We were lucky to catch up with Sammani Perera recently and have shared our conversation below.
Sammani, so good to have you with us today. We’ve got so much planned, so let’s jump right into it. We live in such a diverse world, and in many ways the world is getting better and more understanding but it’s far from perfect. There are so many times where folks find themselves in rooms or situations where they are the only ones that look like them – that might mean being the only woman of color in the room or the only person who grew up in a certain environment etc. Can you talk to us about how you’ve managed to thrive even in situations where you were the only one in the room?
More often than not, being an immigrant brown woman, I am indeed the only one in the room who is different. I just returned from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN, where I was the only South Asian woman photographer. Even in locations in northern, eastern, and western states, it is very rarely that I would see another like me. This is also true for my current workplace. Even though the USA is my adopted country, for the most part, I feel very comfortable in my skin. Every now and then, I experience racism and bias in different forms, but everyday I learn to be effective and successful regardless of such obstacles. This interview is a testament to that effectiveness and success.
In nature-related photography fields, at least, being the only one in the room is a refreshing experience. I enjoy being the only brown woman in a crowd of photographers because I can bring something new to the table. A vast majority of photographers are not fazed by differences and diversity that span race, ethnicity, gender and sexuality. We operate on a different plane where we are united by our love for sunrises, sunsets, and nature in general. We start our conversations with simple “Good morning!”s and “How are you?”s, but by the time we leave a location, we have shared stories, knowledge, and a moment in our career that we would remember for a long time.
There are a few values I hold dearly in my interactions with fellow human beings: open-mindedness, respect, kindness, and loyalty. If someone reciprocates these feelings, I invest in those friendships with all my heart. If someone doesn’t reciprocate these feelings, I ignore them and go on my journey.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
As an artist, I work in the genre of the photostory, which, to me, is the combination of photography and creative nonfiction writing. I do travel photography with a specific focus on the national parks of the USA. I am fully invested in landscape photography with the hope of branching out to wildlife, aerial, and astrophotography. My writing is based on my photos. I sometimes put into words the emotion and the sensory experience of taking a certain photo. At other times, I narrate the behind-the-scenes or rewrite legends about the location.
I love every part of being a photographer and writer, deciding on where I want to go, doing the itinerary, making preparations for the trip, the journey there and back. But there are two things I absolutely love, being in the field day after day and editing the photos while writing. Both these are exciting and nerve-wracking. My mind is always flooded with questions: Would everything go according to plan? Would there be any variables outside my control? How do I make the most of any variables? And after the fact: Did the photos come out okay? What is the edit that would look the best? What direction should my writing take? As I mentioned before, I just returned from a trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. We were camping in Cades Cove with the hope of photographing black bears. Even though it is believed that you would stand a better chance of seeing a bear either on Sparks Lane or Hyatt Lane, they could be anywhere. Driving and walking the loop, I was often transported to that scene from Jurassic Park where everyone is getting bored because they haven’t spotted a single dinosaur yet. Then, suddenly, you have a T-Rex on your tail, a black bear in my case. That unpredictability of it all, that adrenaline rush, is something I cannot put into words. In short, I feel the most alive when I am traveling for photography and I am the most myself when I have my camera in hand.
Amidst all of this, I am also an educator at Elon University, NC. Out of all the courses I teach, I take extreme pride in my course titled, “Travel, Literature, and New Media.” I designed it to reflect my passion for travel, photography, and writing. I enjoy listening to the travel experiences my students bring to the class and sharing with them my own travel experiences.
As for my future plans, yes, there is something in the oven. I am currently working on a creative project on the Grand Canyon. I don’t know yet what exact direction this will take, but when I know for sure, I look forward to sharing it with you.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The answers to this question, I am sure, vary significantly from one person to the other because of the unique situations we find ourselves in. The three points below are the most general points I can think of which apply to most of us.
First and foremost, practicing my craft. I don’t have a degree in photography. I learned all I know about photography through self-study. What I learned I practiced as often as I could. In my search for knowledge, I found a few photographers whose work really spoke to me. I studied their photographs, tried to recognize what made them stand out, and used them as a source of inspiration. Somewhere in there, I found my own aesthetic, angles, and techniques I like.
Be confident and careful. If you are genuinely practicing your craft, that means you have a clear purpose and goal. At this point, be confident. If you are confident in yourself, that confidence is communicated to people around you. People who are also confident in themselves will respect you for this. But there may be others with insecurities who may view you as a threat. At this point, be careful! I guess this may apply to any profession.
Be patient. It took me six years to get to where I am right now. Learning everything from scratch, making mistakes, correcting those mistakes take more time than you would imagine. I still have those first few photos I posted on my Instagram. One of these days, I almost deleted them because they are an embarrassment, but as I scrolled up, I could see how much I have improved over the years. This made me feel good. In other words, my photography career has been a journey, a journey that I took with a lot of patience.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Photographer Adam Schallau. More than a partnership or collaboration, I would very much like to be mentored by him as I work on the creative project I mentioned in one of my previous answers.
I discovered Adam’s photographic work about five years ago when I was making an itinerary for the South Rim of the Grand Canyon NP. I remember thinking that all of his photos were equally impressive, but the one that left a lasting impact on me is his “Morning in the Granite Gorge.” I have been a fan since then. In fact, on the first evening of my first trip to the Grand Canyon, I went into the Grand Canyon Conservancy store in the Desert View Watchtower and bought Chasing the Light.
I hope I will run into Adam during one of my trips to the Grand Canyon. It would be such an honor and a very cool moment. I also hope I will soon take at least one of his workshops.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.momentsbysammaniperera.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moments.by.sammaniperera/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Moments-by-Sammani-Perera/61550915514561/
