04 June, 2015

Conditional Love

Minimalism as Simple Geometry


A minimalist photo of Two yellow circles on the wall of an over-bridge. One of them being cut by a triangle formed by shadow.
Photo by © Prakash Ghai
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What is Love? I am "Not" too sure about that, but are you? People talk of love as a feeling which they get into unknowingly. It starts-off as an initial attraction and later turns into extreme concern and care for that special person. When in love, you do not tend to acquire or gain something from the other person, rather you become selfless and try to be as giving as possible. And of course, that person hardly ever leaves your mind, whether in sleep or when you are awake, in happiness or in sadness. OK, but with all of this the real question is,

Is Love really love? and well especially now-a-days? People see and learn all of this from movies and of course through real-life experiences. As soon as something similar happens with them, they jump right to the conclusion that it is "Love". Well, they don't just stop there, rather they move a step further and claim that it is "TRUE Love". How true are their claims can only be found out during testing times. In most cases they take a step backwards and re-classify their feelings as mere "Infatuation". Why? because their loved one is in trouble, or is in testing times, in bad circumstances. Rather than supporting his/her partner they just turn away from them in search of someone else who is free of all the negativity and full of optimism, carries a smile, etc etc. No one wants to accept the reality that there are ups and downs in everyone's life, and measuring, loving and judging people based on their circumstances, is being a very shallow individual yourself. I wanted to show the same scenario with the picture above where two yellow circles or two people were in a close relationship to begin with. Buy as soon as one of them ie the circle on the right started facing testing times (depicted by the triangle created by the dark shadow or problems.), the other one distanced himself from him. There are similar cases in real life and in most cases "Conditional Love" or rather "No Love At All", is being misunderstood for "True Love". In the past, I have had many friends face similar issues in their relationships. What is your take on it? Why is it that people are so shallow now-a-days? Some are even afraid to fall in love. Share your thoughts below. I would be happy to read your insights.

Composition


The shot falls under Minimalism as Simple Geometry category. I tried to use negative space a little differently this time, I placed it between the two circles. Getting the Triangle created by the shadow right, was a little tricky, as a) I was in the middle of a busy street loaded with traffic and b) Shadows change very very fast and If I had taken more time to shoot, the shadow might have engulfed the entire circle and that kind of a shot would have had less visual appeal. 

20 May, 2015

A New Relationship

Minimalism as Less Elements


A minimalist photo of Long shadow of the leaves of a plant on a white Indian wall with a hint of texture
Photo by © Prakash Ghai
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When a new person enters your life and you realize that he/she could be that one person you were waiting for. You tend to make more room in your heart for that person. But, it is to be seen over time as to how much space that person actually occupies.

The leaves of the plant just entering the frame is that special person, with whom you begin A New Relationship. The shadow of the leaves is your estimation of the initial space that person may occupy in your heart, and the extra space or negative space hints at the scope of that relationship. To shoot this, I moved out one afternoon on my bike at around 4 pm. The temperature was 42 degrees Celsius. This is pretty normal for North India, as May and June are peak summer months. I did go out in such heat on purpose as, I get a lot of light and shadow combination shots this time, and people are generally in their houses sleeping, so you can shoot with no one getting offended. This was shot zoomed in with a 55-250 mm lens, with sweat flowing down to my neck. Don't get confused by the shadow while applying the rule of thirds. Always apply it on the main (real) subject and let the shadow take its place. If the shadow is getting cropped, rearrange the shot. I shot for about an hour and to avoid getting ill with the heat I drank not one but two soft drinks. I generally avoid aerated beverages but the shop where I had stopped did not have any mineral water with them and I had no energy left to go find it at another shop.

Well, Minimalism calls for sacrifices and I did my bit.

17 May, 2015

The Only One

Minimalism as in Repeating Shapes


A minimalist photo of A water bottle stuck in an arrangement of gray bricks on the street.
Photo by © Prakash Ghai
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Some people are so different and unique that others just cannot understand them. Others think that he is the odd one out. While on the other hand, that unique person feels that he is being over powered and cornered for no valid reason. Life of such a person is usually very tough and therefore the sole purpose of his life becomes finding that one right person who would understand him. If he does not find such a person, life becomes a living hell for him.

I have used a water bottle to represent such a person who is stuck amongst people who never understood him or the bricks in repetition. The composition is relatively simple. The photo falls under Minimalism as Repeating shapes category. The only thing here is "not to center" the water bottle. I placed it on the right using the rule of thirds. The position of the bottle is a little near the center line of the 3x3 grid but you can place it even on top right or at bottom right of the grid.