Wabi Sabi: An Imperfect Photography Journey
This is my first time writing a blog, and I could not write it without borrowing a few words from the movies, books and stories I stumbled upon over the years- lines that have stuck with me and that I can never forget. I am an IT guy, a cinephile and a traveller; I like to cook, and I love to turn fleeting moments into everlasting art.
Where It Started
I was always fascinated with photography from my school days, to preserve memories and capture people and moments. The first device I used to take photos was a Nokia 5130 XpressMusic, back in 2010.
During my graduation days, I got a Nokia Lumia and used to take photos of my friends and our surroundings. My brother got a Nikon D3200, and I used to click photos of people at every college event and every place we went.
People used to make fun of me for clicking photos and for carrying a camera everywhere I went, but I never stopped. Now, almost 10 to 15 years later, my friends from school and college ping me asking for those photos. There were no smartphones and no social media back then, so there are not many photos from those years, and I have most of them with me. Now and then I share one in our friends group, and they ping me for more.
Every time someone asks for an old photo, I feel a small sense of pride and a lot of warmth. The same people who laughed at me for carrying a camera now thank me for keeping those days alive.That is when I realise those clicks were never just photos. They were memories waiting to be found.
Jack of All Trades
A lot of you might have heard the line “Jack of all trades, master of none.” But wait, there is more: “Jack of all trades is master of none, but still better than master of one.”
Growing up, I was not good at anything. Not at sports, studies, dance or arts. I did not have any special talents or skills. I was a normal kid who avoided social interactions and activities. But I never stopped trying. I wanted to try every sport there is, travel and do everything. Not to be the best, but to do better and to be less stupid than yesterday.
Photography was one of those things I tried, and the one I never left. I would not say I am good at it, but I love it. Somewhere along the way, it stopped being just a hobby and gave me a sense of purpose.
Cameras That Came and Went
Back in 2018, I made my first big purchase with my own money: a Nikon D5300. Later on, I picked up a Canon M100 in Canada in 2019, and then a Sony a6000 in 2021. But each time, work and a busy schedule got in the way, so I barely touched them and ended up letting them go. It was not until 2023 that I got back into it for real. I started fresh with the Sony a7 III, upgraded to the a7 IV, and now I’m using the a7R V.
Canada and Learning to Work
In Canada, I used to go to nearby lakes and visited Niagara and other places during COVID with my Canon M100.I also worked at a restaurant in Canada. It was my first time coming out of my comfort zone and taking a job like that, but somehow I loved it, and I made some good friends there. I was a lazy guy, but this life taught me discipline and taught me to respect work. While I was working in Canada, I read these lines:
“If your job is to flip burgers at McDonald’s, be the best burger flipper in the world. No matter what you do, master the craft.” I realised that no job is small or big, we just have to take pride in what we do.
A Camera Instead of a Car
In 2022, I moved to the US for my second master’s. I saved up some money working part time to buy a car. I lived in a city where the weather was very harsh, and we needed a car to commute to school and work. But then, somehow, I made the decision to buy a camera instead of a car. I did not party, and I barely had a social life. Every dollar I made from my job and paid events went right into buying gear and all I could think about was what to buy next.
I went to school 3 days a week and worked at a restaurant for almost 6 days. That left me 1 day for myself, and on that day I walked all over the city in-10 to -30Ā°C, taking photos of places I loved. I also used to travel solo, carrying my heavy camera bag, walking 10 to 15 km a day just to save money and travel more, and along the way I met some amazing people. It was hard, but every photo I came back with made it worth it.
Wabi Sabi
I am still an amateur. I do not know proper techniques or composition. Everything I do, including editing, is trial and error. But back then I was chasing perfection. I wanted a photo a certain way, and when I did not get it, I just left it. “Then one day I read somewhere about Wabi Sabi”.
“Wabi Sabi: appreciating beauty that is imperfect and incomplete.”
I realised I do not have to chase the perfect moment or the perfect shot. In life, we do many things to impress others, knowingly or unknowingly, and I was doing the same with my photos. I was always waiting for approval and thinking, what if someone does not like this? Wabi Sabi taught me to let that go. A photo does not have to be perfect, and it does not have to impress anyone. I am doing this for myself, because photography gives me happiness no matter how stressed I am or whatever happens in life. So I made a promise to myself that I will never leave photography.
From then on, I started uploading photos on Unsplash. I have around 8.8 million views at the time of writing this, and 2 of my photos have been published in Unsplash Editorial. It is a free website for stock images, and nobody there knows who I am, just as I wanted. I wanted people to appreciate my work without knowing who I am. I just feel happy that people use my work. That is all the appreciation I need.
I also started uploading my photos on Wirestock, and one of my photos won 2nd place in their 1-Week Photography Challenge for portraits, with a reward of 55 US dollars. I did not take the money, and I will never withdraw it.
Coming Back Home
“Ek kaam pet bharne ke liye, aur ek kaam mann bharne ke liye.”
I moved back to India a few months ago. Now I work 5 days a week and spend my weekends on what I love, photography and travel.
I joined Shutter Society, and my first photo walk was Pochampally, where I met some amazing people with incredible talent. It was always difficult for me to make friends, and at this age, it is much more difficult to make friends, but somehow I made some good ones, and I learned a lot of things from the people I met during photo walks.
I am still a beginner, and every day I try to learn and improve myself. The photos I take are very ordinary, nothing complicated, and I do not follow rules. I just capture what I like, and I post them only if I want to, or just keep them with me. I get inspired and motivated every day by the young talent in our community.
A Thousand Different Books
“A book read by a thousand different people is a thousand different books” ā Andrei Tarkovsky.
In the same way, during photo walks we go to the same place and see the same scenes, and yet if there are 100 people, I see 100 different perspectives. Two people can look at the same subject and come away with two completely different stories. It taught me that gear is just a tool; the real vision comes from within.
Over time, people started telling me they loved my work, or that a photo I took genuinely made their day. Hearing that always brings me back to a quote from Robin Williams:”
“I don’t know how much value I have in this universe, but I do know that I’ve made a few people happier than they would have been without me, and as long as I know that, I’m as rich as I ever need to be.”
I continue to learn, meet new people, travel and capture photos. I would like to thank Shutter Society for this opportunity. I want to close with a line from my favourite athlete, CR7: “Hard work beats talent.ā Be obsessed and love what you do.
Instagram Unspash
Here are some of my favourite photos:
Beautiful story, Chandu; I loved reading about your journey in photography.