INTERVIEW
November 9, 2020
UNPLANNED MOMENTS
Photography by Ashish Patel
Interview by Melanie Meggs
Ashish Patel is a Delhi based street and documentary photography who only started photographing about a year and a half ago. His main focus is to show the candidness of a scene and make it look extraordinary. Learning mostly from his mentors he gets his inspiration from the Indian people going about their everyday lives.
"I really believe there are things nobody would see if I didn’t photograph them."
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Diane Arbus
IN CONVERSATION WITH ASHISH PATEL
TPL: Ashish please tell us about yourself. When did you become interested in photography?
AP: I was born in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. I live in New Delhi, India. Photography has always been a part of my journey. Although its meaning kept changing in my life. During school, it was the capturing memories phase. I used to click pictures of my friends and also self-portraits to keep with me as a memory.
Things changed when I moved to Delhi from Kanpur for my engineering studies. It was the event capturing phase. During a college event, I borrowed a camera from a friend and covered it through the lens. It was the first time I clicked something with a DSLR, and to my surprise, the results were quite good (I had clicked those pictures on auto-mode). I didn't know anything about how a camera works. So I entered the learning phase, I went searching on YouTube on how the manual mode works and what the settings are. I spent hours practising and improving my skills. I kept clicking basic photographs of sunsets and flowers, everything that I came across, and through that process, I’ve learned a few things on how a camera functions.
TPL: Where do you find your inspiration? What do you want to express through your photography? And what are some of the elements you always try to include in your photography?
AP: I think I learn from people every day. I learn from my mentors and I get inspiration from so many people. To me one of the basic characteristics of street photography is candidness. I feel that as a street photographer it is my duty to show the candid street.
Photography has taught me many things and the most important one is patience. I have been an impatient person my whole life but now, I can wait for a perfect shot for hours. I can stand at a position for several minutes to capture that perfect moment. It feels like a responsibility and I like that.
Being a street photographer, I find my own voice in my photos. In street photography I look out for some unusual things and then create some illusion. In street photography what you hide is equally important as what you reveal.
TPL: Do you have any favourite artists or photographers you would like to share with us?
AP: Mr. Raghu Rai and Mr. Vineet Vohra
TPL: Does the equipment you use help you in achieving your vision in your photography? What camera do you use? Do you have a preferred lens/focal length?
AP: Absolutely yes, being a street photographer, I feel that your presence of mind matters more than the camera equipment.
I use a Nikon D5600 and prefer to shoot 18-55mm.