Veteran photographer laments absence of quality photography training schools in Nigeria

A popular photographer, Kelechi Amadi-Obi, has decried the lack of quality photography training schools in the country.

Amadi-Obi told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Friday that the demand for quality photography in Nigeria had increased but the number of good photographers had not.

He said Nigeria lacked dedicated training schools and that most photographers in Nigeria were trained overseas or self-trained through internet videos and workshops and that wasn’t enough.

“The Nigerian photography industry is going through what I will call an explosive renaissance.

“Developments have happened very fast; there has been an escalation of demand for quality photography.

“This is as a result of the internet; the internet brought in a new era of internet quality which is global quality.

“Before, people could get away with poor publications that are circulated only within Nigeria.

“But now, if you have an online business, you will invariably require a quality of photography that is at least up to a certain minimum level.

“But this upsurge in demand happened so suddenly without the reciprocal upsurge in quality of photographers.

“So, what we see is a lot of new people coming into the photography industry who want to satisfy some of these demands but who do not have the requisite training or experience.

“As a result there is really a lot of mediocrity out there. People really need training and they need it fast.

“Unfortunately, there are no dedicated institutions and that’s a big pity.“

Amadi-Obi, however, noted that he had observed a number of promising young photographers in the country but the need for a larger number remained.

NAN reports that Amadi-Obi has been in business for over 20 years and has become one of the most patronised photographers in Nigeria with clients ranging from entertainers to corporate bodies.