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L-R: Segun Olotu, founder and convener, TNC; 3 winners of the Canon & TNC Photography Mentorship Programme; Katie Simmonds, Canon Miraisha programme manager; Amy Anaiz, photographer & TNC ambassador, and Taiwo Adediran, Canon channel account manager, at the TNC18 conference in Lagos.
Wednesday, May 9, 2018 will remain etched in the minds of Dauda Idris Abiola, Rebecca Nwose and Olasubomi Adeyemi, three young Nigerian photographers who emerged winners of the maiden edition of the Canon & TNC Photography Mentorship Programme in Lagos.
This is as each of the three winners, who were announced at the just-concluded The Now Collectives (TNC) photography conference in Lagos themed ‘Bigger and Better’, got an EOS 1300D Canon Camera with EF-S 18-55mm & EF-S 50mm1.8 lens with camera bag and memory card.
In addition, each of the winners will work with a mentor over a period of one year to develop ideas and concepts for a project that they will work on for the duration of the programme, and will also receive financial support towards their project. At the end of the one-year programme, each mentee will have a body of work that will be exhibited at TNC19.
TNC, an initiative of Segun Olotu, UK-based multiple award-winning photographer, is an annual gathering for photographers to connect, share, learn with other colleagues in the industry, be inspired, enlightened and broaden their skills. The conference, which debuted in Lagos last year, came bigger and better this year as Canon, the world renowned manufacturer of imaging and optical products, stepped into the game to throw the weight of its support behind the annual event.
The Canon & TNC Photography Mentorship Programme, an endeavour geared towards fostering young and talented photographers at the beginning of their photographic careers in developing their skills in visual storytelling, comes as a part of Canon’s collaboration with TNC.
Katie Simmonds, Canon Miraisha programme manager, who announced the mentees on behalf of Canon Central and North Africa (CCNA), alongside Taiwo Adediran, Canon channel account manager, and Amy Anaiz, photographer & TNC ambassador, said the goal of the mentorship programme was to attempt to give the young photographers an all-round idea on how to run a photography project from start to finish with the end-game of having a body of work that can be exhibited, thereby helping to push their careers further.
Simmonds described TNC as a platform which “showcases, celebrates and connects the rich and diverse industry” which Canon works in, saying it was a momentous occasion for Canon to join the photo and video community in celebrating the massive pool of creative talent across Africa.
“We stand here today affirming our commitment to this region, as partners of The Now Collectives,” Simmonds said. “As the budding new generation of creatives meet here to be enlightened by all the wonderful speakers who have passed through the conference, who are broadening our mindsets, giving us new ways of thinking, and sharing technical skills, whilst enthusing your creative juices to take you to the next level, Canon is here to say that we see tremendous potential in Nigeria and we highly value our involvement in this growing market.”
Leke Alabi Isama, documentary photographer and filmmaker, Nyancho NwaNri, visual storyteller, photographer and filmmaker, and Segun Olotu, TNC founder and director, were also announced as mentors to guide the mentees through the one-year journey, while David Ajayi was also picked as a dedicated business mentor to work with the mentees.
“The mentors will help to guide the mentees through researching and writing proposals and grants, through to advice and guidance when shooting, to making crucial edits and understanding print workflows,” Simmonds said.
Speaking to newsmen on the sidelines of the event, Segun Olotu described TNC18 as “great and successful”.
“Last year was just a tip of the iceberg. This year has been huge. We have had a lot of support, we have had a lot of feedback which we will be sharing out on our social media platforms soon. And also the collaboration between Canon and TNC has been great. We are looking forward to an even bigger and better TNC19,” Olotun said.
On how the winners of the mentorship programme emerged, Olotu said ahead of the conference, TNC had put out a call for photographers to submit an image in order to be selected as a participant. A panel of judges assessed over 500 images that were submitted and selected 20 participates who attended a Canon training workshop on camera skills and creativity. Based on their portfolio, enthusiasm, and engagement, TNC and Canon then selected the three final mentees.
For Rebecca Nwose, one of the mentees who said she didn’t have a camera to work with before now, it was a euphoric moment as she expressed heartfelt gratitude to Canon and TNC, saying the camera and the mentorship programme would spur her to greater heights.
“Initially that was my first challenge. I didn’t have a camera and I kept borrowing other people’s. But now I have one, it means I am going to do better, I’m going to put in more effort and more work,” Nwose said.
#TNC17 saw many speakers coming from other parts of the world, including professional photographers Christelle Rall, Chad Pennington, Gabriela Matei and Marius Tudor, Beena and Anil Tohani, Amy Anaiz, Richard Beland, and Mauricio Arias.
This year, speakers were also carefully selected from a vast pool of internationally-acclaimed photographers from around the world. They include Tom Saater, Nigerian-born documentary photographer and short-film maker, who spoke on “Project Development and Ethics”; Andra and Marius Dragan, who spoke on “How to Develop Your Business Photography”; and Keith Major, one of New York’s most talented and productive commercial photographers, who spoke on “The Marathon: Be in for the Long Haul”.
Other speakers include TY Bello, Nigerian vocalist, song composer and photographer; Kevin Ouma, Kenyan-born photographer and specialist in wedding photography and NGO photography; Sergio Kurhajec, editorial, commercial and advertising fashion photographer, Segun Olotu, convener, TNC, and Sabina Miladin, who spoke on “Shoot the Moment”.
The two-day event also featured live shoot demonstrations, moments of inspiration and critique sessions, all designed to spark deep inspirations and connections among the participants.
CHUKS OLUIGBO
