An Interview with Frank Payne, A Professional Photographer

Let's face it: Tarlabaþý does not have a good reputation. Though once a Greek quarter of genteel homes, today the old buildings are crumbled ruins, hacked up into tenements. You can feel the crush of Istanbul's 11 million people in Tarlabaþý, a district resembling New York's East Side circa 1910, the place where the huddled masses actually end up, where the customs of the Anatolian village form an odd juxtaposition to the prostitution, drug peddling and rampant thievery that have made the place a no man's land for those who can afford to live elsewhere.

In the midst of it all, enter one African American photographer with a few lira in pocket and an antique Nikon around his neck. For Frank Payne, the poetic dilapidation of Tarlabaþý and the life that thrives there - the full-throated yelling of junk collectors and the endless scampering of children - is too much to resist. His recent-and first--photographic exhibition, Children of Tarlabaþý, featured in May and June at Galata Fotografhanesi and currently at Bee Café in Beyoglu through July 14^th showcases subjects by turns joyous, brash, threatening and above all startlingly candid. I caught up with Payne after one of his showings to discuss his work.

Rich: How long have you been taking pictures? What got you started?

Frank Payne: I started in 2000 and I got my first job in 2002. As I was finishing up graduate school, I thought of working in journalism.

Rich: Is that what you were studying?

Frank Payne: Public policy, but I was always interested in journalism. I thought about writing at first but felt like if I wanted to be a writer, I was starting very late in the game. With photography I figured if my pictures aren't any good, people will tell me You suck! Also the work of a writer is limited to the time and place that he is writing about but a photographer has a longer reach. I mean, a photograph can be from anywhere. People can look at a picture taken last week or 50 years ago and say I get that!

Rich: What do you look for in potential subjects to photograph? Is the choice to take a picture analytical, intuitive or guesswork?