Photographer Ho Cac - cherishing moments

(Baonghean) - He loved the art of photography so much that he spent 5 years working in Czechoslovakia (formerly) just buying and bringing back to the country a set of photography equipment. Then he asked to leave his old job to devote all his time to his career as a photographer. Since then, Ho Cac has worked diligently and tirelessly in the field of photography and left his mark on the simple moments of the countryside and the working life in the countryside...

Happy cameraman

Photographer Ho Cac.

Coming to Yen Thanh rice district, going along Provincial Road 538, not far from Gam Mountain, is the small photo studio of photographer Ho Cac. That photo studio is so close and attached to the children in the area that many families used to take their parents' wedding photos, and the children come here to record the happy moments in their lives. Yet that photo studio still maintains a simple appearance, moderate scale, although the owner rarely has no work... Because, whenever he has free time, Ho Cac wanders around hunting for artistic photo angles, sometimes even finding excuses to "escape housework" to follow long wanderings. Artists in Yen Thanh often joke with each other: "It's hard to want your children to be rich in the future, but it's very easy to become poor, just buy them a camera". That is, they want to “fondly remind” the story of “photographer” Ho Cac, who, just because of his passion for holding the camera and searching for beautiful moments, “burned” many assets into the means of photography, trading off better job opportunities to pursue photography. That is also a memorable story of the period when photography did not apply digital technology, to take photos, one had to buy each roll of film, had to develop the film with darkroom technology, very laborious and expensive!

NSNA Ho Cac was born in 1957, in Thanh Minh village, Bac Thanh commune (Yen Thanh), a beautiful mountainous area. When he was young, he studied to become a police non-commissioned officer, joined the police force for a while, then went to work abroad in Czechoslovakia in 1981. During nearly 5 years in Czechoslovakia, Ho Cac was instilled with a passion for photography by a friend working at the Prague Television Station, and it seemed that Ho Cac devoted all his weekends to this passion. When he was about to return home, most of the money he saved after 5 years of working in Czechoslovakia was spent by Ho Cac on buying cameras, photo enlargers, and photographic equipment. The value of the photographic equipment at that time was equivalent to an S51-Simson motorbike - which could be considered a fortune that people who went to Eastern Europe brought back. Upon returning home, Ho Cac transferred to the provincial Photography Company, working directly at the Yen Thanh photo studio. From there, he served the mission of promoting political, economic, and cultural events, took service photos, and searched for artistic photo moments. These things are difficult to understand and strange to many people, but for Ho Cac, it is very simple: doing what you love is happiness!

From the art and press photos sent to newspapers, contests, and art photo exhibitions, Ho Cac soon became a member of the Art Photography Board, Nghe An Literature and Arts Association. The art and press "photo village" of Nghe An has one more member who is always enthusiastic about creative field trips, actively participating in professional activities organized by colleagues and the Literature and Arts Association. Artist Van Hoanh, former Head of the Photography Board of Nghe An Literature and Arts Association, commented: Ho Cac is a professional photographer who works quietly but persistently. He is always diligent in his work, sincere with his friends and colleagues, and always has a deep love for photography and his homeland.

Artist of the village

Not strong in creative personality, Ho Cac has no ambition to seek breakthroughs and innovations in artistic techniques. He chose for himself a quiet path, diligently "intensively cultivating" with the theme of love for the countryside where he has been deeply attached all his life. It seems that this is also suitable for the gentle, gentle, and rustic nature of him. Ho Cac confided that the beauty of the central countryside since his childhood has become an endless inspiration for him to search for. The beauty that captivates him is not something that comes from strange, faraway lands, but exists right around his daily living environment. The scenes of life are very simple and rustic, but very difficult to capture, convey and leave a unique mark. Therefore, the search for moments of the village, countryside, and working life in the countryside has never stopped urging him to go and take pictures.

Indeed, right from the way of naming his “brainchildren” – Ho Cac’s works, they are imbued with the countryside, such as: Countryside Well, Shepherd, New Moon at the Beginning of the Month… Even when Ho Cac reflects the working life, the reality in his works is still the life of the working people in rural craft villages, such as: Making rice vermicelli; Catching a good fish crop in the South; Running from the rain on the salt fields…

Running in the rain on the salt fields. Photo: Ho Cac

Ho Cac's photos often evoke a pure, authentic beauty but still imbued with an ancient, nostalgic color. The painting "Country Well" (National Art Photography Exhibition 2006) captures the well of Giai village (Phuc Thanh commune, Yen Thanh), the focal point is the surface of the village well reflecting the sky, reflecting the whole village life as if it had been the same for thousands of years, in which the image of a village girl in a red shirt drawing water is a fresh, new highlight. The wide-angle lens depicts the round well as if it wants to open up to embrace, to gather the soul of the village,... The green dots of fern branches growing on mossy stone slabs in the deep well seem to want to blend into the green spreading over the surface of the village fields, evoking a sense of blending time and space, making the village well a point of intersection between the past and the present... Truly a rustic look rich in realism but still full of evocative power.

The photo Anh ve ngay chu nhan sun (North Central Art Photography Exhibition) depicts the scene of sowing rice in Hoa Muoi field, Bac Thanh commune (Yen Thanh). The choice of a backlit shooting angle creates the intention of using the technique of overexposure to depict the afternoon sunlight shining on the wet rice fields and newly sprouted rice seeds, creating the deep red color of the bright sunset after the hands of sowing and cultivating. The photo has warm light, depicting the scene of the husband returning to join his wife in the farm work, depicting both the hard work and hardship of the villagers, and the philosophy of joy and happiness that always blossoms in sharing and in the love of work.

The authentic, simple but passionate photos of love for the homeland have left a mark of Ho Cac's lyrical, rustic and rustic style at art photography exhibitions. The photos of the countryside and the working life in craft villages have also brought Ho Cac the Ho Xuan Huong Literature and Arts Award, Nghe An province for the period 2005 - 2010. At the same time, many of his works were selected to participate in the environmental photo contest "Climate change affects our lives" organized by the Vietnam Association of Photographic Artists and EUROPEAN UNION.

A new work by Ho Cac that is attracting the attention of the photography community is a painting about nature called Chestnut Flower Season, created in early October 2014, the author recorded it on a morning of the transition between autumn and winter, the chestnut forest in Ru Cam, Trai Xanh dam, Bac Thanh commune. Chestnut Flower Season is a photo of a charming landscape - a traditional subject of classical painting, but this is the moment the author recorded honestly and vividly the beauty of the natural landscape that seems to be at its peak, with the appearance of images with very new expressive values. On the deep green background, the chestnut flower season in full bloom brightens the entire forest and reflects on the clear, calm autumn lake surface, suddenly a pair of geese appear flapping their wings flying over the water, rushing out in the middle of the scene. Ho Cac said that this was a heaven-sent moment that he and his daughter had searched for and waited for many days to have. The hard work of “stalking” the beautiful moment of the chestnut forest in my hometown was rewarded with the sight of a pair of geese flapping their wings and gliding over the lake. The geese’s wings flew towards the beautiful chestnut forest, as if even the animals could not “resist” the beckoning power of natural beauty. Those were also the wings filled with the desire to find, to return, to the natural beauty, to the pure natural environment, to the original origin…

Choosing a quiet path, nurturing in his heart a deep love for his homeland that grows over the years, Ho Cac has contributed to making the image of the rural village where he lives and passes through more lovely and beautiful after each moment of taking the photo. The pictures, though simple and rustic, contain a language that evokes a love for the homeland, nature, and country that is no less intense. For Ho Cac, he considers it both a mission and a happiness that is hard to exchange, truly worthy of respect!

Ngo Kien