Scenic Abuja - a coffee table book

Life is an infinite series of photographs. No, that will not do. I mean, life is an unending succession of countless picture frames fusing imperceptibly, melding into one another, creating the video of life. We are getting there. Life is an endless stream of fleeting snapshots vanishing forever. Yes. And it’s the photographers calling to choose which picture frame to preserve for posterity. It’s his duty to take the best shot. But it’s also his gift to recognize a picture frame that expresses something that endures beyond the fleeting moment.

It's easy to understate the potential and actual beauty of Abuja, especially for folks who live in the city. But the many valleys and crisscrossing the city and its suburbs along with the reserved green spaces that punctuate it ensure that a good amount of its natural beauty is preserved. Then there are the numerous granite outcrops that form the background to many wide-view pictures of the metropolis. Even the man-made Jabi Lake and the body of water trapped behind the Usuma Dam add to the photogenicity of the federal capital.

In short, Abuja is a photographer’s paradise. And it’s a paradise from which a friend of mine has plucked unnumbered breathtaking pictures. Camera in hand and at all times of the year—through the haze of harmattan and the blur of the rain—and at different parts of the day—dawn, sunrise, sunset—he has captured postcard quality beauties.

When Haroun Adamu—with whom I attended medical school—started to share his impressive pictures of birds and the natural features Abuja on Facebook, I envisioned a glossy coffee-table book full of such pictures one day. He said he had the same idea. Several months after, I was utterly delighted to learn that the book is finally out.

There’s a craft to taking a good picture—and people go to school to learn it. But beyond the craft, it’s also a profound art for which people have talent. Adamu is a talented photographic artist.

Once, I was indulging in painting a word picture of a place I saw somewhere in Nigeria. Adamu quipped, “share picture please”. Enough of words. Go and get your own copy of Scenic Abuja: A Photo Journey To The Hills, Rocks and Valleys. In it you will see features bathed in a soft morning glow, suffused with the golden light of sunset, or just captured against the clearest blue sky...

I look forward to seeing a coffee book possibly titled The Birds of Abuja.