In this digital era, the entertainment industry has morphed into one which cannot survive without the work of photographers.
The advent of social media has caused the need for stars to distinguish themselves from usual citizens and has subsequently made professional photography services a necessity for any artists’ branding budget.
The art of photography is not just about the tool, but the technical aspects like posing and composition.
Bash Mutumba
In light of the above, we caught up with Bash Mutumba, a Kampala-based photographer, to enlighten us about his experience in the fast-growing industry.
MBU: Big man, how are you doing? Actually, first off, tell us about yourself, who is Bash Mutumba?
Bash: Haha! Actually I’m a skinny man, but anyway, my name is Bash Fahad Mutumba. I was born on June 6th 1996 in Mengo Hospital, Kampala. I am a photographer, poet and digital content creator.
MBU: How did you discover your love for photography?
Bash: Honestly, I loved photography from childhood, but I never saw myself doing it as a career till much later. My dad was a photographer in the nineties — I guess I picked it up from him subliminally.
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MBU: When was your first time operating a camera?
Bash: I first operated a camera when I was about 12, before digital cameras were popular. It was a point-and-shoot film camera gifted to me by my dad.
MBU: At only 12, that’s really powerful. So, did you know any technical stuff at that tender age? And how did you grow yourself into this big brand you are today?
Bash: As I mentioned earlier, it was a point-and-shoot camera, so the only technical part about it was keeping the film well aligned before shooting, and then mom would take it for developing in town.
About how it turned into a career, I was mentored as an apprentice in photography, videography and voiceover work, at Galaxy FM where I was working as a digital content creator. I later went under the wing of celebrity photographer Oscar Ntege, who taught me about literally everything photography: from posing models, to retouching and the business side of it. I regularly used, and still use YouTube as a knowledge resource too.
MBU: Which Ugandan celebrities have you shot so far?
Bash: As a photoshoot between me and them, Zari Hassan is the closest to my memory, most of the others are not Ugandan. However in other settings, I’ve shot images of Sheebah Karungi, Ykee Benda, Jose Chameleon, King Saha, Lilian Mbabazi, Navio, The Mith, Big Tril and many others.
MBU: With these very expensive phones that celebrities own, do they really still need photographers?
Bash: Hell yeah! The art of photography is not just about the tool, but the technical aspects like posing and composition. Also, phone cameras — however much they have great picture quality — are so far behind digital cameras in terms of things like off-camera flash and sensor size.
MBU: You mentioned you are a poet. Tell me about that.
Bash: I started writing and performing poetry in 2016, and grew the art at a platform called Kelele At Makerere. I’ve been at big stages like Open Mic Uganda and Uganda National Theatre for performances.
For the writing, I was first runner-up at Babishai Poetry Award 2016. I also signed a book deal with Kitara Nation in March 2021 to publish my poetry collection.
MBU: What of the digital content creator in you, what’s with him?
Bash: I have created digital content in form of articles and photography for Campus Bee, Galaxy FM, MTN Pulse and others.
I’ve also done influencer work for big brands like dfcu bank, MTN Uganda, NTV Uganda, Nile Breweries, Coca Cola, and many more. Basically, I’ve tried different trades and I am proud of every step of my journey.
Such a powerful and eye-opening conversation we had with Bash, and we can only wish him the best of luck in all his projects.