“I am drawn to the moments that exist somewhere between presence and disappearance.

A glance held for a second too long.
A body moving through light.
The quiet tension between closeness and distance.
Things that are felt before they can be understood.

My way of seeing was shaped by cinema. I have always been fascinated by its ability to make the ordinary feel significant — to turn a gesture, a shadow, a passing moment into something that lingers. Photography became my own way of searching for that feeling.

At the centre of my work is the human presence. I am interested in what lies beneath the surface: vulnerability and strength, intimacy and distance, softness and tension. Fashion becomes part of this language — not simply something to be photographed, but a way of shaping character, atmosphere and emotion.

I move between what is real and what is imagined, allowing both to exist within the same image. I am not interested in explaining everything. I want my photographs to leave something unresolved — a trace of a story, a memory that may never have existed, a feeling that is difficult to name.

For me, photography is a way of holding on to what cannot stay.”

My journey began with a Specialized Baccalaureate in Art and Design, followed by the Foundation Course at the School of Design St. Gallen. I then studied Fine Arts for one year at the Zurich University of the Arts (ZHdK) before dedicating myself fully to photography and completing the Higher Professional Diploma (HF) in Photography at the F+F School of Art and Design in Zurich.

Professional Bachelor in Visual Design, specializing in Photography

contact: melda.karaali@hotmail.com