Portfolio Review #1 was organized by Matca for the first time on the 1st of July with enthusiastic participation of 6 budding photographers. The purpose of this get-together is to create a safe space where photography practitioners can share their ongoing projects and receive feedback from Matca team of professional photographers as well as other participants. 6 projects introduced at Portfolio Review #1 are showcased below, and the link to apply for Portfolio Review is ready here.
Tra My is studying fashion design at university. Picked up the camera not so long ago, My still has some confusion about how to execute her ideas as well as how to sequence her photos. She brought to Portfolio Review #1 two series with different styles: one about the 3-year relationship anniversary of her two close friends and another about her little cousin.
Her photos are emotional and tender. At the moment, My is only following her intuition, not paying much attention to composition or capturing necessary moments to create a narration. Matca suggests removing a few photos to condense the story and keep taking a lot more pictures to add to the missing pieces.
Mai is an office worker but has great passion for photography. She takes street photography like no other: unlike common pictures where people are the center, architecture and environment shine in her works. Her project challenges the established definition of street photography.
Her photos are also separated into two series with two different visual styles. One is a sweet series with vibrant colors and lights, somehow reminding us of “A Little Bit Of Blablablah” by Dinh Nguyen. The other shows streets without human presence. We love both series, but suggest pursuing the latter to differentiate her work from commonly seen styles.
Phong is studying Photography at Hanoi Academy of Theatre and Cinema so he already has a strong foundation. His photos are carefully composed and shot at the right moment. He shared two projects, one is about old housing compound in Hanoi and the other titled “By The Water”.
Stories revolving around old housing compound in Hanoi are exploited a lot in many art forms, his approach does not present an unique viewpoint so we are not particularly impressed. However, “By The Water” has the potential to be a really exciting series with a different approach and visual style. Matca sees that he may only be trying to find random moments to shoot and has not set out a plan to further the series.
Phuong is studying at University of Fine Arts. He first used photography three years ago as a way to record images during field trips. His first series was meant to document changes in culture and people in a remote village in Ha Giang where Phuong frequented. Heavily influenced by travel and landscape photography, the series has not fully conveyed his initial idea. The other black and white series, however, has stunning visuals that shows his experimentation and what could be his own voice. Phuong should also consider integrating his background of painting into his photographic series.
Huy is a commercial photographer who is struggling with his first personal project about pedestrian subways in Hanoi and finding his own voice. Among the photos Huy brought to the portfolio review, portraits of young people in the subway clearly stood out because of the facial expressions, light and composition. Utilizing his edge and pursuing the series by taking only portraits could be a different approach to a familiar topic.
The architecture student started taking photos of moments in daily life and also shooting portraits of his family and friends recently. Looking at his works, we could recognize his diligence and constant effort to make works, but perhaps it’s because he rushed that his photos were only of fleeting moments. We suggest Tu slowing down before pressing the shutter and looking at Vietnam Street Photography Group on Facebook, a familiar source of inspiration that he could learn a lot from.
