RIP Noor Ali Rashid

I found out this morning that one of UAE's renowned photographers, Noor Ali Rashid passed away, he was 80 years old.

Noor Ali Rashid was born in the Gwadar province of Pakistan in December 1929. He took up photography at a young age, but since his father did not see it as a respectable profession and to distract him from it, he sent him to Dubai in 1958 to open a branch of the family’s import and business.

Instead, Rashid pursued his interest in photography, which led him to getting appointed by the late Sheikh Rashid, ruler of Dubai at the time to be his personal and family photographer. He eventually became the official photographer of the ruling families of the seven emirates in the United Arab Emirates and earned the title of ‘the royal photographer' by the late Sheikh Zayed.

For over 50 years, Noor Ali Rashid has documented the ruling family, life in the UAE, won many awards and published several books. According to recent interviews, he's amassed over three million photographs - what I would do to get my hands on this treasure. His photos are an invaluable insight into this country and its people and I wish more of his work could be seen online, his official website, www.nooralirashid.com says "website under development".

Image from Gulf News: Sheikh Mohammad was appointed head of Dubai Police and Security in 1968 and UAE Minister of Defence after the federation was founded in 1971.

Image from Gulf News: Sheikh Zayed on holiday in Lausanne, Switzerland, with his sons, Shaikh Hamdan Bin Zayed and Shaikh Hazza Bin Zayed.

Since the news of death this morning, I've heard very warm and touching tributes. I have not met him personally, but his daughter went to the same school I went to, so my only personal memory was seeing him regularly when he’d her pick up.

His legacy will live on through his work, and I hope there will be a retrospective exhibition in the UAE to honor him and his work.

Here's an interview with Noor Ali Rashid from a couple of years ago talking about how he got into photography and life in Dubai in the old days. He also talks about some of the leaders and celebrities he's met. When he was asked how he'd like to be remembered, he said "...when you go out, you will remembered by your good work you do for this country." RIP Noor Ali Khan Rashid.