Essence of a Photograph…
A photograph is a moment captured. It is a picture that is alive in its stillness. Be it a place, a person, an emotion or an event, a photograph is the primary witness to the moment and the only way to hold on to it.
Top 10 images of 2023
https://independent-photo.com/news/the-best-images-of-2023/)
Looking through the lens of my friend…
My friend, Sanhita Sinha, a successful photographer by profession, was the first to initiate and inculcate in me a curiosity about this highly evolving art form. A photograph is open to intuition and interpretation like any other creative piece. It cannot be constricted within the confines of a singular understanding as it encapsulates instants that exhibit existence in its diversity.
The power of the Medium…
A photograph is potent and promising. Yes, it is just a split second that the photographer thought worthy to be turned into truth. But then that teeny while, exists only through the photograph. In fact, it becomes the link to the past and, often, the license to the future. A medium that enables you to travel through time.
For instance, take a look at the above photograph. It encapsulates the early hours of winter, somewhere in rural Bengal. While the man is sipping out of his morning cup as a toilsome day awaits him, the woman has many chores to attend to after cooking the meal. Only the child has the liberty to make the most of the day and live up to it. My perception just begins there and before I ramble into their lives, I’ll let you imagine the rest.
The Shutter Story…
Now that tickles the storyteller in me to admit that every photograph has a story. The ‘real story’ of the ‘real-time’, the story that is woven through the vision of the photographer and then the story that the beholder spins out of it. Again, a new story, every time a different person looks at the snap and also each time, the same person looks at it. Countless tales for a solitary take!
Look at the two pics that are placed one below the other. In the first, rather dull and ordinary click, I can hear a telling domestic tale. While the clothesline showcases mundane habitual living, the coloured pegs could be a reminder of the diverse relations that we balance on the twines of our lives. However, I am sanguine that you are drawn to the other photograph, which stands as a contrast to the previous one. Indeed, this extraordinary moment must have been breathtaking for the spectators and breathless for the participants. Moi Chara, a race of bulls, gave the ace photographer, a chance to explore the relationship between a being and a brute – raw and real.
The Evolution of Photography…
For the time being, let’s concentrate on the change in the art and practice of taking photographs. Now that takes me at least two decades back when picture-taking was a fairly prolonged process involving steps and strictures. I clearly remember my father’s mandatory visit to photo-labs just before our long-awaited vacation.
The camera reel had to be purchased and from that moment itself, it turned into a prized possession. Only a fixed, limited number of shots could be taken. So, the number of exposures had to be manipulated and monitored.
However, today with a mobile phone in my hand, I can just keep clicking. It is unlimited and I am unstoppable. The question is, “Is it for the better?” That ask baffles me too. An unconstrained act is more often than not, a mindless one. I can have ‘n’ number of photographs, which can be easily edited. But in the act, where is the heart and the hand?
Natural or edited…
To get a hold of what I was writing, I fetched out an album of my school days. There were just a handful of photos, certainly lacking the lustre of the contemporary ones. Yet so alive with all its flaws. No pretence and so palpably candid. Natural as opposed to the premeditated and post-perfected pictures of the present times. One look at them and I could effortlessly live through one and a half decades of the most cherished phase of my life.
My apprehension was corroborated by the photographer herself. She mentioned that nowadays for any event, a photographer would be taking as many as 1000 photographs or more. They would be heavily processed before the delivery to the client. Such a process is not only time-consuming but reflects poorly on the diminishing skill of a photographer and her incompetence in capturing “the moment.”
Tips for aspiring Shutterbugs…
Now that brings us to the next concern. What could be some valuable tips for aspiring photographers so that they can master the skill and make the most of a moment? The photographer leaves us with some points to ponder on.
· Your eyes are your best camera.
· Learn the rule of thirds. If you nail it, you are good to go.
· Know the pros and cons of your camera. Maximise the pros and manipulate to overcome the cons.
· Composition is the key. Think before you click.
· You cannot make a bad shot good by editing.
· Learn about post processing. Without it, it’s just boiled food served.
World Photography Day…
Did you know that Monday, 19th August, 2024 is World Photography Day? The Day is an annual global attempt to honour the art of photography and the craft and creativity involved in it. The theme for 2024 is “An Entire Day,” a theme, which is possibly, not only intriguing but also inclusive. Anything within the span of a single day, can be captured.
These are what ‘An Entire Day’ could mean to me. What about yours?
By Promita Banerjee Nag
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