Oh, hey; you’ve found me! Thanks for stopping by.

Hi! My name is Humayun, and, I love light.

I love the stars; so far away, yet so bright.

I love the landscape; the pure and the untouched.

I love people; with their untold stories written on their faces and the secrets in their eyes.

I collect light from all of the above, and turn them into memorable and lasting images, such as my examples above.

Vision

• On the stars: to make you think about and appreciate the Universe in which we happen to find ourselves in;
• On the landscape: to transport you to the location(s) they were made in. It doesn't matter if you know where the place is, or isn't, as long as you can envisage yourself standing at the same spot that I did when I pressed the shutter, then, my job is done; and,
• On people: to capture the soul and the essence of my subject; to make a connection that is free and open, that leaves nothing hidden from the eye.

My hope is that my humble images leave an indelible impression upon you, my audience. If you decide to purchase a fine art print (contact me at humayun DOT qureshi AT gmail DOT com), it is the ultimate thank you and compliment that I, as an artist, could ever hope to achieve.

On Steem, I hope to share my images, tips, techniques, processing tutorials, and so on, as time affords.

History

I was an emerging member of the AIPP and have been involved in photography in one form or another for over 20 years. Starting with my father's Pentax SLR shooting black and white film in high school; I purchased the Canon EOS 300D when it was first released in 2003. Over the years I have accumulated high-end Canon 35mm professional systems which I used for both my landscape and portraiture work. I still shoot film using a Mamiya medium format system. Recently, I decided to sell my photography gear to invest in cryptocurrency. My goal is to return to photography with a digital medium format system such as the new Hasselblad H6D. I haven't sold any of my film gear, and, look forward to getting out whenever I can and shoot the old way. ;)

For several years I used my Canon systems for astrophotography, including a modified* Canon EOS 40D, which helped me produce some exceptional images. However, I moved on to using a dedicated SBIG STL-11000M CCD camera.

*modified means the inbuilt UV/IR filter is removed and replaced with one that allows the red light from hydrogen-emitting nebulae

I hold a degree in computing science (majoring in natural language processing), and, enjoy the technical challenges of imaging the night skies in equal measure with the creative opportunities that the genre affords. Astrophotography is a combination of both the technical and creative mind and therefore lends itself to being the ultimate geek challenge and pursuit!

A cancer survivor, my eyes were opened to the world after beating this insidious disease in 2006. I stopped taking the world around me for granted; I started appreciating the littlest of things in daily life. This newfound awareness also opened the doors to landscape photography to me and I fell in love with light for the first time. At the same time, faced with my own mortality, I started to ponder my place in the Universe. I had always been a fan of astronomy, but, I was now able to purchase a telescope and all the associated bits and pieces to start taking photographs of the heavens. Capturing the light from distant stars and celestial objects; light that has taken millions of years to reach us, has a very deep and profound effect on me. The realisation of the grand insignificance of our existence in the vastness of space seemed at odds with the miracle of life here on Earth. I digress. I love making pretty pictures.

I love to share my work and information on photography techniques, equipment and more with fellow enthusiasts on online forums, and, whenever possible, in real life -- preferably in the middle of the night under a clear sky!

Get in Touch

Feel free to to say hello, comment on my work, ask me about private one-on-one or group workshops, about my wedding and portraiture work, about purchasing prints, or, anything, really!

Much love, light and peace,
H