Photopia 2018

The last day of Photopia was full of activity. As the visitors posed their queries on looking at the student projects and the students answered them, a workshop on time- lapse was conducted by Mr. Anurag Jetly which was organised by Panasonic India, the sponsors for Photopia 2018.
During the workshop, Mr. Jetly first showed the audience the time- lapse videos that he had created, and then spoke about the process and the technical aspects of creating a powerful time- lapse. Many questions were raised by the young and inquisitive audience which were efficiently answered by Mr. Jetly.

After this, Prof. FB Khan, the curator of the exhibition, presented the vote of thanks to the gathering. Dr. Subi Chaturvedi, an alumnus of AJK MCRC, graced the exhibition during the closing ceremony and spoke about the importance of presenting the world uniquely through photography, about her association with the centre and about how each one of us can contribute to create a positive change in the world. Mr. Sohail Akbar, who teaches Still Photography at the centre, then talked about how it is important to keep ourselves abreast with not only the latest technologies, but also to learn about the history of photography and be proficient in using the old manual cameras as well.

The host for the evening, Hardeep Singh, a student of Still Photography and Visual Communication at the centre, then thanked each and every individual who made Photopia 2018 successful, from all the teachers who taught their class, to the support staff, the students who worked hard for the exhibition, and most importantly, Mr. Shigeki Sumitani, Mr. Gaurav Ghavri, Mr. Hitesh Vig, Mr. Harsh Grover and others from Panasonic India, without whom the exhibition would not have been possible.

We, the class of 2018 of the PG Diploma course in Still Photography and Visual Communication, express our gratitude to each and every individual who has supported the exhibition in any way. It has been a great learning experience in organising something of this sort in such a short span of time. This experience will always be etched in our memories. We shall continue to work on our projects and celebrate the varied dimensions of our shared passion- photography.

And it's a wrap!
Thank you everyone for making Photopia 2018 a success.
With Chang Sir, Ghazi Sir, Zubair Sir and Kamal Sir.

A workshop on time- lapsing is ongoing at Photopia 2018. The workshop is being conducted by Mr. Anurag Jetly who has been working in the industry since 2001 and has been working on the art and science of time- lapsing for the last five years.

" is actually the manifestation of my belief in the capacities of this bright bunch of intellectuals at MCRC. I have grown one year older as a facilitator with you all and you will remain etched in my memory for a lifetime. Thank you students for hosting a lovely photo exhibition and wonderful learning sessions!! Keep Learning and Growing.🌹❤ Blessings and Love~ ☺" - Jyoti Ma'am

After Ms. Munmun Dhalaria shared her experiences in making documentaries on issues related to wildlife, we had a short session of questions with her, which engaged the audience and gave us a deeper understanding on the way she works. The panel discussion had Mr. Hitesh Vig, the National Product Trainer at Panasonic India and Hardeep Singh from AJK MCRC who put up questions for the filmmaker to answer.

A workshop on wildlife cinematography is ongoing right now at the MF Hussain Art Gallery. The workshop is being conducted by Ms. Munmun Dhalaria who is a documentary filmmaker. She is the recipient of the Young Explorers Grant awarded by National Geographic, and has been working as a filmmaker since the last four years.

Asra Dawar Naqvi presents the playful activities of her adorable daughter Asbah through images. She believes that as her daughter is growing, she is also growing with her.

“Through these photographs, I just wanted to show the innocence and activities of a child when she was with different things which are related to her or not,” says Asra.

After an incredible opening, Photopia 2018 is all set to be on display today and tomorrow from 10 am to 6 pm at the MF Hussain Art Gallery, Jamia Millia Islamia.
We hope to see you all there!

Image courtesy: Asra Naqvi

The first day of Photopia 2018 saw the convergence of ideas not just around photography, but also around art in general. The day began with the inauguration of the exhibition by eminent photographers Mr. Aditya Arya and Mr. Bandeep Singh along with Mr. Shigeki Sumitani from Panasonic India, our sponsors for the event. The guests then took a round of the exhibition and shared their insights on the student projects.

Our guests at the ceremony- Prof. FB Khan, Mr. Aditya Arya, Mr. Bandeep Singh, Mr. Iftekhar Ahmed who is the Director of AJK MCRC, Mr. William Chang, Mr. Shigeki Sumitani and Mr. Gaurav Ghavri from Panasonic India, enthralled the audience with their thought-provoking views on the changing trends in photography, urging us to question ourselves more and more while practising the art.

After this, a workshop on 4K video was conducted by Mr. Hitesh Vig, the National Product Trainer at Panasonic India, who enlightened the audience with the new technologies being used in cinematography.

The visitors at the exhibition interacted with the students who had undertaken their photography projects and had a meaningful interaction with the emerging photographers. The students shared the process through which they had produced their projects and also highlighted the roadblocks along the journey.

It was an enriching experience for all of us to have a dialogue with each other about our work, and try to get a better understanding of our work and thought process. We are grateful to each one of you who visited the exhibition today. The next two days will be full of the same kind of interaction with the visitors.
Hoping to see you all at the MF Hussain Art Gallery at 10 am today as well! We'll be there till 6 pm, so please do visit. :)

Aman Raj puts in a lot of thought before pressing the shutter release on his camera. Fascinated by people and what goes inside their minds, he is drawn towards portraiture. This interest gave birth to his project 'What I look at.'

"In this series I have shot diverse, beautiful souls to convey my idea wherein I have tried to juxtapose two pictures side by side. These pictures are paired keeping in mind the element of colour, texture and light. I feel the surrounding as well as the person’s portrait speaks volumes about life, moments and experiences. Be it a light coming from a leaf or light falling on the lovely spring flowers.
'What I Look at’ is an effort to remove a mask which the world carries with presumptions and ignorance. I take my inspiration from philosopher Plato’s analogy of cave," elaborates Aman.

Less than 10 hours remain for the opening of Photopia 2018 at the MF Hussain Art Gallery, Jamia Millia Islamia. The exhibition will be on display till May 12, the timings for all the three days being 10 am to 6 pm
We hope to see you all there today!

Image courtesy: Aman Raj