Brain tumour, photography and me.

By Rais Hasan

Some years ago, I had a malignant Brain Tumour which the Surgeon said would be difficult to operate on, and in total, the operation took about 8 hours. After my operation I lost my ability to read or write, and memory retention also became part of the personal/medical challenges I faced. There were other related medical issues with vision and difficulty in communication..

Despite the challenges, I was determined to overcome all this on a personal level with a "mind over matter" theory to push myself forward.

Before the operation, I was not into photography, but my family bought me a Fuji Finepix F450, as a birthday present. That was the start of my entry into the world of photography, and it played a big part in my recovery from my brain tumour.

During my recovery, I was proud to have played a positive role with many other Charities relating to Cancer as their photographer. Charities included McMillan Cancer Support, Candlelighters Childrens Cancer Charity, Sue Ryder and the key one being the Yorkshire's Brain Tumour Charity, based in Leeds. Being a key photographer of the charities capturing the journey of life for cancer patients.

I joined the Disabled Photographers' Society a few years ago as a member. I love the enthusiasm and energy they provide to activate members into producing some amazing images. The DPS has some very talented and highly qualified photographers on its membership list. Since being a member I have achieved the Licentiate and Associate Certificates of recognition from DPS and also have the Certificate of Photographic Alliance of Great Britain.

I have also entered several competitions with the DPS, including a a competition in 2019 sponsored by Vanguard, where I was lucky enough to win against some amazing competition, and I now happily use a Vanguard Alta Pro 2+ tripod as a result.

Rais winning image from the 2019 competition sponsored by Vanguard

More recently, I was delighted when I heard that I had won the DPS Landscape Photography Contest, knowing that it was a challenging contest with quality photographers in the DPS membership. All three Judges are world class photographers, for them to judge my image as a winner was a big surprise to me. The judges were Charlie Waite, Susan Brown and Tim Rudman.

My winning image, "Ortho Building", is the result of a very recent learning curve building experience into Fine Art Photography. I am still going through the learning process and hoping to improve on my new skills.

Rais winning image - Ortho Building

I firmly believe that you can overcome whatever life throws at you. In my case, photography has proved a lifeline that has enabled me to keep pushing myself. It allows me to meet new people, explore new locations and continually learn new techniques.

The Disabled Photographers' Society has also been a great support to me, and to many others in my situation. It creates a sense of community, and a source of inspiration and knowledge. Without it, and the volunteers who support it, the members would lose an invaluable support network and many would be left isolated. As a result, any support you can offer would be gratefully received, whether it's a small donation on their Just Giving page or a donation of working camera kit you no longer need, they and the members would be grateful.