![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.turkishnews.com\/en\/content\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/11\/german-photojournalist-with-on-going-projects-on-camel-wrestling-2010-11-24_l.jpg\")
<\/p>\nEMIKO JOZUKA<\/p>\n
ISTANBUL – H\u00fcrriyet Daily News<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The offer of a full scholarship for a master\u2019s program from a prestigious university brought photojournalist Claudius Schulze to Istanbul. After a nine-month period in which he gradually got to know the city, Schulze sought to see past the obvious and capture more original and personal shots of a multi-layered city in continual flux. His current work takes him as far afield as Diyabak\u0131r and to the camel-wrestling championships in Sel\u00e7uk<\/p>\n
Schulze (R) travels widely as a freelance photojournalist, but when he is back in Istanbul, his preferred spot for taking photos is at the Yeni Cami in Emin\u00f6n\u00fc.<\/p>\n
German photojournalist Claudius Schulze describes the area around the Yeni Cami in Emin\u00f6n\u00fc as one of his favorite areas to photograph when he’s back in town. Nor is he alone in his preference of location, with renowned Turkish-Armenian photographer Ara G\u00fcler and U.S. photographer Alex Webb also shooting there.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you wait there for half hour or one hour incredibly great things just happen in front of your camera. If I were to teach a photography workshop in Istanbul, I would definitely take my students there,\u201d Schulze said.<\/p>\n
Schulze currently works as a professional photojournalist \u2013 freelancing for major German agency laif, newspapers such as Der Spiegel and Stern, and also publishing photos in Geo, \u00a0GQ and Men’s Health.<\/p>\n
Despite having some pictures published in Turkey, Schulze\u00a0said he\u00a0never\u00a0actively approached the Turkish media market due to its insufficient budget and frequent copyright breaches.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had some pictures published in some Turkish newspapers.\u00a0They don’t have a budget nor do they respect copyrights \u2013 you are badly paid and your work is stolen.\u201d<\/p>\n
His adventures in Turkey began when he was offered a full scholarship by Sabanc\u0131 University for a master\u2019s in conflict analysis and resolution. Schulze took this as a perfect excuse to pack his bags and live in Istanbul for two years.<\/p>\n
Avoiding stereotypes<\/p>\n
During his stay in Istanbul, Schulze had already started experimenting as a photojournalist, publishing his photos in Turkish newspapers and exhibiting in a theater project in Beyo\u011flu. Nonetheless, Schulze claims not to have shot the best pictures of Istanbul during his first nine month period in the city. He comments on the difficulties that photographers have experienced when they try and get to grips with Istanbul’s ever-evolving cityscape.<\/p>\n
\u201cIstanbul is not an easy city to work in as a photographer \u2013 it is so full of stereotypes. You have to work hard to properly understand and gain access to the city. I know some photographers who have come here and left frustrated,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Schulze considers himself lucky to have been able to find access to the city, despite being criticized by some Turkish friends for taking \u201corientalist\u201d photographs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey commented that there was a girl with a headscarf in many of my photographs. I hadn’t noticed, but when I went back to my photographs I saw that it was true. I hadn’t been waiting for them to appear \u2013 they were just there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Schulze describes the series of photos he shot in Istanbul as his most personal work. He comments on the multi-layered structure of Istanbul and explains that in order to get to know the city, its numerous layers must be slowly taken apart.<\/p>\n
\u201cI needed time to understand the city and to avoid falling for the obvious pictures such as the ice-cream seller in \u0130stiklal or the colored lamps in the Grand Bazaar. Istanbul is so much more than that. When you slowly take the layers of the city apart, you come to see what the city actually is,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Free-lancing in Diyabak\u0131r<\/p>\n
Schulze regularly goes to the southeastern province of Diyabak\u0131r to produce stories for German magazines. He describes how it is an area known for honor killings, its extreme poverty and clashes between the Turkish military and the outlawed Kurdistan Workers\u2019 Party, or PKK. Nonetheless, Schulze comments on the warmth of the people and his preference for covering lesser known topics such as the conflicts of the Syriac Christians that also live in the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cI do magazine stories on the problems and conflicts of the Syriac Christians that live in the region. The Christian communities that are living there are among the oldest in the world \u2013 it’s something different to the usual coverage of the Turkish military’s conflict with the PKK,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Interest in camel wrestling<\/p>\n
Schulze also has an on going project on the camel wrestling season that normally runs every year from late November to early February.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was asking myself recently how I learnt about the topic. I remember thinking that it sounded incredibly bizarre before I went to see it for the first time in Sel\u00e7uk in 2008. It’s fascinating because it’s a non-sport \u2013 there is no winner,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
For the time being, Schulze travels back and forth between Istanbul and Brussels. He comments on the rapidly changing cityscape and notes that if he were to ever find a project in Istanbul, he wouldn’t hesitate in staying.<\/p>\n
To view Schulze’s website, head to <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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