Red Bull Exclusive: Extreme sports enthusiast Naim Chidiac shares his passion for photography
Qatar Living has teamed up with Red Bull Qatar to bring you some unique content and highlight some of the unsung heroes behind the amazing work that goes into capturing the golden moments of some of the Red Bull athletes.
In the series, we'll showcase five of the best photographs selected by the photographers themselves. We'll also use the opportunity to get to know the photographers.
For our first exclusive, we caught up with Red Bull photographer Naim Chidiac to find out what inspired him to be an extreme sports photographer.
Q: Naim, can you introduce yourself for our Qatar Living followers aka QLers?
My Name is Naim Chidiac. I was born in Batroun, north of Lebanon on August 23rd, 1976. At the age of 17, I had the opportunity to work as an assistant for a popular photographer that helped me discover my passion for photography. I have clicking photos non-stop everyday since then. and learn something new everyday.
I have come a long way and the journey was not short of obstacles. However, I never gave up.
Here's five of Naim's favorite photographs he's captured during his career.
1. I chose this shot for several reasons - Qaher al T3ous is an amazing event, but it is hard to shoot as the track is huge and the sandy terrain makes moving around a challenge. You need to keep running and chasing the cars in order to get the best shot. In this shot, I was extremely close to action and the adrenaline rush I was experiencing was insane. Sometimes you need to be in the heart of the action and take risks to get the best shot.
2. The shot of Abdulla Al Tamimi : this photograph is special to me because I managed to create an amazing mood with just a camera and three tiny speed lights. When we travel abroad for a shoot, we are limited to the amount of equipment we can carry. In this shot, I decide to add a blue light using a filter in the background and lit the athlete with a warm light in order to get a nice contrast.
3. There's a small story behind this photo. I was assigned by Red Bull Qatar to photograph Mohammad. I was late for the shoot as I had a blown tire on the way to the location. The shoot was was scheduled for sunset and had a tight window of just 20 minutes. We managed to get the tire fixed and reach the location just in time. I had to run with my equipments and the athlete helped me carry some of the lights too.
One of the most difficult things in photography is the window of time you have to set up and start working to get the perfect shot. This was one of the 15 pictures I took that day in just 20 minutes.
4. Nasser in Dakar 2020 : It was my first Dakar Rally and in my 24 years of photography experience, Dakar is by far the most difficult event to photograph.I struggled quite a bit with logistics, but the end it was a great experience.
5: Finally, I chose a picture from Red Bull Air Race because it is another extremely difficult event to capture that involvies fast-moving planes. Most of these planes are flying at speeds 400 KMPH. This is where experience matter as you need to have the right equipment for the perfect shot.
Q: How did you get into extreme sports photography?
I do extreme sports myself and I am fortunate to be able to combine my passion for extreme sports and photography. When I photograph athletes in action, I see them pushing themselves to the limit and that's exactly what I do to get the best shot. This connection to the sport helps me be more creative at my work.
Q: Any advice for up-and-coming sports photographer?
If I was given the opportunity to go back in time and do it again, I wouldn't change a single thing because the mistakes I made were my biggest lessons. My advise would be to learn from your mistakes.
Stay tuned for our next feature in this series next week. If you like what you see, follow @naimchidiac and @redbullqatar on Instagram.
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