TheAnonymouslyBeautiful

BookMarks

New story on my website Platinum and ETH Section. We wanted to shoot with a bedsheet, it was the main discussion before the shoot. The shot we had in mind was a carefree throwing off the bedsheet which could represent freedom, happiness or independence.

We also shot these on the March Afternoon

More On

www.byashwin.com/portraits2

Bullying, Harassment of Photographers C2

For the genre that I am creating in, it is an extremely sensitive one, where the world always sides not the creator. Everyone automatically assumes exploitation, pushing people to pose for something they dont want to etc etc. 

This is absolutely untrue. For every one exploitation, there are hundreds of creators who are playing fair. Also exploitation can happen only in commercial spaces where the muses maybe forced to do something that they don't want to, but end up doing it cos it...

Bullying, Harassment of Photographers

There is rarely a forum that discusses harassment, bullying, un-ethical blackmailing of Photographers by Collaborators. Here's how I ensure that I not only do the right thing, but also protect my rights and interests of the creations created painstakingly and with a lot of love and heart, by me.

cont. through this month...

Breaking the Ice

I don't meet my muses before the shoots. It is a rule I have, cos I simply do not have the time for this additional time. I feel once you have a body of work, a strict work ethic and conviction of what you want to do, the muses can sense it too. 

But no matter how many times I have shot someone, I still never take anything for granted. I would not jump into a shot, without letting them warm up, get comfortable. People come in with various moods from the day, so to allow them to get...

The Magic of the ViewFinder

sometimes you can spend hours thinking how and what will you shoot of a person when they walk in that door. the uncertainty, the uneasiness, the excitement is real for every single time i pick up my camera.

and then all it takes is to see through the view-finder, for it to all come to you. as rightly photography is about the frame. what you leave out of it is as important as what you keep in it.

Br Ash

Ps: more on these on your large screen soon :)

The French Connection Continues

We shot these after a long day for both of us. She was busy with her theatre, and I was attending a Workshop all day. By the time we met we were both really really hungry and we ended up eating and talking till 12am. We then finally felt like it was right to start shooting, and we shot some really beautiful light from 12am to 2 am. I used my KodakChrome tweaked recipe for all these pictures. Will as usual put them all out on the large screen.

The French Connection

Shooting her was so different, because she comes from a different culture, a culture that appreciates individual choices and is not influenced by society ( not too much ) . She came here for her love for bollywood, and i was lucky to be able make some photographs with her:)

More of these on my website

www.byashwin.com

Saturdays

As most would know, I am creating only on weekends. Mostly on my free saturdays. Due to such constraints, I do not get as much time as I would like for my shoots. And hence I need to manage my time very very well, to make the most of it.

To ensure that, I as a rule do not meet up with my collaborators before the shoot, over tea coffee or anything. I make all my plans online. And I work only with those, who are familiar with my body of work, and my work process and ethic.,,,,,

...

Help at Hand

BLACK TURTLES

This was almost at the end of our long shoot, we suddenly remembered, I had a Hat to use, and she had a turtle neck black top. Colaborations need to be like this, contributing to ideas while at it. 

The Long Blacks : Public Post

The Long Blacks

I shot these with people who were absolute strangers to each other. I feel, for photographic aesthetic and chemistry, strangers work best. There is a sense of inhibition, a respect for each others private space.

You can see more of these on the website

Photography Basics- Raw Format

Digital photography like everything else now is about data. a camera is just like it used to be earlier , a device to capture your images. It has only moved from imprinting them on a film to imprinting them on a memory card. And then they have added some additional computer capabilities features to make it easier for you to take your pictures.  So, needless to say the more data you have the more are your options and possibilities. So there are various formats available for us to store ou...

Why Black and White

I discovered photography only after college, before that my exposure to anything related to photography was very limited. I was more exposed to rich culture and music in my growing up years. My first camera was a gift from a cousin and i just took to it like a magnet. It was around this time or maybe a bit earlier I discovered the work of Peter Lindhbergh. He still till date is the only photographer whose work style and ethic inspires me. I feel maybe his work had a deep influence on how I sa...

My Style

Everyone loves appreciation, everyone wants their work to be loved (not just liked), maybe even obsessed over. All this is not to inflate your ego. A good creator would use all this as fuel to push himself higher and keep improving. The words that I get most for my work are, "i love how you are able to keep it so raw", other things people like about my pictures are the framing and composition. While I am a completely self-taught photographer, learning from my own photographs, sub-consciously ...

My Glasses

Photography is not just about the Gear, it is what you do with it. Having said that, having appropriate gear, more importantly choosing appropriately from what you have will have a big impact on the quality of images you create and also the mood of the pictures. But it is also very importa...

The Business Side of Photography

A lot of us, in our creative enthusiasm are undervaluing our work. worth and brand value. I would always remember that the most important part of being a successful business is the importance of a brand. Once a brand is established, the brand position will determine the pricing that you ca...

To Edit or Not

To Edit or Not

I am a complete geek/ nerd when it comes to learning something be it driving, photography, lighting and also editing. When I did start shooting people, I also would spend hours and hours learning how to perfectly edit an image, using multiple post processing tools. I do not come from a photography background, so all my image editing was either driven by what I saw, or what my collaborators suggested / hinted. I self learnt, or took help from expert fellow editors and yo...

Is a Photographer a Professional Voyeur ?

One of the most famous Photographers in Nude/ Erotica/ Fashion Genre, is often said to have referred to himself as a Professional Voyeur. What do you think about it ? Is it what we photographers are ?

Of-course, he like everyone is entitled to his own opinion. But, I feel such opinions, when coming from renowned famous personalities,  are misconstrued by many as an accepting norm of behaviour. I also get asked many many times about what happens during a shoot to a photographer when...

Instagram, Algorithms, Expectations and Disappointments

We live in exciting times, it has all come together for creatives to create. The gear is more accessible, it is much easier to find collaborators, it is easier to edit and enhance the creations, and the world is full of ideas being put out there every second.

Despite all of the above, it is a well known fact that social media, is one of the largest influencers of mental health issues. A rising number of people are facing un-happiness, depression, anxiety disorders due to social pressure...