Ismail Niyaz Mohamed

Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?

Back in the year 2001, during the development of tourism promoting Interactive CD/Website, as an aspiring photographer, I always wonder how the professional photographer’s stands out from the rest, how their lenses seem to get the perfect perspective, and just how they seem to capture all the perfect moments. It’s then I realized that specializing in photography would make a brilliant impression on my publishing work. That’s when I decided to branch out to photography. With passion, and much learning I uncovered obsession for the art and through knowledge they combine all the elements to a degree of perfection! After photo training in 2003 at Singapore’s photographers association, I landed my first break in the world of photography, with my publishing and marketing experience, I landed a job - a full time contract with Six Senses Maldives for Soneva Resorts. While working with Japan based wedding planner (South Pacific Bridal Group - SPB), I learned much about the industry.

Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?

I’m A freelance photographer who specialize in wedding photography, real estate photography, food photography and landscape photography. I have been in this field for the past 19 years.

What is "design" for you?

Design is not just a plan or a drawing. Design is involved in every aspect in life. The universe is an example of on absolute design.

What kinds of works do you like designing most?

I like Landscape photography and real estate photography. It is a more challenging work as per my experience.

What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?

My favorite project was for a local guesthouse in Maldives, where we had a photo shoot in a sandbank with models to promote excursions for tourists. It was an interesting design setup made like a traditional Maldivian boat wreck on an isolated sandbank. It looked like a castaway experience.

What is your favorite material / platform / technology?

I use Nikon Capture NX-D to convert RAW files and use Adobe Photoshop and Lightroom for editing them.

Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?

Research, Planning and actualizing the projects in a timeframe. Have to focus on location, decide the best time for shooting and of course the technical side of it, mainly the camera settings, image focus, lighting etc. basically the whole project when I’m freelancing.

What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?

It’s a good feeling to deliver projects as it benefits individuals, companies and organizations.

What makes a design successful?

Passion, determination and planning will make designs successful.

When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?

Aspects that I would consider are, the purpose of the design, does it serve the main purpose, does it give the right message, creativity and quality and ease of use.

Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?

I live in the Maldives where the main income generates from tourism. My line of work mainly focuses of tourism promotion of the country. The pros of working in Maldives are that there is a lot of demand for design works such as photography, graphic design with less professionals to deliver the jobs. It is not that hard for a professional to penetrate into the market. The cons would be, Design industry is still very young in Maldives. Clients, organizations in most cases tries to cut down on financing, payment which results in hiring cheap and unprofessional designers.

Can you describe a day in your life?

Wake up at 5 in the morning, catch a flight at 7am in the morning to a nearby resort. have a 2 hour shoot, edit and catch back return flight before evening.

Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?

Work with passion, determination and discipline. Never give up. Believe in yourself and work hard.

What skills are most important for a designer?

As a photographer one needs to know all about the functions of the camera, editing software, communicating with clients.

Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?

In my bag I have 2 DSLR bodies, lenses, speedlights. I carry my laptop for editing most of the times as to save time. I use Adobe Lightroom and photoshop.

Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?

Start editing as soon as I finish shooting, procrastination builds up post processing work which will make it tough to deliver on time.

How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?

It depends on the project. For wedding photography I’m used to deliver within 2 days after shooting. Whereas, for real estate photography it could take upto a month to deliver after shooting.

Who are some of your clients?

Gili Lankanfushi Forever After Pvt Ltd Atmosphere Resorts JW Marriott Soneva Resorts Jumeirah Vittaveli Jumeirah Dhevanafushi

Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?

Most of the time I work alone as a freelancer, but I do work as a team when required.

How can people contact you?

I can be contacted through my email (me@ismailniyaz.com), my instagram @ismailniyaz or my mobile +960 7782306