Young and ambitious, Fatima Al Showaiter is making a name for herself in photography. Rabis. M from London talks to this creative girl.
A t 16, Fatima Al Showaiter has proved her talent for photography, bagging a number of awards from organisations in the UAE. The Bahraini girl from Sharjah is the only daughter in a family of six. "A beautiful, loving and understanding mother and father and joyful energetic brothers," she says.
From Fatima to FAS
FAS - as she likes being called, it's the short form of her full name - has studied in a number of schools; she started off at an elementary school in Ajman, then transferred to The School of Research of Science during her fourth grade and continued at the Al Ittihad Private School in Dubai, from where she will graduate soon. Her interests include photography, human sciences and politics.
How it started
"I never expected myself to be a photographer some day, but it's destiny," says Fatima. "I always thought I would be this famous politician. I used to enjoy watching news with my father. I was more intrigued by the BBC and CNN rather than cartoon channels. I was born at the start of the Gulf War and I have been watching TV since I was one day old; I watched Saddam Hussain and George Bush senior and the fireworks yard that he turned Iraq into.
"When I turned 12 I became interested in filming events and occasions; so my parents bought me a new camera that had a snapshot option in it. Suddenly, I noticed that I had more snapshots than videos and the shots weren't all that bad. So I started nagging my parents to buy me a camera.
Photography at school
When I was admitted to the Al Ittihad Private School, they had a system in art lessons, where the student has to choose either painting or photography and graphic designing. I opted for painting but soon noticed that I wasn't as good as Picasso, so why should I even bother?
"In my eighth grade, I started taking art lessons. As a photography student, my teacher was an excellent cheerleader; she's always supported me, along with my mother, to pursue my photography hobby. They gave me the opportunity to display my photographs on every occasion. My parents have always taken me out for photoshoots, either to the beach or to countryside. They would wait for me to take my best shot and then send me back to take another if it wasn't that good."
"By 10th grade, I had already started participating in the school's art fairs. Well let's be frank, I had the most number of stands to display my work. When I was in the 11th grade, I participated in lots of photography exhibitions in my school and in other places and other countries, where I was exposed to a great number of talented teenagers and senior artists and professional photographers. I am looking forward to our next year's school art fair."
Competition
I don't feel challenged by others; there are a small number of young photographers here, who are outstanding and challengeable. Nevertheless … when I am around the press and senior photographers, they just pump [me up, giving me] more energy, imaginative power and ideas to take more photos."
Major achievements
"I have participated in several local contests such as Shaikha Latifah's competition and some online contests. I have created an identity for myself. I found what makes me different from others my age. It's a wonderful feeling when elder members of my family and the society give me respect as a grown up and treat me as a gifted young woman."
Scope for improvement
"I will be participating in more contests worldwide. I am also registering very soon for professional photography courses. I would love to participate in more exhibitions and show my artwork and ideas to the world."
Future
"Photography for me is going to be a side-by-side thing, along with a permanent job. I am hoping to be a cardiac surgeon. With strong faith in God's will, I will be what I want to be. Oh yes, I will also possibly open my own photo gallery, as soon as I graduate from high school."
Professional photography
"I never joined a photography club but I am a member of online photography communities. I read many self-help books and travel for photoshoots more often. During the summer of 2005, I bought my first professional camera a Canon EOS 300D. That's when I felt I was a real photographer."
What I shoot …
"I would often take photographs of shells, dead trees; a sun cropped into halves and a baby's hand, all that was really fun."
A photograph to me …
"I study every object before taking its photograph. It's not simply taking an image, it has more to do with how an image is telling a story, the whole juxtaposition is very important. It's more like bonding with my camera; this may seem odd but I talk to it during the photo shoot and I even get disappointed with it, when I get a bad shot."
- The writer is a freelancer correspondent based in the UK.
