Street stories
Roaming the streets of Kuala Lumpur, a team of photographers capture fleeting moments and candid expressions, writes Izwan Ismail
THEIR presence on the streets of Kuala Lumpur, especially in Petaling Street, Pasar Karat, Bukit Bintang and Chow Kit on weekends, has become a common sight for the people who live and work there.
Armed with cameras and smartphones, this group of street photographers who call themselves Fotografi Jalanan Malaysia (FJM), has been roaming these streets for the past seven years, looking for unusual and unique photos.
They do not merely take photos of people on the streets but those that are carefully planned, composed and with a story to tell.
The group’s head honco, Mohd Afzan Abdullah, says street photography is an art and it appeals to the creativity in the photographer.
Looking at the members’ street photos (available at www.facebook.com/fotojalananmalaysia and www.fjmcollective.com) it seems that all of them have a story to tell or some sort of connection to the photos.
“We are telling people about the uniqueness of Malaysia through street photos while educating enthusiasts who want to venture into street photography,” says Afzan, fiddling with his mirrorless camera at a mamak restaurant in Petaling Street one Sunday morning.
This restaurant, located at the junction of Central Market in Kuala Lumpur, has been their meeting place every weekend.
“Normally, we’ll meet at 8.30am, have our breakfast and take street photos till afternoon,” says Afzan, who is also known as ChotTouch in the street photography community.
FJM, which was established in 2010, has close to 23,000 members throughout the country, making it the largest group of street photographers in Malaysia.
The group has also become a regular exhibitor at Kuala Lumpur Photography Fair (KLPF) for several years. Members works have made it to many local and international online competitions.
WHY STREET?
Afzan, who started photography in 2008, says street photography is a unique genre.
The 40-year-old former oil and gas man says taking photos on the streets gives him peace of mind.
“That’s how I started. Whenever I felt pressure from work, I would go down to a nearby park for a smoke. I used to see many people, including tourists, taking pictures of the surrounding areas such as the Twin Towers. It prompted me to give this hobby a go.”
It’s not the landscape or the magnificent buildings that interest him but the people at the venue, he says.
“People’s reactions tell stories and the photos can be very interesting if you know how to capture them,” adds Afzan.
After two years, he established FJM after realising that many people liked street photography.
As there were no YouTube, Facebook and other social media to learn from at the time, much of the information about street photography came via the trial-and-error process and photography books.
“I started with a dSLR and a zoom lens as I was not used to taking photos of people from a close range like how street photographers normally do,” he says.
During FJM’s early days, Afzan organised talks at local universities that offered photography courses.
These days, he has seven administrators for the FJM Facebook and web pages. They help him with selecting and approving street photos sent by members.
TAKING THE PHOTOS
Street photography can be challenging, which makes it more interesting.
“This genre is not like landscape or portrait photography where you can expect what the end result will look like. Even though you roam the same streets and alleys over and over again, the pictures and stories will always be different,” says Datin Maureen Jafrey, one of the administrators.
Maureen, who has been taking photographs since the film era, says the street is like a big piece of puzzle.
“The challenge is how you interpret what you see and capture it. Four photographers may be at the same corner of the street but what they capture may be totally different,” she adds.
“You are the author who will tell the stories from your perspective. It needs a lot of thinking and there are always stories behind it,” she says.
“You only need skills like composition, slow shutter, flash usage, etc, which can be learnt from more experienced members.”
For Shamsull Bakhtiar Jamran, another administrator, besides looking for stories to tell, one can create good street photos based on the things he or she sees, for example, patterns, colours, light and shadow, advertisements, people’s actions and even animals.
“Sometimes you just don’t know what you’ll get on that day until you hit the street,” he says.
What he likes most about street photography is that it can be done regardless of time and weather.
While most members meet on weekends, some do it almost every day after work.
“We will normally start from Petaling Street at 9am and proceed to the many alleys and roads around the area, including Pasar Karat,” says Shamsull.
Normally, the group will end its activities around noon with some staying till evening. They will conclude with a drink and discussions about the day’s activities and photos.
ACTIVITIES
“We also organise bigger monthly outings where we welcome new members,” says Afzan.
“Our upcoming outing is an all-female street photographer walk. We welcome more women who would like to venture into this genre. It’s a hands-on platform for them to learn about photography,” he says.
Afzan says social media has been a key enabler to FHM activities as all its members connect and communicate through the Facebook site and Messenger tool.
“It’s hard to imagine managing such a big group of photographers without social media and the communications tools that come with it. It’s also a platform where we announce our activities and discuss the photos we take,” he says.
Having a presence on social media has also made FJM’s presence known to companies and government agencies.
“We are also invited to organise photo contests by Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL), the Youth and Sports Ministry and GoBus,” says Afzan.
For those who would like to venture into street photography, he has this advice: “You need to have passion and patience as you will spend a lot of time on the streets in search of the right moment and never
give up,” he says.