The BOP Conference 2019: Meet Some of the Panelists.
The Business of Photography Conference is scheduled to hold on Tuesday, April 30, 2019 at Landmark, Event Center, Lagos. It promises to be bigger than the maiden edition. The maiden edition which took place on Tuesday, April 24, 2018 opened its doors to over One thousand five Hundred participants who learnt all about the basics of the business of photography, the challenges and the solution to the many challenges.
The 12hour event will start at 9am and end at9pm. The conference will feature five segments; the Opening, the Conversation (panel session), Break out time (master classes), Cocktails/Networking and Exhibition. During the conversation segment, attendees would have the opportunity to listen to and chat with award-winning Nigerian photographers as well as business, finance and strategy professionals from other discipline about the future of photography in Nigeria and how we can help shape it.
The Business of Photography Conference is aimed at bringing Photographers, photography manufacturing and servicing companies, as well as photography retail businesses together under one roof, to discuss, learn, exhibit, sell and buy everything photography. In recent times, the need to monetize the photography industry and define its future, as a major part of the current and future national revenue generation sector, has become important.
This year’s edition themed “Shaping the Narrative;” has a fantastic line up of panelists:
George Osodi
He’s an award winning internationally acclaimed Nigerian Photographer. His photographs range between photojournalism and artistic documentary, and he has worked on various photography projects globally with his works exhibited in several Museums, Biennial’s and in institutional Art Spaces, such as Documenta 12 in Kassel, Germany 2007, a Participant of the 2015 Venice Architectural Biennale, as part of the Canadian Pavilion.
A first prize winner of Fuji Africa photographer of the year 2004, and winner of a Sony world photography award 2009. He participated as a juror of World Press Photo competition in 2016. Osodiߣs works are in the collections of various Museums around the world,among which includes the Smithsonian U.S.A, Newark Museum U.S.A, National Museum of Greece, Museumslandscha Hessen Kassel in Germany, Modena museum Italy, ADF collection in Paris, Ford foundation Lagos Nigeria, Martin Margiles Collection, Miami, US and a number of private collections.
Osodi is the author a photography book “Delta Nigeria – The Rape of ParadiseÉD;. He has also held talks at various Museums and institutions globally including Columbia University, New York U.S.A, Indianapolis University U.S.A, University of Wales, Newport, UK, Pan Atlantic University, Lagos, Nigeria. National Museum of Contemporary Art , Oslo, Norway, EMET, Athens , Greece, 2010 and the Internationonal Slavery Museum Liverpool.
Bernard Kalu
He’s a documentary photographer based in Lagos, Nigeria; his work is inspired by a passion to explore life and humanity.
Photography is drawing with light and he’s adopted it as a tool to not only tell stories but preserve today for the future. Bernard began working in photography in 2014, exploring street documentary and creative twists to wedding photography- with Verteller Studios. He is a certified canon master storyteller, first runner up in the 2017 NatGeo portfolio review and has been on assignment with a number of organizations within and outside Nigeria. To mention a few, #MyMakoko project by NBNL, Respiratory stories for The Lancet, African tourism project by MyAfricanPassport Inc. and so on. Also he’s a very passionate tutor/mentor to a good number of upcoming visual storytellers.
He had his first exhibition early 2017 at the Revolving Art Gallery.
More recently, he has begun focusing on raising awareness about environmental and social issues in his home country, Nigeria.
Reze Bonna
He’s a trained architect and multi-award winning photographer, recently being awarded Best Fashion Photographer Africa 2017 at the Abryanz Style and Fashion Awards, which held in Kampala, Uganda 2017 and The Fashions Finest Awards, Lagos 2018 amongst others.
His work is featured in several international publications including Vogue Italia, GQ, Architectural Digest, Menshealth etc and featured in CNN, Fashion One, Fashion TV, Spice tv, with his images currently exhibited in the Grammy Museum as a part of the African music section. He has worked with personalities like Bill Clinton, Goodluck Jonathan, Roberto Cavalli, The late Franca Sozanni (Vogue Italia), Suzie Menkes, Kirk Franklin, Piers Morgan, Janice Dickenson etc.
He runs photography outfits in South Africa, The USA and Nigeria, servicing a number of the agencies in the countries. He is currently the official photographer for the AFI Cape town and Johannesburg Fashion weeks, Mens health Magazine Fashion show, David Tlale Brand and also for The Intern by David Tlale, and formerly been the official photographer for the Arise fashion Week in Nigeria, and has covered Fashion Weeks in London (LFW), Lagos (LFDW, MMR, AFW, GTFashion weekend), Dubai (Arab Fashion Week) and South Africa.
He has a gift of finding beauty in everyone, and a persona that easily puts his subjects at ease. His inspiration from art and architecture, and the principles of it, like Form and Function, Light and shade, shapes, flexibility, strength of material, and perspective, are expressed strongly in his work. Pi88He is a founding member of the group REZolution which is a collective of creative photographers and a member of the Camera Club of Johannesburg, and the Professional Photographers of America.
Akintunde Oyebode
He’s a trained Economist, passionate about sustainable development, sustainable finance and youth unemployment. He began his career as a Research Assistant at the Lagos Business School, and spent over a decade in various banking roles with First City Monument Bank (FCMB) and Stanbic IBTC Bank. Akin is the pioneer Executive Secretary of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), established to provide financial support to residents of Lagos State, for job and wealth creation and to tackle unemployment. His key focus at the LSETF is on promoting entrepreneurship by improving access to finance, strengthening the institutional capacity of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and formulating policies designed to improve the business environment in Lagos State. Prior to his role as Executive Secretary of the LSETF, Akin was the Head of SME Banking at Stanbic IBTC Bank.
He’s a professional wedding and portrait photographer and was born in Kaduna. He was raised in Kano and Lagos,but frequented his ancestral home in Offa, Kwara State until his departure from the country when he was 19. His Architecture degree which he started in Minna, Niger State, at the federal University of Technology, Minna, was completed at the University of Greenwich in London.