, the brighter the world gets – and Xposure is [the] perfect gathering to acquire the knowledge to begin or continue that journey in photography.”
In the interview, Michael discusses how he approaches lighting and composition when creating a photograph, the value of storytelling in photography and the tales he hopes to tell through his pictures, how he keeps up with the most recent trends and techniques in the industry, how photography led to a change of heart in his career, what he hopes people will take away from his photography, and how he strikes a balance between the creative and technical aspects of his work.
Aboya, also a winner of an award at the Worldwide Awards, stated that he thinks everyone possesses a small light inside them, which he refers to as a “gift,” and that he wants to help others discover themselves by bringing that light out through the exhibition The Light Within. However, he stated, “there are different expressions that help bring out that light such as dance, music, painting and photography, but I chose photography because it inspires others and helps them reach for the Light, and explore who they are.”
Aboya explained that his exhibition mostly displays photographs of children and women because they express the light much better. “The children are very expressive, as I don’t see in them different colours – just one person. When people get older, they get distracted by what is going on in society, and that light starts to dim out. But with different experiences in life, I realise that the light can shine again. So, through the light within pictures, I’m trying to help people shine and explore who they are.
We Go All in Head First, 80 x 64 cm, Felix Schoeller True Rag Smooth Matt 310gsm – Image courtesy of Xposure
About Xposure
Xposure is a platform for photography enthusiasts of all levels of experience learn, grow, and network. They offer various events, including photography talks in the auditorium, classroom and location workshops, focus groups and portfolio reviews. During the 7-day Xposure International Photography Festival, industry experts and many of the world’s most renowned and influential photographers attend to have the opportunity to network and share their work.
The Xposure photographic trade show is the perfect place to see the latest products and services, learn from the experts, and get inspired. Attendees get a chance to see the latest equipment and technology, learn new techniques, and discover what’s hot in photography.
