BORN and raised in a small village in Magwe division in upper Myanmar, Kyaw Kyaw Win had no opportunities to learn photography.

“As my parents are just agricultural crops cultivators, they didn’t know what photography was, and they didn’t want to encourage my enthusiasm in photography,” said Kyaw Kyaw Win during his first solo photography exhibition at Alliance Francaise, which shows until May 29.

Kyaw Kyaw Win with his photograph Wun Yay (Livelihood) at Alliance Francaise.

Nonetheless, his father bought him a small, Chinese-made camera, and Kyaw Kyaw Win’s career in photography began.

“As that was a small camera and the lenses were not good, I wanted a better camera. But I didn’t have money to buy a good camera, and my parents didn’t like my interest. I had to continue my university education as they liked,” he said.

He joined the Mandalay Technology University and now is in his final year as a civil engineer student.

During a holiday vacation he saw an advertisement for a photography training course organised by the Myanmar Photographic Society.

“At that time in 1998, I had only K5000 in my hand,” he said. “With K5000, I came to Yangon. The course fee was K5000. So I begged the president of the society to reduce the fees in half for me. And I stayed at a monastery.”

When he attended the course, he did not have a good camera. He borrowed one.

“I won prizes in a photo contest without my own camera,” he said with a smile.
During the photography training course, the lectures of artist Pan Chi Soe Moe motivated him to have more interest in photography.

After the course, he returned home to his village. Between 1998 and 2000, Kyaw Kyaw Win continued taking photographs, but with his small, Chinese-made camera.

In 2000 his parents reaped 960 grains of sesame from their farm. They gave the sesame, which was worth K180,000, to Kyaw Kyaw Win to buy a new camera and a pair of lenses. He bought a Nikon FM 10 camera in Yangon.

Telling about his first good camera, Kyaw Kyaw Win also expressed his gratitude to his parents.

“Without their support, I can’t do what I want to do. Though they didn’t agree with my hobby at first, they now give me full support.”

He said that in some of his photos the models are his parents and his family. In addition to his relatives, Kyaw Kyaw Win photographed scenery and daily activities during his trips to Mon state, Kayin state, and Pyin Oo Lwin.

To cover his expenses, he used what he made from photo contests.
“I won three years in a row at the Myawaddy photo contest, and all the awarded money went to my expenses on photography,” he said.

Whether or not his photographs earn him money, Kyaw Kyaw Win said he will continue to put his heart into his work.

At his solo show last week, he exhibited 30 photographs. He said that he put his effort and energy into each one, but he felt particularly strong about Wun Yay (Livelihood), in which he captured a spider about to catch a dragonfly in his net.

“To get this photo,” he said, “I put the dragonfly on the net of the spider, and then took the photo. The title means that even for the animal, the livelihood is very important – so they eat each other.”

However, Kyaw Kyaw Win also said that he was not completely satisfied with the show, a result of having limited funds.

Well-known photographer Nyaung Oo Pho Cho also said that if Kyaw Kyaw Win could spend more money and show large photos, the show would be better to see and appreciate.

Photographer U Htin Lin (Golden arrow) said that if the photographer could use the highest quality camera and lenses, the quality of the photographs would be better.

Despite their suggestions, many members of the Myanmar Photographic Society and the photographers said they welcomed the energetic and hard working Kyaw Kyaw Win and saw him as an up and coming photographer.
On what he plans to do next, Kyaw Kyaw Win said his dream is to open a photo gallery and create photographs of international standards.

“I want to try to let the whole world know about Myanmar’s beauty and sceneries,” he said.