Melusi ‘Magesh’ Dlamini’s Journey: From Self-Taught Dreamer to Master Photographer
By Karabo Ngoepe
On weekends in Eswatini, chances are you’ll find Melusi “Magesh” Dlamini moving through the crowd with his camera, slipping into spaces most don’t notice. One moment he’s crouched low at a cultural festival, the next he’s pacing the edge of a royal ceremony or concert stage, waiting for that instant when life reveals itself. His photographs are everywhere, on newspaper front pages, online platforms, in family albums, yet it’s the story of how he got here that truly lingers.
Magesh didn’t arrive by the usual route. There was no photography degree, no expensive equipment, no training abroad. Instead, there was a restless curiosity, a willingness to experiment, and the conviction that pictures can tell the truth in ways words sometimes cannot.
“I just picked up a camera and never put it down,” he says.
That first camera wasn’t even his. He borrowed it while still in Form 2. Where others saw just a machine, Magesh saw possibility: a way to freeze time, to record history, to give weight to fleeting moments. Growing up in Mhlosheni, Nhlangano, with three siblings, he was surrounded by the energy of storytelling. Each of them gravitated towards the media in different ways, but it was Magesh who made the lens his home.
After completing Form 5 at St. Francis High, he wasted no time. The very next day after writing his last exam, he was working as a photographer at Tattoo Palace in Ezulwini. He stayed for a year and a half before briefly pursuing IT studies, but the camera called him back. The years that followed became his self-made classroom. He studied the light at sunrise and sunset, experimented with angles and dissected images in newspapers, asking himself why some stirred emotion while others fell flat. Without realising it, he was teaching himself to see, not just to look, but to see.
And so, when Eswatini celebrated, mourned, or turned a page in its story, Magesh was there, ready with his lens. His photographs have captured royal ceremonies, festivals, state functions, and community roadshows. They’ve become part of the public record, shaping how the nation remembers itself.
Yet behind the artistry is a harder truth: the road hasn’t been smooth. Making a living in Eswatini’s creative industries takes more than talent; it takes grit. “Sometimes you shoot an event, and people don’t understand the value of what you’ve done,” he says. “They see a picture, not the hours of chasing the moment, the editing, the storytelling behind it.”
Even so, his reputation has only grown. Colleagues trust his eye. Editors know his images will be sharp, honest, and human. Young photographers look at his journey and see proof that skill and persistence can carve out a place, even without formal training.
For Magesh, photography isn’t just work, it’s legacy. “Pictures don’t lie,” he says. “Long after we’re gone, people will look at these photos to understand who we were, what we celebrated and what we struggled with.”
That belief has made him something of an unofficial archivist for Eswatini, chronicling everything from the dust of rural football pitches to the grandeur of state occasions. His lens searches for humanity in every frame.
Now, as much as he builds his own career, he is intent on passing on the craft. He mentors young people, urging them not to wait for the “right time” or perfect equipment. “If you have a phone, start with that,” he tells them. “It’s not the tool that matters, it’s your eye, your patience, your story.”
Even as he cements his place behind the camera, Magesh hasn’t stopped learning. He is currently studying Cisco CCNA at SoftTech, hoping one day to merge his passion for technology with his love of photography. But no matter what paths open before him, he is clear about one thing: “Photography is my first love.”
