By: Jasim Ashoor [Instagram]
Walking around Melbourne I came across a scene that inspired an idea in my mind that I knew I wanted to capture on a larger scale; in a city that can be found full of life at any time where there will always be somewhere to go and something to do, I often felt alone.
I wanted to showcase my perception of desolation in the sense of emptiness in a city that seemed to be anything but. My goal with this series was to capture an environment with life just out of reach, just around the corner – waiting to be found.
The scenes in this series portray a seemingly lonely world. Largely uninhabited but with a pocket of life, a splash of colour on a blank canvas.
A testament to the overshadowing theme of desolation in a living, breathing city.
Equipment Used
- Fuji GW690II
- Kodak Portra (400 & 800)
- CineStill 800T
Coming from the Canon A-1, a 35mm SLR, I knew I wanted to stay within the realm of film photography when searching for a new camera but I wanted something that would give me a challenge. For the same reason I switched from shooting digital to film in the first place, I wanted something to reignite my interest and creativity in the medium. I often found myself taking photos of anything that seemed even slightly interesting as a last-effort attempt to fill up all 36 frames of a roll just to feel as though I hadn’t wasted any shots. In the process I got bored of taking what felt like the exact same photos of inner-Melbourne every single time I’d go for a photo-walk.
Going with the Fuji GW690II I knew I’d be giving up the luxury of a small, light-weight camera with a built-in lightmeter and the ability to interchange lenses. I was looking for something that would force me to slow down significantly. With only 8 shots to a roll and a painfully slow lens I refused to take a photo unless the scene in front of me was practically screaming to be captured.
A medium-format camera with a lens that produced incredibly sharp and detailed negatives is exactly what I needed to take photographs that should take me hours of searching and preparation to capture and complete a single roll of film.
If you enjoyed the photographs in this set, you can find more of Jasim’s work on his Instagram account here: LINK.