By Willy Wilson | Aug 10, 2009

The Urban Angel: More Q&A session with Erna Dyanty

It isn’t easy to blend a heavy thought with simple objects. You did it well, Erna.
Thank you. However, I personally always find it difficult for a photographer to project what they see through a photo and at the same time have others feel the same way they do – but don’t get me wrong; this is actually what makes my work exciting! But just like any other art medium, there is a lot of planning involved in photography work.

Tell us why you choose to work with photography.
As I said earlier, I like the idea of capturing unrepeated moments. And the medium itself is a very challenging tool, although now with digitally-enhanced cameras and image-editing software, the camera skill isn’t as important as it used to be.

Do you think photography will be still significant in the future, given how much we are obsessed by everything mobile?
I think photography will still be significant. The reason why people enjoy photography is because it is still and immobile. Yes, the obsession towards everything mobile may affect the way the younger generation look at photographs. But I don’t really see how it could make photography insignificant.

On the other hand, photography is going through an interesting time in the 21st century. With the advancement of digital technology in cameras and photo editing, photography has now become an accessible leisure pursuit for everyone. Grasping spot on photography technique is not the only necessary skill needed for a photographer anymore. Now photographers need to acquire techniques of light room developing or photo editing. There is more room for experimenting with different ways of composing a photo before it is shot, and this challenges individual creativity.

What do you make up on the advancement of digital technology in photography? 
Digital technology has paved way for photo manipulation to be the next best thing in photography. It has become a new art form that both commercial and fine art photographers have embraced. However viewers and collectors may be wary that when photos are in digital format, images are easily reproduced in large numbers, and that consequently there is no true value to a digitally enhanced photo compared to a hand-developed one. There is a need to convince the public that although technology has taken over the format, photography is still a unique art form and each photo taken is never alike. The value of a photo resides in what it represents and not in its quantity.

Check out Erna’s work on www.vwfa.net/CUT/erna.html

Erna’s more recent exhibitions include NYKL - Landmarks of New York and Kuala Lumpur at The Annexe, Kuala Lumpur and Through Two Views a photography program in collaboration with National Art Gallery Kuala Lumpur, directed by her mentor Alex Moh.

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