Last Updated on 08/06/2024 by Chris Gampat
“As I rekindled my relationship with photography, I found that it allowed me to reengage with nature – a core value that had always been close to my heart,” says Surf Durrani in an interview with the Phoblographer. “Initially, my photographic expeditions were limited to a couple of weeks each year, brief interludes in an otherwise busy life. However, these moments of connection with the natural world left a lasting impact.” Surf (his real name is Sarfraz) had a bit of a rekindling with photography after taking a break from it due to medical school.
All images by Surf Durrani. Used with permission. For more, please visit his website and Instagram.
Around 15 years ago, Surf’s son was born, and he picked photography back up again. With the encouragement of his wife, he began exploring his passion again. Sometimes, all we need is a stable support network to plant the seeds of our passions.
Right before the pandemic started, Surf went to Tanzania and fell in love with the African wilderness. With his camera in hand, he truly feels alive and engaged again. “The majestic animals, the sweeping landscapes, and the intricate dance of light and shadow all spoke to something deep within me,” he describes. “It was then that I realized how much sustenance photography and nature provided to my soul.” This time, he wasn’t using the Yashica film camera he used at age 16 — he went digital. Surf uses a Nikon Z8, Z7, DJI Air 2S drone, 70-200mm f2.8, 24-70mm f2.8, 14-24mm f2.8, and 180-600mm f5.6-6.3 lenses. Most of his work is done in Lightroom with only a bit of Photoshop. His work draws influence from folks like Sebastião Salgado, Steve McCurry, Micahel Kenna, and F. Dilek Yurdakul. Plus, he loves the work of Monet and Van Gogh.
But because of his upbringing, he realized that gear is just a tool to help us realize our creative visions. “The tool should be good enough to meet your needs but shouldn’t become the primary focus of your energies,” Surf explains. “When you have the right gear, it becomes an extension of yourself, allowing you to concentrate on creating rather than wrestling with technology.”
With a humble beginning, he had to make do with less. But pressure makes diamonds — and Surf’s stared in awe at the diamonds he saw in National Geographic and Life magazines growing up. With this background, he learned how to carefully make images on film.
“…those initial attempts were some photographs that I still cherish to this day, snapshots that captured the essence of my surroundings and marked the beginning of my photographic journey.”
During the pandemic, Surf’s life became incredibly stressful, but he channeled his feelings into better images. He calls this a blessing in disguise.
This period of restriction taught me a valuable lesson: great pictures don’t always require exotic locations. Beauty can be found in the most ordinary places if one has the eyes to see it. Moreover, this time allowed me to develop my own unique style, free from the influences of travel and tourism.
Surf Duranni
Of course, Surf takes much inspiration from other visual media — like so many other photographers these days. “In the age of social media, it’s impossible not to be influenced by prolific content creators,” he states. “Photographers like Nigel Danson are inspiring a new generation of landscape photographers, and I’ve learned much from their shared knowledge.”
Keeping this in mind, he too feels the concerns of many with generative AI imagery. Surf believes we need to establish clear distinctions. “AI-generated images, while impressive, are fundamentally different,” he states. “They create new realities based on aggregated human experiences, more akin to painting without the manual skills traditionally required.”
He also believes in the power of the lived experience vs the generated one. And for him, it’s a way of life beyond a hobby or artistic outlet.
AUTHENTICITY STATEMENT
The Phoblographer works with human photographers to verify that they’ve actually created their work through shoots. These are done by providing us assets such as BTS captures, screenshots of post-production, extra photos from the shoot, etc. We do this to help our readers realize that this is authentically human work. Here’s what this photographer provided for us.
