The Photo of Passion

Turkey is an important key attraction for photographers. According to me, the fact that a Turkish daily newspaper, Zaman, is gathering outstanding photographers around the world means a lot.

I mainly worked in Bursa and I observed the city, streets and people. I watched how people gathered every evening for sema (whirling) ritual at Dervish Convent of Rumi which was recently restored. The attendants were not professionals; they were occupied with different jobs. They were gathering here every evening and praying, attending sema ritual and reading books. I have been to Istanbul, Denizli and Mersin within the scope of this work. However, I wanted the photos I took in Bursa to take place on the project.

I generally choose my photography topics according to issues and regions that interest me. To me, it is important for a photographer to work on the field he or she is interested. What makes a project strong is its being launched for a large-scale goal. The photographer is responsible for reflecting the story honestly, completely and on time. What determines the work is the passion of the photographer towards the work. Passion is what determines the strength of the photo. If I establish a strong emotional relationship with my photography topic then I can come up with a successful result.