Nicosia, Cyprus. Kadir Kaba says a chance encounter with a camera at the age of six began a lifelong interest in photography that took him from his birthplace in Mora to London and back to Cyprus. He is now recognised as both a photographer and a leading expert in the history of Cypriot photography.
Early interest
Kaba, now 79, said the first camera he used belonged to Hamid Ucok, a Turkish Cypriot villager visiting neighbours in Nicosia. Ucok, who owned a bar in Vasilia and was interested in photography and filmmaking, showed him how to use the camera.
Kaba said the experience made a strong impression on him, but he did not use a camera again for many years.
London years
He later moved to London as a young man, intending to study accounting, and first worked on improving his English while taking language classes and working at a dry cleaners.
He said his employer owned a Russian Zenit camera and lent it to him one day, after which he began photographing people and street life. He then bought his own Zenit camera on an installment plan for 15 pounds, paying 1 pound a week from his 35-pound weekly earnings.
Building a career
Kaba said he became deeply involved in photography, improving his darkroom skills and later working as a darkroom printer for the Turkish Cypriot studio Wedding Bells in Finsbury Park. He then enrolled at the School of Photography at Paddington College.
He said the course was inexpensive and gave him access to darkroom facilities, paper and chemicals. He added that although his English was limited, his teachers valued his questions and curiosity.
Recognition
While studying and working part time, Kaba continued taking photographs in London and said he hoped to become a photojournalist, influenced by Henri Cartier-Bresson. He graduated in 1981 and became a member of the Royal Photographic Society.
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