Don Hasman, a tireless old hand

Don Hasman, a tireless old hand

Bambang M, Contributor, Yogyakarta

It was past midnight but the students taking part in the
journalistic training session on environment at Muhammadiyah
University in Yogyakarta were still glued to their seats, unable
to hide their great admiration for hundreds of slides being shown
before them.

"Wanna go on?" asked an elderly man, who was the instructor.
"Okay. Let's go on until dawn. It's all right," came a an
enthusiastic reply from a participant.

Of small build, the instructor that the students admired very
much was Don Hasman, one of Indonesia's best photographers. His
works, usually exposing the beauty of nature and the exotic lives
of ethnic groups in many parts of Indonesia, always inspire great
admiration and are quite expensive.

"A photograph depicting an Asmat women in a messy kitchen can
fetch Rp 5 million," he said, while operating his slide
projector.

A father of two, Hasman used to be known as the photographer
of Sinar Harapan afternoon newspaper (1970 - 1986). After the
government banned this newspaper, he became a photograph
contributor to Mutiara tabloid until 1997. After leaving
journalism, Hasman, born in Jakarta on October 7, 1940, did not
just sit idle and enjoy his old age. Using his favorite Nikon or
Hasselblad camera, he traveled far and wide to make photographs.

Hasman has been fond of hiking and traveling to forest areas
since his youth. He is always charmed by the beauty of Mother
Nature. It is only natural that later on many of the photographs
that he has taken record the beauty of nature and its human
dwellers. In photography, Hasman i better known as an adventure
photographer with photographs taken from attractive angles.

One of his great works is a series of photographs recording
everything in the life of the Badui Dalam ethnic group and their
beautiful villages in West Java. In a span of 28 years, he has
collected about 6,500 frames of photographs.

"It took me 7 years just to take the photograph of the face of
a Badui Dalam person," he explained. Previous to this photography
session, the Badui Dalam people never wanted to look into the
camera. He is arranging some of these photographs for a book yet
to be published.

Hasman's great skill in photography has not come overnight. He
began to learn photography from books he could lay his hands on
when he was still a teenager. He could improve his knowledge of
and skills in photography as he frequently served as a guide to
foreign photographers working in Indonesia. One of these
photographers was Art Wolfe of the United States.

Thanks to his strong will and great desire to conduct one
experiment after another, he has scored successes. "When you make
a photographic work, you must be sure that you will never say I
cannot," said Hasman, whose motto in life is "always trying to
come up with the best"

Owing to his strong determination, he has never failed in his
undertakings. Hasman, for example, is the first Indonesian ever
to reach Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa.

His career has spanned 30 years and during this period he
failed only twice. First, when he was trying to take photographs
of rhinoceros in Ujung Kulon National Park, Banten. Second, when
he tried to take the picture of singer and TV film actress Desy
Ratnasari when she was rumored to be married to the then manpower
minister Abdul Latief in 1997.

"While I was trying to take pictures of rhinoceroses, I stayed
up in a tree for 12 days. I used a plastic bag for my natural
calls to prevent the rhinos from sniffing my presence," said
Hasman, who is also the first Indonesian to take part in the
Camel Trophy adventure. He failed to take the photographs of Desy
Ratnasari as the actress was then abroad. "I could not meet her
as she was then in Singapore," said Hasman, now living in Depok,
Bogor, West Java.

The most harrowing experience that Hasman has had in his
career as a photographer was the occasion when he had to take
pictures of underwater wedding somewhere in the Thousand Islands,
north of Jakarta, in 1987. As he was greatly absorbed in
recording this rare event, he forgot that his oxygen supply had
run out. Luckily he Managed to keep his head cool and he
survived.

Now that he has spent 30 years in photography, he has already
won international recognition. Last year, Hasman and Rio Helmi
were included in a book on the world's 100 best photographers.
"The blue-covered book is called 100 Famous Photographers in the
World. I'm trying to buy one," he said.

"He's really an old hand," said Herry Gunawan, a professional
photographer in Yogyakarta. In Gunawan's view, the most admirable
thing in his personality is his undying spirit to travel
anywhere. "he has a strong physique and a rich experience in
adventure," said Gunawan, who also teaches at the Indonesian Art
Institute (ISI) Yogyakarta.

Despite the world recognition that he has earned, Hasman
remains an intimate person. He is modest and devoid of any traces
of haughtiness. When he comes to Yogyakarta for some students'
programs, he usually refuses to stay in a hotel that the inviting
committee has reserved. Instead, he will stay in a students'
boarding house. When he travels, he prefers to take a bus.

Apart from taking photographs, Hasman also often gives
lectures at home and overseas. He is always enthusiastic when
teaching students how to be a good photographer. He will give
detailed answers to every question: from how to take care of your
camera to how to get good pictures.

"You must be serious about photography. In the next two years,
international photographers will start exploring Indonesia.
Unless you do something, you will get only the 'bones'," he said,
encouraging the students.
Gunawan meanwhile said that Hasman was really dedicated to
photography. "He will be ready even to give a free lecture," he
said.

It was close to 2 a.m.. Although the participants were still
eager to listen to his lecture and enjoy Hasman's photographs, he
had to end the session.

"I've got to stop now because this morning I've got to give a
lecture in Ponorogo (East Java)," he said, putting hundreds of
his slides into his bag. Two students from a Ponorogo-based
university had been waiting for him to leave for Ponorogo
together.

Carrying the back on his back - the bag looked bigger than his
own body - Hasman left Yogyakarta for Ponorogo. At 63, he has
never felt handicapped to continue creating and making
adventures. He is indeed an old hand that never tires.