Photography, a passion:

I went for my routine walk on my favourite Ottawa trail after a prolonged break. I was preoccupied with something for a while, and could not even use weekends. Usually I take my camera gear and go for long walks on Ottawa trails capturing images of mainly birds and some landscapes.

The process of preparation for my walk (camera gear, outerwear for protection against elements in winter, and mosquitoes during summer), taking photos for hours, processing the photos through my workflow and publishing on social media, is a surreal experience for me. Given a chance I would do it for entire day, every day around the year. Yes, I go out on trails even if it is much below -25C. It was a beautiful sunny and warm day today with 10C temperature.

My photography gear:

I ventured into photography very late, but Fuji gear helped me propel quickly into some serious photography (and videography) endeavours. I just love the traditional fully manual controls of Fuji cameras with all tactical dials and buttons. (some models unfortunately have deviated from it though).

Why Photography?

Photography helps me forget the rest of the world. It helps me get lost in my zone. My family doctor is uber happy about my passion for photography, because of the long walks involved!

Ottawa Tourism, National Capital Commission, Canada Aviation and Space Museum, Fujifilm and many other organizations/individuals have showcased photos taken by me on their social media, websites and print publications.

There are many photos in my storage that I have not yet shared anywhere. It makes me happy when my photos are liked or shared on social media by audience across the globe, but I primarily take photos for audience of one. For me. As Ansel Adams said ‘You don’t take a photograph, you make it.’ I love to make photographs! Other than nature photography, I am involved in product, portraits and architecture photography too. More about that some other time. You can connect with me on Instagram (mainly nature photography):  https://www.instagram.com/ottawamar/

My 4 recommendations about Digital Photography:

If you are new to photography, or are thinking about venturing into the world of capturing images, here are my two cents:

• Gear doesn’t matter: Which gear you have or use does not matter !

You may have access to any of the gear listed below, and it doesn't have to be a specific gear:

Format: APSC, Full frame, Medium Format or Large Format.

Brand: Hasselblad, Leica, Nikon, Fuji, Canon or Sony

Level: Entry level, Professional

Type : DSLR, Mirrorless or Cell phone

• Gear matters: Now I am contradicting myself! Does your gear motivate and excite you to pick it up and go out to take photos? Even if it is -25C outside? That’s what matters. If your not so current cellphone is your gear, that is fine. It need not be a dedicated expensive professional camera.

 

• Follow your heart: I recommend to follow your own niche, process, method and approach. It is fine to watch YouTube videos about cameras and what others are doing, but find out what makes you happy, and focus on that. Understand the science and technic of photography, but focus on the art.

• Take the first step and be relentless: Do not worry if you think your first photos are not at as good as photos taken by others in your network or photographers that you follow. Start taking photos and be persistent. Experiment, fail and try again.

Lastly, use whatever gear you have, and let's make some photographs !