Today we were honoured to be invited to the opening of the “Karsh: Image Maker” exhibit running as part of the Karsh Festival at the Canada Museum of Science & Technology in collaboration with the Portrait Gallery of Canada. The exhibit showcases the works of the internationally renowned Canadian portrait photographer of Turkish and Armenian background, Yousuf Karsh.

It was extremely interesting to hear the keynote speakers, which included Mrs. Estrellita Karsh, but as photographers it was even more enjoyable to study the work of Mr. Karsh. The exhibit is very well organized and each piece of work is accompanied by a little anecdote about the circumstances, sometimes technical, under which the picture was taken.

One of the things Karsh was well known for was his use of light. In one of the videos that were playing at the exhibit we heard Karsh saying something to the effect of, “as a photographer it is your job to have an image in your head before you go about pressing any buttons to take it, and then to go after exactly and precisely that image”. Prepare and plan your shots. We have often found that it is equally important to study the light as it is to study the lack thereof (shadows) when taking a picture. Not all light is good, just as not all shadows are favourable.

With the advent of digital equipment these days, it is truly remarkable to perceive and analyze the work of the likes of Mr. Karsh as it is a great insight into the artistry of photography. It is also a stark reminder that even though equipment has become more readily available, and the ease of technology has the tendency to turn us all into trigger happy photographers, photography still remains, by and large, an art form. From a 100 men orchestra, to the 4 men band, to a person sitting in front of a laptop, instruments may have changed as may have the styles of music; but any instrument alone has never and will never approximate the creativity and genius of a human mind.

Towards the end of the exhibit there was this “camera room” with five lights (far left, front left, back, front right and far right) and five knobs that could control the amount of light coming from each source. There was a queue of people waiting to get their Karsh like image and a couple of exhibit volunteers working the knobs. The pictures taken were then sent to this computer where people could type in their email address and get the picture emailed to them directly. There was also a monitor where everybody could see the picture as the action was unravelling.

While everyone was getting their sit-on-a-bench-and-look-portrait-like pictures, we had a fun idea. We got Mehreen to sit down on the stool, while Asad (who totally undermined the aristocraticness of the opening night and showed up dressed in jeans and a hoodie, unshaven for 3 days and looking like he was there to mug someone) stood in the way of the far left light. We asked the volunteer to turn up the far left light all the way. We’re proud to say we got a little applaud from the crowd after our picture!

p.s. BTW, Mehreen was supposed to look scared. That’s why we stay behind the lens!