After I completed my 12th in 2016, I planned to do B.com and I sent the admission applications for the same. During the break, I thought of buying a basic DSLR just because it’s a cool thing to have, photography was never a part of the plan, I used to like the idea of it. One of my friends told me if we can go for a shoot and I had my camera so why not take chances? We shot a short film and the output was not so good. Back then, I didn’t even know how to use a camera, everything I shot was on Auto mode, I didn’t have the understanding of any other functions in the camera.
One day at the dinner table, my father asked me about my plans for the future. I told him about B.com and then PG and then job. I was not very confident in my plans and my dad sensed it, he asked me to pay more attention to photography as he saw me experiment with it. He told me to find a photography course in Delhi and enroll in it but they are so expensive and in my opinion that was not something I was ready for at an initial stage. I enrolled myself in an Arts college and it helped me so much in the understanding of aesthetics and many other factors which changed my perspective about how I see the world.
I was the only photographer in my class in the college and that was a difficult situation but being around different kinds of artists helps you differently in developing your skills towards your art. I used to hate the pictures I have clicked during my first year of college maybe because I haven’t had the kind of confidence in my work but now that I look back, I feel that they are not as bad as I used to think.
My grandparents are very skeptical about my career choice but my father always raises his voice in my support. He is from the army and he is completely different from the kind of portrayal they show in the movies, he is very chill and supportive, and without him, I wouldn’t have come this far. The most important thing he taught me is discipline, I keep that in my work. I make sure to fulfill all the commitments on time and sincerely.
Photography has become my passion and I love working towards it every day of my life. My perspective about my passion is slightly different from the rest, I feel like if you make your passion your profession you will lose the art in it. The moment you start dealing with clients, it is more about them than it is about you. Photography is very personal to me and I like to keep it my way. Monetary support is obviously necessary and for that, I started shooting videos and working with different brands.
When I go to shoot weddings, many people don’t find my work “album worthy” as my style of clicking is a kind of street style. I come from a background of street photography and that is what I love, even though I do videos as a professional I do click some pictures for myself.
Photography is very subjective and a good photo or a bad photo is decided by the perspective of the viewer. I understood this when I participated in a big competition, even though I am not very fond of competitions, I did it anyway. I chose random photos from my Holi trip and there were thousands of entries from across the globe. To my surprise, one of my pictures got selected, and in my opinion, that picture was pretty average than the rest of the pictures. Through that, I understood how different people have different views on a picture.
Everything you do, do it from your inspiration. Develop a work style that is comfortable for you which also pushes you to work out of your comfort zones. Everything you are doing has its hands on what you will be, so even if you’re not a fan of your own work, appreciate the present, and work towards it. It will make you go higher than yesterday.
- Yogendra Singh
