Hi Ozi! It's nice talking to you! First, would you like to tell us a bit about yourself? Who are you, where are you from, where do you live now? Tell us a bit about your personal background!
Hi, I'm Muallif Fakhrozi but you can call me Ozi (almost all my friends call me Ozi). I'm 30 years old. My background is in environmental engineering and I graduated in October 2013. I'm still an amateur when it comes to photography but I love taking random pictures. Most of my photos are about traveling, food, art, as well as random things around me.
I currently live on the Borneo island in Indonesia, more precisely in the southern Borneo province in Indonesia. This province has many islands. In my "diary" you can see many different pictures. If you are interested, please take a look at my Instagram profile @mlfchrzi .
What do you do for a living? When did you discover photography?
I work as a banker in a bank in my city. To be more precise, I work in credit analysis. Photography is not my profession, but I love it very much. I can imagine many things just from a picture. I think photography is my thing, it's more than just a hobby. Through my pictures I also had the opportunity to get to know the Pickmotion team. This is one of my great achievements in life, oh God, thank you so much for that!
In addition to gorgeous travel photos, you have also shared many great motifs in which you play with flowers! How did you develop your style?
Honestly, I love anything that is related to nature, like something blooming, flowers, leaves, blocks of color and so on. I often bought flowers as decoration for my home, but I always found it sad to watch the flowers just wilt and then I thought... why not capture the flowers in a picture and let them be something to enjoy forever? Yes! I'm taking a photo now!
What inspires you and why?
Inspiration can come anywhere and suddenly, even from things that are close to me. I always try to see everything as inspiration and then I change it to what I like.
Do you have a favorite flower?
In my country it is called Krisan or Chrysanthemum. The price of the flowers is very affordable. It comes in many beautiful colors, it is easy to obtain and it is really "photogenic" when you take a picture of it, you should definitely try it!
Would you like to tell us a bit about your creative process? How do you come up with your ideas and how do you edit your photos?
The ideas in my head are so random, hehe. Sometimes I can't put together new ideas for pictures in my head. Everything just flows and I just do what I think is beautiful and hope that others like it just as much.
I always use the app VSCOcam for filters and SNAPSEED to add details. But of course I always try to show natural images, for example by making sure there is good light when taking photos. Then I don't need much time to edit the photo and can upload it to my account straight away.
Many of your images have a beautiful composition of pastel colors! What do you try to pay attention to when choosing backgrounds?
Yes, I love blocks of color in pastel colors. It makes the viewer happy. For the background, I usually use leftover paper from food wrappers or I buy colorful paper that you can find in all sorts of places. I want people to feel the joy that I feel when I take photos, which I achieve with colorful backgrounds.
When and why did you start using Instagram as a platform to share your pictures?
I started using Instagram in 2012. At first I just uploaded whatever I wanted. I didn't know how to create beautiful compositions, how to choose the right colors or how to capture something interesting for the viewer. But over time I figured out what suited my personality and since then I've tried to keep the style. If you look closely you'll notice that I always upload my pictures in a square shape because I think that this format was one of the main features at the beginning of Instagram. For me Instagram is a simple app, I can use it as a digital diary, I can inspire many people, share many moments and discover many new things.
Do you have a favorite photo of yourself that you have shared? Can you tell us the story behind it?
The following image is one of my favorite photos that I created and shared a few years ago. A simple object but with the deepest backstory. The image I shared coincided with the 13th Global Insta Meet celebration. At that time, the theme was #LifeOnEarth. You can read the full story behind it in the caption on Instagram, but to sum it up, I explain there that the Earth is getting older and needs all of us to take care of the environment so that it can continue to be enjoyed by our children and parents in the future. One way is to reduce the use of single-use plastic bags and instead switch to eco-friendly packaging like cloth bags, which are found everywhere.
What do you think about the IG community you've built over the years? Do you find a lot of inspiration there? Have you been able to connect with others through Instagram?
Instagram has opened up a lot of space for me and I have met a lot of amazing people there. I have met a lot of inspiring people and found a place where I can share a lot of stories and bring something close to me that normally feels far away. Through Instagram I have met a lot of people who have been a positive influence for me. I have to thank all the content creators on Instagram who have made so many positive changes in many other communities.
Would you like to tell us about some of your lovely Instagrammers?
Anyone in my feed can be inspiring, but to name a few, I can mention three accounts that are more very inspiring. For flat lays I particularly like @dewideong , for professional food photography I like to check out @sazhabusha and for travel and lifestyle images my favorite is @aridarmapremana .
Do you still enjoy sending and receiving postcards?
Yes, I love it, but sending and receiving postcards is not that common in my country. I think the trend will continue to change, people are starting to like things that are unique and timeless again. I also think that postcards will be one of them. With postcards we can share pretty much anything with a picture and the story behind it. And yes, Pickmotion is one of the pioneers in this field.
Did you know about Pickmotion before our cooperation? If so, how did you discover us?
To be honest, I didn't know Pickmotion before. At first I was very surprised when I received an email from your team in 2016. I doubted myself at first and wondered why Pickmotion wanted my work as a contribution to their community. At first I thought we couldn't work together but look where we are now! I hope we can always share the inspiration with many people out there.
Finally, would you like to share a little anecdote or story with us? You can tell us whatever comes to mind!
There are many different stories in my life, hehe. They are about my family, friends, love life and my job. Everything has an interesting story. Recently I was separated from my family and parents because I live a bit far from them. All this happened because of the pandemic and I couldn't see them for more than two years. Finally, just recently I decided to take some time off from my job and saw my parents and my sister again, whom I love very much. Because of all this, I realized that distance makes you appreciate being together much more. It makes you realize that family is everything in life and nothing in the world can replace it. I dedicate this interview to my parents and my sister, whom I love very much.
You can discover many pictures by @mlfchrzi in our online shop! This includes a selection of high-quality folding cards or photo strips that can also be used as bookmarks. Take a look around and have fun sending our cards!
