From images that explore the emotionality of people of Tanzania to the traditional old-world portraits, Ali’s photographic ideas are streams that co-exist and flow at the same time, driven by the issues he feels strongly for. Photographing the people and tribes of Tanzania, such as the Maasai and the Hadzabe, Ali wants to reveal that the value of such pictures doesn’t come so much from the physical image itself, but more from his subject’s back-story and message. The purity of character and color is what he enjoys bringing out of whom he captures.
Ali has always enjoyed giving dimensions to his passion and in this respect has enjoyed mentoring, working on editorials for MTV-Africa and BBC-Africa, and several renowned projects such as Miss Universe Tanzania, Miss Universe Kenya, Maridadi events – an initiative for raising awareness and funds for the centers dealing with stigmatized social problems such as sexual abuse and rape.
One thing Ali feels strongly for is the interdependency of personal and commercial work. For him the personal work is where his vision, his identity and his feelings come through, while his commercial pursuits instills discipline and teamwork in him. He took a bold step in creating a brand for himself, known as AZH-photography, for which both his personal and commercial works are commissioned at. An instinctive affinity towards striking portraits has largely defined Ali's journey as a professional photographer, but even when he tweaks his style, there is always a certain approach that is observant and reflective