What is life like for a female travel photographer in Turkey in 2020?

F. Dilek Uyar is a documentary photographer from Turkey.

Working as a lawyer in Ankara, she is married and a mother to two children.

Through her lens, Uyar has been documenting various aspects of life from all over Turkey for more than 10 years.

When asked about the challenges she faces as a photographer Uyar said: “Being a female photographer is [especially] difficult in my country because being a woman has been getting difficult in Turkey… For example, I cannot travel alone in Turkey, there must always be a man with me.”

Never one to shy away from a story, when COVID-19 hit Turkey, Uyar found herself in the intensive care unit of her local hospital documenting the work of essential workers. Uyar believes her approach to always finding the story stems from being a woman in the male-dominated category of travel photography.

“I love travelling and meeting with new people, listening to their stories and experiences and learning their cultures, and I want to show these stories in my photos," she said. "Because of economical problems in my country, I cannot afford to travel in other countries as much as I wish. However, my country is full of wonderful places to take photos. If I had a chance I would also like to take photos of China, Spain, Northern Lights and Canada.”

Uyar says that her photography has been most influenced by greats such as Sebastião Salgado and Henri Cartier Bresson.

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