Moments in monochrome,sepia and colour.

Last week, upon a friend’s recommendation, I took a peek at some amazing works by Edward Weston-the most influential photographer of the twentieth century. Since then, I keep going back to browsing his aces, only to discover new lines and deeper meanings.

Weston once pointed out that ‘Photography to the amateur is recreation; to the professional it is work and hard work too, no matter how pleasurable it may be’ these words immediately bring to mind a conversation I once had with TOI photographer Gaurang Joshi, whose pictures in the daily editions portray more than text can say and defy mundane ‘snaperazzi’. Upon asking him if a certain time was suitable for a photo shoot, Gaurangbhai smiled and replied,”Maru schedule bambawala jevu hoy chey” (my schedule is like that of a fireman, I am on the job 24/7) His enthusiasm for snapping the perfect moment comes through in his shots ,often taken from difficult aerial perspectives.

Both he and his brother Dharmesh have inherited this art from their father Chandrakant Joshi, fondly known as ‘kaka’ in most Surti households ,mister Joshi senior is a self taught photographer who has clicked Tapi town through its days of glory as well as natural calamities. As a student, he brought his first camera in 1964, a Kodak Brownie, from a Surti sailor for Rs.25.Through the years, the instruments changed from Rolleiflex, to Yashica to Nikon and even in these digital times, he has preserved a cupboard full of the old pieces which are priceless because of the memories snapped through them.
Legendary photographer Robert Capa once advised, ’If your pictures aren’t good enough, you are not close enough.’what he actually meant was not the use of longer lenses but the fact that the photographer needs to be closely involved and intimate with the subject.

Good photography comes forth from the power of observation, not how technology is applied, the proof of which lies in classic black and white photographs which have managed to capture the past in so regal a manner. In circa 1901, Surat’s oldest photo studio was founded by Vijbhukhandas .N. Mehta .Mehta worked in the accounts department of Ajmer railways .He once happened to visit a local studio there to have a photograph taken along with a friend. With interest invoked in photography since, he took training from a friend’s relative and joined a Britisher’s photo studio as a helper. Over time, he saved enough to set up one himself and deeming it inappropriate to comepete with his employer, he shifted to Surat and set up shop in a tiny space on Rajmarg.

This iconic studio is a warehouse of brilliant photographs that has captured British Royalty, India’s first politicians and connoisseurs from Mumbai and Ahmedabad in the early 20th century. The passion for photography was passed down generations and a hundred and ten years later, continues with fourth generation representatives in the form of his great grandchildren Rita, Bina and Rajesh Mehta who maintain the state record breaking sales of Canon cameras as well.

That Surat tops in camera sales within Gujarat is evident within its shutterbug community who, like Pablo Picasso feel,’ I have discovered photography.Now I can kill myself.I have nothing else to learn.’

Creative amateurs have sprung up clicking away life, nature, models, sports, industries, with their individual imagination.

The best part about photography is that even if you don’t know how to click or pose, you can be part of the picture; as Ansel Adams, the God of nature‘s best clicked splendour once said, ’There are two people in every photograph, the photographer and the viewer.’