Interview: Bhaskardutta

We continue to interview shotaddict photographers. In the current post Bhaskardutta, the winner of 15 shotaddict contests, shares his experience.

1. Who are you? Please give a brief background information.
I am Bhaskar Dutta from India. Professionally, I am involved in biotechnology research work primarily focusing on molecular biology and intellectual property management in a biotech company at India.

2. How long have you been doing photography?

I don't even remember when i first held a camera.. it's long back while I was at school, i used to play around with my dad's Yashica SLR camera taking pictures. Gradually it turned to a hobby when i was at the university.

3. How did you start doing photography? What got you interested in it?

There had been an exhibition of photographs by students in our university where I contributed few snaps taken by me. All of them fetched me good amount of praise. That was when I first realized that I can be better at it. Later I started participating in different competitions and received few laurels. That's how I got my interest in the art of photography.

4. Do you earn living from photography or you do photography as your hobby/ your half time job?

Well as of now I practice photography just as a hobby.

5. What's your day job?

Biotechnology Research

6. Do you have special education? Did you take courses or go to a school learn photography?

I didn't take any formal course in photography. However, I study a lot about photography in publications and online resources. Also, consult with people established in the field of photography. And sites like shotaddict.com help me a lot to develop my skills.

7. Are you specializing in a particular area of photography? What is your favourite type of photography?

Though I experiment with almost all kinds of photography ('am still a learner though!), what I am interested in now is the landscape.Pictures without people.

8. Who are your big photographic influences?

No particular influence as such. I browse through several photographs each day in different websites and try to evaluate my own photographs with them. It helps me a lot to understand what a golden standard is.

9. How do you educate yourself? Do you read special literature, visit photography galleries?

Most of my knowledge has been developed through trial and error. I have never studied photography formally as such, although I keep reading articles at the net.

10. What are your favorite places/objects to shoot?

I move around a lot and most of my weekends are spent at far away places.. I love shooting landscapes, panorama, still life, candid pictures, sunsets, night shots. I capture whatever looks nice to my eyes.

11. What equipment and software do you use? (camera(s), lenses, film, etc.)

The camera that I rely most is my Canon PowerShot S3 IS. Among software, I find ACDSee most convenient for me to use. I also use Adobe Photoshop.

12. What is your opinion on post-processing, especially enhancing pictures?

I don't do a lot of manipulation to my photos once I upload them to my computer. It's been my goal to push myself as a photographer to take a better photo each time and use as little post-processing as possible. However, I am not opposed to it and I use it when required absolutely.

13. What advice would you give someone who is interested in photography and wants to improve their photography skills?

My advice to beginners in photography is to first forget about the endless technical details of modern devices and train your eye to respond to and compose your favorite topics. Try and listen to your inner feelings and take the kind of pictures you want to make, rather than imitating the shots made by others. Wherever you go or whatever you shoot, try to find a personal way of interpreting what you observe.

Then, as you gradually educate yourself with your camera's technical features; you would be able to manipulate and capture the right shots, making more of personally "filtered" images and not artless recordings. Try not to use a flash unless it's utterly needed. Try out creative angles, instead of straight on, try to shoot from up high or down low. Try to take candid photos, where you capture realistic images, rather than poses.

Lastly, don't take unconstructive criticism personally. If you receive comments like "this shot sucks", ignore it unless the commenter makes it clear why they think the shot sucks. Believe in yourself and rely on your instincts. If you like the photo, then it's a good photo.

14. What's the most challenging aspect of photography for you? What's the best part of it?

The most challenging aspect of photography is to shoot an image precisely as visualized before and the exact effect is reflected in the photograph. The best part of photography is looking at simple things in a different way through the lens.. It gives a chance of revisiting the experience that you had while being behind the camera.

You may find Bhaskardutta photographs at http://www.flickr.com/photos/bhaskardutta/