national Arts Festival Banner

Friday, October 10, 2014

NOLITA SINAYHAKH WINS FIRST PRIZE



(The splendour of sunrise at the Moyo uShaka Pier Bar by Nolita Sinayhakh)

Nolita Sinayhakh (21) is a third year student at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) studying towards a Diploma in Photography and specialising in portrait and commercial photography. She recently snapped up first prize in the Gooderson Leisure Photographic competition.

Her picturesque photograph of the Moyo uShaka Pier Bar, capturing the splendour of Durban’s beachfront at sunrise, stood out as the certain winner according to Gail Westphalt, Gooderson Leisure’s general manager of sales & marketing!.

Students were tasked with capturing the beachfront lifestyle that is fundamental to the Gooderson Brand and included their Tropicana Hotel and Silver Sands Timeshare units.

Gail Westphalt highlighted that this was the second year that Gooderson Leisure had entered into partnership with DUT to implement this project with its third year students. “We were delighted with the results this year and really feel that most of the third year class put in a lot of effort,” she said.

Born and bred in Clare Estate and acknowledged as being vivacious, bubbly, humorous and open-minded, Sinayhakh simply loves to make people smile. She got involved in photography when a family friend recommended she venture into the field.

Her motto in life is to be kind to people, have compassion and empathy. “Be grateful for what you have and don’t chase happiness, because there’s only one place that you will truly find it and that’s from within you,” she says.

“I think it’s important to surround yourself with positive people, do not allow the energy of negative people to cloud your dreams. To parents out there that may not be open to their children venturing into a creative or unusual field of work because it may not earn them the royalty or status. Do not educate your children to be rich, educate them to be happy. So when they grow up, they’ll know the value of things and not the price,” added Sinayahakh.

Going forward she believes that getting paid for something that you love is what is worthwhile and feels money should never take over and sidetrack the passion that you have for photography.

In five years time, she sees herself having saved up enough capital to start a fully fledged photography business venturing out into all creative mediums such as writing, fashion, graphic design, videography and any other door of opportunity that opens up with her brand Nolita as well as travel the world and indulge in different cultures and lifestyles.