I command presidents, govs, first ladies –Ibadin, CEO, Mattson Creations Photography

“I don’t like talking about my childhood,” he tells you, fiddling with one of the several cameras on his table. They are of various sizes, makes and shapes. It is a Tuesday morning and it is raining torrentially. But that was not enough to stop him from coming to his studio, where two of his workers are already busy, attending to customers.
For Matthew Ibadin, the athletic and fragile looking CEO of Mattson Crea­tions Photography and Academy, the road of life has been a tortuous one. Growing up for him was everything but rosy. This is quite expected, having lost both his mother and father six months apart when he was barely six years old. “You know what that means?” he asks rhetorically, sadness welling up in his eyes as he recollects that grim part of his life’s trajectory. It was enough to break any child’s spirit. But not Mattson. The Uromi, Edo State-born photographer, or photo entrepreneur, as he is wont to describe himself has climbed the ladder of success. To say photography is the livewire of his life is an understatement.
“Photography has done a lot for me. It made me what I am today. It has put a roof over my head and food on the table for my family, makes me an employer of labour, exposed me to know the political gladiators and captains of industry in Nigeria. So, the place of photography in my life cannot be over­emphasized,” he intones, a smile lighting up his face.
His journey into photography, he says, did not happen by accident. It was a dream he nurtured from childhood.
Sitting across the table with Ibadin in his highbrow duplex studio in Lekki Phase one, Lagos, it’s indeed amazing how much things have changed for him. From owning four traps with which he ensnared rodents to eke out a living years back, he now has four exquisite studios- three in Lagos (Lekki, Silverbird Galleria, 1004 Estate) and one in Wuse 11, Abuja. He says it is just the beginning of his photography conquest.
Photography may have been so kind to him. All he has in life may have come from clicking the shutters. But it has not been on a silver platter. He has had to work very hard at building his capacity by attending conferences and seminars on entrepreneurship and business manage­ment at Faith Foundation and the School of Media and Communication, Pan Atlantic University. They exposed him to the business and commercial aspect of photography.
The beginning of the realization of his dream began unfolding in 1996 when he came to Lagos. He came in with N13,000, bought a camera and went to work in the open space at the Arts Block (Faculty of Arts), University of Lagos.
“That was where I started real pho­tography business,” he begins. For the next two years, Mattson was the first to arrive the Arts Block where he “laid ambush” for students going for lec­tures to pose for “motion pictures”, thereby earning for himself the moniker, Paparazi. He took all the accolades and insults in his stride as he continued to snap away to earn a living. From snapping photographs, he secured admission to study Political Science in the university. But he never wavered from doing his photography business. accolades and insults in his stride as
Mattson has always been driven by uncommon ambition. As he recalls, when he was leaving Uromi for Lagos, he had boasted to his friends that he would one day return with a UNILAG degree in his pouch. But like the biblical Thomas, they doubted him. In their unbelief, they sniggered at and mocked him.
“When I said it, they told me to shut my mouth; how can you jump from Uromi to Lagos. You’re not even talking about Ekpoma (AAU) or Uniben, but University of Lagos? They asked how can that be possible. I told them that was my dream.” He has since made them eat the humble pie as he was admitted to the Faculty of Social Sciences to read Political Science in the 2008 session.
First camera
His first camera, he recalls vividly was a Yashica model which he bought for N13,000 in 1996. “It was like I just bought a jet. It was like a dream come true. From that day I bought it, I started making money.”
From owning just a camera and running a one-man show in 1996, Mattson has grown beyond even his own imagination. Now, he is the custodian of four state-of-the-art studios, and many staff and a host of ‘loaded’ clientele.
“I have about 40 cameras and a lot of people working for me,” he says softly, adding “For exam­ple, when I covered Chief Tony Anenih’s birthday, I did it with 17 photographers. No photographer has been able to break that record in this country or even in Africa. Do you know what it means to deploy 17 photographers? It was possible for me because I have photographers I have trained, I have those who are trainees and I have four offices in Nigeria. So, I am contributing my own quota as an entrepreneur to the growth of this country.”
More than a photogra­pher
An accredited member of several agencies including the Professional Photographers of Canada, World Photography Organisation, British Institute of Professional Photog­raphy, International Photographic Council, American Society of Picture Professionals among others, Ibadin is strict on who a photographer is. According to him, a photographer is different from a camera man. The fact that you can take pictures using the phone or any camera for that matter doesn’t make you a photographer. “A photogra­pher is that man who has passion for the business, who has the requi­site training, who understands what colour is all about, who understands the basic features of photography. You understand the lighting system; how to set light to take a portrai­ture. When you begin to understand these basics, then you’re on your way to becoming a photographer.
“I am a photo entrepreneur. I have an academy. I am into training and capacity building for pho­tographers. I have trained naval personnel, the police, journalists, individuals. We have a photogra­phy school where people can be trained and re-trained. I want to go into partnership with media houses to train their photojournalists and photo editors. Photography has gone past what they used to know, so they need to update their skills.”, he said proudly
Some people believe that pho­tography is for dropouts or lazy people. To Ibadin, nothing could be farther from the truth.
“It’s serious business. I just came back from Photokina, the big­gest photography fair in Cologne, Germany, where photographers, manufacturers and people who have anything to do with photography converged. There were over 1800 exhibitors. Come and see new tech­nology in photography. You would be impressed about photography business in the world,” he added enthusiastically.
Tips that led him to the top
Asked what it takes to make it big as a photographer, he quipped Passion, passion and more passion. Said he, “If you do not have pas­sion for it, then forget it. When any­body comes to me to say he or she wants to go into photography either as a trainee or employee, the first question I ask is do you need a job or you have a passion for it? If you just want to work, you can’t excel or succeed as a photographer. But if you have passion for it, you can go places. Passion is the reason people like us are going places. That is why I have photographed the who is who in this country. I have photo­graphed scores of African heads of state. I have gone round the world to cover events. And one thing I love about photography is that once everybody is seated, you would go round to do your documentation.
That process gives you room for networking that no other job can give you. When people are seated, you’re on your feet doing your net­work. When other people are doing their networking, you’re recording the networking. When they are seated, you become the focus of everybody because you’re standing and recording them. They must pay attention to you. You’re the focus of everybody. Whether a governor or president, you’re taller than all of them because they are seated and you’re standing. That’s what gives me the greatest joy. Whenever I handle a camera, taking the haves and the have-nots, gives me im­mense joy. It is like opium for me. I get high on it. I am high whenever I am with my camera. That’s the pas­sion I am talking about. Photogra­phy is not a job, but a passion.”
Golden moments
“When I go to houses in Banana Island, Parkview, Abacha Estate, Osborne, Lekki, VGC (Victoria Garden City), Ikoyi, Victoria Is­land, Ikeja GRA and see my photos hanging on their walls with the signature Mattson on them, I feel fulfilled. When I snap millionaires and billionaires, and I see my por­traits on their walls, it gives me joy. Whenever I am watching television and I see people I have photo­graphed at one time or the other-governors, ministers, former heads of state and senators- I pat myself on the back. I say to myself, Matt­son, you have tried for this nation. I just opened an office in Abuja last year just because I wanted to be close to where things happen. I am a graduate of political science. I am the only Nigerian who is a qualified political photographer, the only one who understands what it takes to do documentary for politicians and how they can keep an archive of their achievements. We call it project documentation. These are things we have just started in Abuja.”
Photographer for life
If he has his way, he would make photography compulsory in schools, just like Mathematics and the English Language and even make everyone a photographer. Reason? There’s so much benefit to be derived from it.
“Nobody has tapped the enor­mous opportunity in photography. You can’t do without me. Whether you’re crying or happy, there’s always photography. Photography has no boundary. Like water, it has no enemy. Nobody on earth, as long you’re living, can do without photography. It is not a matter of whether you like it or hate it; you can’t just do without it. When somebody dies, photography is there. If you’re born, photography is there. If you’re going back to school, photography is there. In fact, when you die, or you’re being buried, photography is involved. Just imagine. Even when I die and go to heaven, I will still be a photographer and still be making money from it. People must take pictures, even in heaven. I paid about N1million as school fees at LBS (Lagos Business School), but I can tell you that I made back my money right inside my class there. So, wherever I am, I am very important as a photographer.
“As a photographer, I command presidents, Commanders-in-Chief, Generals, governors, ministers, first ladies…I tell them, pose like this and they obey. Go this way; no, I don’t want it that way, lie on the floor, squat, and so on and they obey , because once I handle the camera, I am absolutely in charge. At that point I am the Commander-in-Chief. If the president wants to do passport, he can’t say go and do it for me; he must be present. He would pose for it. If you are a good photographer, you make lots of friends. Anybody you have photographed would never forget you. It’s a personal contract. That is why I have decided to title my forthcoming exhibition: ‘Who are you without photography?”
Ultimate dream
At present, Mattson offers a wide range of services which include photo project documentation, photography academy and training, photo gallery, model management and so on. But he says he is no­where near where he wants to be.
“For me, this is just the begin­ning. My dream is to have an insti­tute of photography. I want to go into manufacturing of frames, photo books and the rest of it. That’s what I am working on right now. I am working in partnership with some colleagues I met in Germany. So, very soon, you would see Mattson coming up with different photo­graphic business opportunities. My ultimate dream is to see Nigeria become the centre of photography in Africa. I want to use photogra­phy to attract foreign investment, promote culture and tourism and to re-brand Nigeria. All those developments that are coming up that the world wants to know about Nigeria, we have to capture them.
I am doing some books including The Best of Entrepreneurs, The Best of Lagos State and The Best of Abuja. These are all coffee books on how to promote what we have as a nation. I view Nigeria through the lenses. I believe using the camera, I can contribute to Nigeria. I think what we need most now are people who can contribute their own quota. I want to use photography to tell Nigeria’s story. We have to do it by ourselves otherwise nobody is going to do it for us. There is no better tool to re-brand Nigeria than photography. We must re-brand our country. This is the only country we have. And I will do this till I die. I love my country. You would appreciate Nigeria better when you go out of Nigeria. There are three things I must do for Nigeria before I die- use photography to re-brand Nigeria, to attract foreign inves­tors and to promote culture and tourism.”
Not for the rich only
He waves aside any suggestion that his services are for the high and mighty only. “Mattson is for everybody. To take a picture at Mattson you need just N1000. I have a studio at Silverbird Galleria, Victoria Island where you can take photograph for as low as N500. So, it is for everybody. Anybody can afford to take pictures at Mattson Creation. Mattson belongs to the masses as well as to the upper class.”