“LINGER YOU NOW…”

"There is no limit to perfection", Vitaliy Yevdokimov is never tired of saying. The celebrated photographer believes that the perfect photograph does not exist, because a true professional never stands on his laurels and every day opens up new horizons in his work. Vitaliy Yevdokimov was born and bred in Tashkent. He is a professional photographer who graduated from the Moscow Photographic Academy. He has been involved in many photographic projects, exhibitions and has worked with successful companies and publications. Vitaliy currently lives and works in Baku.

- Vitaliy, how did you come to be in Baku?

- I was invited here by my fellow countryman, the architect Hairat Baudinov, who was working in Baku at the time. While I was here I got to know your city and the people and I fell in love with it. Why did I decide to stay in Baku? I realized there were good prospects for development and business. Almost straightaway I started work on my speciality. I took pictures for glossy magazines, boutiques and restaurants and I started working with leading companies.

- When did you first visit Baku and what surprised you here?

- For me Baku is a city of contrasts. The eclectic of the East and the modern of Europe. It was this amazing combination that struck me from the time I arrived here.

- You were born in Tashkent. What do you think it is that distinguishes your native city from Baku?

- In Baku I saw this incredible combination of East and West. Here, it seemed to me, two completely different worlds united in a unique way. This is an unusual synthesis which I have not come across in any other city in the world. My native Tashkent is more eastern and predictable perhaps…

- What did you capture on your camera when you first came to our city?

- That would have been the Icari Sahar (Icheri Sheher) and the new Baku. I think that it is more important that the old city stays in my memory, because the capital is developing every year and it is very important that it preserves its history. Incidentally, I have always nurtured the idea of a photographic project linked with Baku and Azerbaijan and, God willing, I will be having a series of photographic exhibitions this year.

- If you were asked to take a photograph that symbolizes Baku, what would it be?

- (thinks for a moment) That's a great idea for my next photograph. For each one of us the symbols could be different. I would go for surrealism. For example, I have synthesized an oil derrick and a female figure. The result would be an unusual photograph, a combination between the real and a fantasy.

- You teach in a school of contemporary photography. What is the first thing you ask of your pupils?

- Regular practice. Everyone by nature is lazy. Sometimes we are too lazy to simply look around us and find something interesting and unusual in the most everyday situations and things. I urge my pupils to constantly work on themselves and their perception of the environment. Anyone can be taught theory. True professionalism can only be achieved through daily practice.

- How much time does a person need to learn how to take good and "tasteful" pictures?

- This is an individual thing. It depends on the photographer and his vision. But even if he doesn't have this "photographic intuition" it can be taught. If you constantly work on yourself, readjust your visual "focus" and see the world around you in a new way, then in a year to 18 months you will be able to take a fairly professional photograph.

- How did your photographic career start?

- By education I was a professional photographer. I graduated from the Moscow Photographic Academy. And it all began as it does with many photographers. In my first class my father gave me a "Smena" camera. The first thing I did was to take a self-portrait. I put my camera on the window sill, pressed the shutter and sat in front of the lens holding a book. Then I went to the library where I found a well-thumbed amateur photographer's handbook, wrote down the names of all the chemicals I needed to develop a photograph and asked my father to buy them. At home I printed the photograph and was terribly proud of it. I was so excited that I started photographing all and sundry. As time passed my childish enthusiasm grew into a profession. When I told my parents that when I left school I wanted to join the Moscow Photographic Academy Dad started to object, saying I should choose a steadier profession. But after a serious chat he understood and supported me. Our relationship has always been based on trust and he has always respected my opinion.

- How did life develop after you graduated from the Photographic Academy?

- After the academy I worked at the Tashkent Central Photographic Studio. The first publications in Uzbek and Kazakh were there. I did reportages for the local press. I did photo sessions for many large banks. I even taught photographic posing in model agencies. I worked with many well-known advertising and model agencies. I began to have my first exhibitions. In November 2004 I had my own first exhibition devoted to the 75th anniversary of the Navoi Theatre. And a year later my own exhibition at the Ilhom Theatre called "Other Portraits". I took part in an exhibition in Paris during the "Uzbekistan: yesterday and today" event. And also, with the well-known designer Denis Davydov, I had an exhibition "Vibrations" in the Museum of Contemporary Art in Paris.

- A photographer possesses special vision. I wonder how you perceive this world?

- In various ways. I try to find an unusual nuance in every ordinary thing. I look at the same things from different angles. For example, people often look down when they are walking and don't raise their heads, but I do it all the time.

- Where would you be if you decided to take the ideal photograph? And what would it be?

- One of my favourite expressions is "there is no limit to perfection". Therefore my ideal photograph is always yesterday, but today one is trying to discover new horizons in one's work. I cannot exactly describe to you what my ideal photograph would be. It all depends on my mood. Today I like to play around with drops of water, but tomorrow, for example, I might want to photograph the sunset or take a fashion photograph. I love all kinds of photographs and I don't get stuck on anything specific. In our business there are no concepts of an easy or a difficult photograph. It all depends on the difficulty you place before it. For me it is more important to catch the idea. In photography, above all, the idea, the thought is critical, and each chooses his own technique according to his taste.

- What qualities should a professional photographer possess? What should he be able to do above all else?

- For me, first and foremost, it is the ability to think creatively and not by numbers.

- Which of the well-known photographic masters is for you a real professional? Whose works do you consider to be works of art?

- I am very fond of the work of such masters as David LaChapelle, Helmut Newton, Annie Leibovitz and many others. They have very unusual photographs. In work the idea comes first, and that is the most important thing in good photography. Photographs should not be empty. They must carry an idea.