Chitradurga ~ Part -2 : The Essence

In my previous post I had mentioned about some experiments I did on my visit to Chitradurga fort. The first experiment was explained in that post. Second one is here.

While the first experiment was about feeling and making images of the moments that are frozen in time and space, the second one was about trying to capture the essence of the place through a finite set of images. When I say 'essence' that means the definitive quality that defines the place / structure.

Chitradurga fort is popularly known as "Elu Suttina Kote" in Kannada. This means a fort with seven circular walls. This fort is built in such a way that to completely enter inside one has to come through these massive circular (well, not exactly circular but a kind of maze shaped) entrances. The aim was to hold the enemy in this area as much as possible and prevent them entering inside the fort.

So when you are walking inside you constantly come across these huge walls all along. Once you cross the seventh entrance and walk few steps then the whole area opens up like a huge stadium. You will find tons of photographs on internet about how the whole area looks. I dont have any intentions to share the 'me too' kind of images here.

What I was trying to create was a set of images that could explain or make the viewer feel why the fort was called so.

Since the subject and the focus was minimal (just walls, entrances and nothing else), I tried to portray them in the minimal way wherever possible and some may be little complex. Nothing much to be said. Have a look.

Do you feel the same way I felt?
Or
Why do you really need to?

Do I care about it?
Or
Why do I care about it?


Cheers,
Ash

Chitradurga ~ Part -1 : Through the moments

Chitradurga fort is a treasure trove for anyone who wants to do some serious photography. The amount of opportunity that it provides in terms of making several types of images is simply mind boggling. This place was in my wish list to visit since long. Finally it happened few months back. It was a short visit. We were there for about an hour or two. For the scale of that place two hours is nothing. What you see in those two hours is just like a trailer! To see the movie in its entirety one has to spend at least couple of days. A week is even better!

During that quick visit I tried to make few images. I was not interested in making conventional images of that place. I had seen them in plenty. I was in a mood to do couple of experiments. First -  I was thinking if I can show that place through a set of moments, perhaps a set of fleeting moments, moments frozen into frames in space and time.  Second - in my next post! :)

During many discussions with various eminent and contemporary photographers there was always this question as to - What is it that defines photography in its uniqueness? What is it which is unique to photography but not to other form of visual art? 

It is the ability to arrest a fleeting moment that has no past and future but still exists in space and time. Making a pre-visualised photographs is a different story and that in the distant horizon comes close to the process of painting but still maintaining a thin boundary between the two. But in my view this is not the uniqueness of the medium of photography.. Uniqueness is defined by the  former argument. Latter is just another way of expression.

Here is a small write-up by Nirlep Singh written in CNP forum where he has beautifully explained this process in detail. To this day I keep visiting this article over and over again.

"An absurdity called a photograph"

Off late I have been trying to push myself into this realm. Throwing myself into the situation where I forcefully forget that I have a camera in my hand and try to flow through the experience of the place and in the flow make some images whenever I 'feel' like making one, not deliberately, with no urgency, with no pre-visualisation. I am just being in the moment and let my instinct do the photography. I am enjoying it. I am enjoying the way mind gets opened up with no constraints of any sorts. Earlier I was hesitant to take out my camera in public and point the lens towards strangers around me. It was probably because of the thought that 'What would they think about me? - Will it cause discomfort to them? - Am I breaching their privacy? -  Do they think that I am showing off? - and all other absurd questions'. I was rarely shooting street or urban photographs when there is crowd around and I attribute these questions to the lack of such experience. But off late I am not surrendering myself to that feeling and trying to break away from it. Hence you can see some of my urban and street photography posts in the recent past and that will continue.

Second experiment in the next post!

Cheers,
Ash