NAM is a Tokyo-based graphic/art collective, formed in May 2006 by a graphic designer Takayuki Nakazawa and a photographer Hiroshi Manaka.

Currently a team of more than 10 artists, NAM creates works with hints of fantasy, fusing graphic design point of view into photographic expression.

The works of N-A-M are unique in their own way. The pictures seem to belong to a world of fantasy. Where do you draw your inspirations from?
Nakazawa: I love films and often get inspirations from scenes of the films to start off and expand the inspiration into the image of my own. This is why our work is often described as cinematic.

Your work merges graphic design with photographs. How do you manage to come up with such innovative ideas and such flawless results?
Nakazawa: I think many of my ideas are as simple as "a casual thought". I rather put much time into how to assemble such casual ideas. Our work looks like a fake at one glance but we actually build the set to shoot, so it really exits. Then, we do re-touching at the post-production stage so the boundary between "fake" and "real" gets blurred even more. I am interested in the relationship of what's fake and what's real.

“…many of my ideas are as simple as "a casual thought". I rather put much time into how to assemble such casual ideas. Our work looks like a fake at one glance but we actually build the set to shoot, so it really exits.”

Takayuki, when did you first realise your inclination towards photography and what was the first object you shot?
Nakazawa: I was always interested in the method of expressing with photography. And I had been thinking for a long time that a graphic-designer's point of view should meet other methods of expression to push the boundary of graphic design further. In the earlier years, we often used familiar objects such as using papers only to express something.

Did you have a goal in mind when you first got started?
Nakazawa: No, we didn't. I would love to keep expanding into a world of expression I never intended to.

“I would like to keep searching for various methods of expression, thinking from various directions, not sticking to one style. However, the theme "floating" never bores me. I think I like it because I can feel even freer.”

What is your favourite subject? What would you say is your specialty?
Nakazawa: I would like to keep searching for various methods of expression, thinking from various directions, not sticking to one style. However, the theme "floating" never bores me. I think I like it because I can feel even freer.

You have represented the human body in numerous interesting ways. We get a glimpse of the same in your website. What is it about the human body that appeals to you?
Nakazawa: To talk about the human body in regards to our work, we once made a set of typography using a scanner camera BETTERLIGHT, capturing the tracks of the movement the model or the object made. I think it came out from a typical graphic designer's two dimensional viewpoint. It was very interesting to see how one form dissimilated into a new form which I did not even intend to make. I even enjoyed the inconvenience of this camera which means that we could not foresee what kind of image we captured.

People like to talk about their 'lucky breaks' but I think it's more hard work and passion that leads to a breakthrough to becoming a professional photographer. When was your breakthrough?
Manaka: We have held the first exhibition as NAM for the first time in February this year. Many processes to realize an exhibition were, for me, meant the steps into unknown fields. There were some difficulties which we created for ourselves to make a better show and it was hard to overcome those but it was a very exciting experience. That was a breakthrough for me and I think it made me take a step for the next.

“…you can shoot the image in your mind if you really put your heart into it.”

Though photo equipment is important, some photographers think that buying the latest body or lens will improve their photographs. Where do you think a person wanting to improve their abstract photography should focus their time, effort and money?
Manaka: Through the course of my career, I have learnt that you can shoot the image in your mind if you really put your heart into it. Needless to say, you need time and effort and you need to spend as much money as you can if it is absolutely necessary to create what you really want.

Could you narrate any memorable incidents which happened during the course of your career as a photographer?
Manaka: In most of our shootings, we do preparation the night before and go straight into the shooting without a sleep. So all those ‘sleeping shoots’ are memorable.

	Quick7: Favourite printer: Epson  (Manaka) Favourite Shoot: "Fall Room" in which we changed the gravity by 90 degrees, is my personal favourite. (Nakazawa) Preferred Location:  I like it where something can float. (Nakazawa) Favourite Photographer: DIt is difficult to name just one.  (Manaka) Most memorable story:  that I lost the data after the shooting. (Manaka) Current photographers you like: Inez and Vinoodh  (Manaka) Toughest day at work: No days were not tough. (Manaka)

More Photos by NAM / Fotosocial

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