Fred Zhang discovered that his passion lay in photography rather than business while he was completing a Bachelor of Commerce degree six years ago. “I spent lots of my spare time walking around the city, observing and shooting interesting stuff on the street,” he recalls.
His photographic inspirations are many, and photographers including Murray Fredericks, Chris Round, Jesse Marlow and Jonas Peterson rate highly on his list. “The simplicity and minimalist style of their images are breathtaking. They inspire me to travel more and explore places less known to the public.”
Zhang’s turning point came when he won The Age’s Nikon photo competition in 2010, which inspired him to study formally at the Northern Melbourne Institute of TAFE (NMIT). While there, he developed an impressive portfolio that spans his interest in urban built environment, portraiture and documentary photography. Since graduating from the Diploma of Photo Imaging in 2013, he has won several awards, including AIPP Victorian Student Photographer of the Year, Photonet Student Prize for Photography and Best Documentary Photograph.
Although involved in a number of exhibitions, for now, Zhang’s attention is drawn to Beijing, his former hometown. “I am curious to see how much has changed over the years and I’ll be spending sometime there to capture some of the results of urbanisation and its impact on people’s life,” he says. This is all part of a longer-term goal to bring Australian artists to China, and also to bring Chinese photographers to Australia.
www.fred-zhang.com
