CNN: Former rock ‘n’ roll photographer puts Islam in front of the lens

London, England (CNN) — Former rock ‘n’ roll photographer and Muslim convert Peter Sanders says he is trying to show the true face of Islam through his photography.

Sanders is concerned that images of extremists and terrorists dominate the public’s idea of Islam. He searches for more traditional images to remind people of Muslims’ real heritage.

Sanders began his photography career as a hippie with a camera in London’s swinging 60s, photographing everyone from Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix to The Rolling Stones.

But he came out of the 1960s movement searching for something else and in the years that followed, he embarked on a spiritual journey that took him first to India and then to the Muslim world.

He was one of the first westerners to photograph the rituals of the Hajj, the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca. His experiences in the Islamic world remained with him long after he returned from his travels and he decided to embrace the Muslim way of life.

Today, his pictures tend to capture a more traditional Islam, which he says is now much harder to find. He says that Islam has become politicized and he’s keen to present the more spiritual side of the religion.

Continue Reading Here