Asim Victor has always enjoyed playing sports, so it’s little wonder that he is now pursuing a career in physiotherapy while honing his skill in photography and hoping to one day become a sports photographer.
His passion for photography, he shared, was birthed through a period of loss. While in fourth form at Queen’s College (QC), he lost not one but several of his close friends. It was following their passing that Asim and his other friends realised that they didn’t have many, sometimes no pictures, with their late friends. They vowed to take more pictures with their dear ones for memory’s sake.
Asim then often found himself behind the camera instead of in front of it. It became his new interest and soon enough he was filling up his Motorola Razr phone with pictures. Many of the pictures he took featured activities of the members of the Scout Association of which he was also a member. The photos, Asim recalled, were grainy but the phone was all he had to take pictures with, so he made the most of it.
He later upgraded to a ‘point and shoot’ camera, but about 18 months ago Asim was given a DSL Nikon D750 camera. Some months prior to receiving it, he had been doing research to find the most suitable camera and learnt about the various settings of a number of cameras. According to the photographer, by the time he received the Nikon, he had more than a fair idea how to use it. Yet there were some things to learn, like figuring out the shutter speed, learning about DSO (deep-sky object), and reducing shadows and glares.
“Only started seeing some money recently,” he laughed as he explained that he’s still trying to cover other photography expenses like memory cards, lighting equipment and other necessary gear. He said he never realised he would need these things until he began following top tier photographers on social media. He added that in paying attention to their work, he learnt the functions of the necessary equipment and understood the importance of making the sacrifice to get them in order to produce exceptional work himself.
A self-taught photographer, Asim has to date covered birthdays, photoshoots and several parties.
Some of his photoshoots were as a result of parties he attended with local entertainers. Asim said he saw the need for entertainers to be professionally captured and has been doing photoshoots featuring professionals in the local arts.
Asim has his heart set on sports photography as soon as he can manage to purchase the necessary equipment to embark on that venture, including more powerful lenses and a tripod.
Growing up Asim played table tennis, cricket, football, did some swimming and was a track and field athlete. He also played badminton at QC though he never joined the Badminton club.
According to the sports enthusiast, there were times when he or his friends were injured and they either had to deal with the injury themselves or visit the doctor if they were serious. They were not aware that there are therapists who specialise in rehabilitation therapy for athletes injured while playing sports.
A third-year student at the University of Guyana, Asim looks forward to the day he gets to embark on his physiotherapy career.
“I’m content where I am today; not satisfied. I know I have the potential to do more…. I’m happy with what I have been able to achieve so far, but there’s still more and I think this is but the scratch of the surface,” he said.
One of his inspirations in the field of photography is to Mike Gray, an American photographer, whose preferred medium is a film camera. Asim noted that through following the photographer, he learnt that Gray started out in photography about the same time he did and is making great strides. He is also inspired by Peter McKinnon (Canada), Mario Devon and Fotos by Fabe (USA) and Alexander James (Barbados) who is the designated videographer and photographer for DJ Puffy.
The local photographers he admires include John Greene, Troy Parboo, Keno George, and Yura Stephens who he has worked with in the past covering an event and who gave him some tips. Of Stephens, he added, “Pretty cool guy too.”
Asim does portraits, events and lifestyle photography. He also hopes to take up product photography in the near future. The photographer shared that over the past months, night photography has become a new interest, but he has been unable to embark on this.
Asim recalled trying to get started last year and heading out to the beautifully lit Main Street hoping to take some candid shots of people going by but when he arrived, there were no people to photograph.
Being a photographer sometimes means taking risks to get the perfect shot. There have been a number of instances when Asim has done so, including the time he risked his precious equipment on choppy waters. “There was this one time I was on a speedboat and we were passing a bigger boat. From where I was sitting I couldn’t get the shot. The boat I was on had a shed, so I needed to get on the outside to take the shot. I ended up going outside where the captain was while the boat was [manoeuvring] choppy waters. I got the shot and was pleased about it at the moment but as soon as the adrenaline left, I started to take it [the photo] apart. I’m my biggest critic,” Asim said.
It has been less than two years since he took up photography professionally, but Asim is hoping to expand his horizons. He said that he’s going to dream, he intends to dream big. Asim hopes to have his work someday recognised by National Geographic or shoot for one of the fashion shows in France or Austria. He is also looking to someday create a photo book and/or documentary featuring Guyana, shot and produced by himself in collaboration with Netflix.
Photography, he posited, has been taking him places and he anticipates that one day it will take him to Kyoto, Japan, a place known for its splendid cultural and nature attractions.
Asim hopes photography will put more of Guyana out there. However, he believes that part of the reason Guyana is still to blow up internationally, oil aside, is because Guyanese are not appreciative of the arts. He also believes that photographers should be more enthusiastic about sharing Guyana. More, he said, can be done as it relates to ensuring that budding photographers in developing communities have somewhere they can go to find information.
For now he remains motivated through his small circle of supporters like his wife, his mother, DJ PressureT, DJ MixMaster Tony, and his god brother, Fairbrian.
Besides photography and sports, his other loves are curried chicken, stewed chicken and quinoa, and pumpkin and roti.
In his downtime, Asim enjoys reading. Among his favourite books are 48 Laws of Power, and Tribe of Mentors by Tim Ferriss. Currently he is reading The Sugar Barons by Matthew Parker. Along with reading, Asim, a huge Xbox fan, also loves playing video games.
Asim’s work can be followed on Instagram @viking_murikame or he can be reached via WhatsApp at 608-1003.
