Gender Gap – Mobile phone use for women
Use of mobile phones for women in rural areas of developing countries. An assignment for Mensch Creative.
Use of mobile phones for women in rural areas of developing countries. An assignment for Mensch Creative.
Role: Cinematographer
Independent short film by the director Sahar El-Etreby.
Starring: Yasmeen Najmanova – Alla sarıoğlu – Ebru Çömlekçi
Role: Cinematographer
Independent short film by the director Sam Tinati.
Architecture & Lifestyle Photography, rental vacation house in Ayvalik, Turkey.
Manzara Ayvalik: manzara-ayvalik.com
Scenes from the streets of the very cosy historical village of Sangan, Khorasan,Iran. Simple life, hospitable people, and very happy children!
For 4 or 5 weeks every fall it’s the Saffron season in Iran. I was blessed with the opportunity to visit Iran at that time and learn a lot more than I thought I would learn about Saffron. To be honest, before my trip all I had known about Saffron was that it is the most expensive spice on earth! Why? I didn’t have a clue!
Check the Saffron blog post for more information.
Istanbul doesn’t see snow except for a very few days every year. That’s why there is a completely different energy & mood in the streets when it is snowing. Everybody starts to through snow balls at each other, kids starts making snowmen, and who;e families are out in the street celebrating it.
While for the past century lots of people around the world migrated from small villages to big cities seeking education, careers and money, I try to set the spot on the village life in Turkey. It’s my way of remembering how simple life is a few kilometers away from the big cities.
While on a road trip around the Marmara sea. I encountered these lovely farmers taking their sheep and cattle out for a quick meal and dip in the beautiful lake “Kuş Gölü” which means the birds’ lake. or as some people call it “Kuş Cenneti” which means “Birds’ Heaven”.
A group of Syrian craftsmen came to Istanbul as a result of the current situation in Syria. They didn’t bring lots of tools or blue prints with them, but they surely brought their talent and experience. Settling down in Istanbul is a challenge by itself. On top of the language barrier, low wages, high prices, having a family to provide for makes it harder. It is even more difficult when you have a son that needs expensive medicine, and this makes you leave your country and family in order to be able to afford it.
For two or three weeks a year; when it’s Sugar Beet season, A few families gather in this small place to create some delicious molasses from their sugar beet crop. Three generations work together as a team, where the grandmother gives assertive instructions and all others follow. Some of them sell it, while others keep it for themselves and use it till next year. Molasses with Tahin is a famous breakfast dish amongst Turkey.
Cappadocia “Kapadokya” or the land of the beautiful horses is definitely one of my favourite places in Turkey. The Volcanic rock formations give the landscape a very original and uniques personality that you cannot find anywhere else. On your visit to Cappadocia don’t forget to visit at least one of the fascinating underground cities, go on a hot air balloon ride and prepare to be amazed, but most importantly stay in a cave hotel to have the full experience.
When I first visited Istanbul in 2013 I was fascinated by the architecture, especially in mosques. In this project I am exploring, not just architecture in mosques, but trying to capture the spirit of mosques in Turkey. Documenting the architecture, people and events are all part of it.
Here are some works which have been awarded in national and international competitions, or have been featured in catalogs, newspapers, blogs or magazines.
Sometimes you stumble upon unique moments that crack you up, here are some of mine 🙂
Here are some shots from my travels all around Turkey
I have always been fascinated and interested to learn more about handcrafts. To me, when something is done by hand it is far more valuable and has much more character and soul than machined stuff. This is an on going project where I document some of these fascinating craftsmen whenever I stumble upon one of them.