Today we’d like to introduce you to Vishesh Mulchan.
Vishesh, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I moved to Miami in March of 2019 from a Caribbean country called Trinidad and Tobago. Throughout the last four years, I’ve been developing my passion for imagery as a form of self-expression, cultural exchange and personal therapy. My camera is a reason for me to get out of the house, turn off my phone and observe the world around me. Lately, I’ve been working more and more with models and even people who are not models but who appreciate the photographic projects that I aspire to complete.
When I first started taking pictures, it really was just an excuse to get out of the house. I was very shy and so I did mostly landscapes and sunsets. In summer of 2016, however, I attended a comic con in Trinidad called Alias Entertainment Expo which was, aside from the first comic con I’ve attended, my first time taking pictures of people who were not friends and family. I immediately fell in love with the collaboration with someone outside of myself to create art.
In 2017 I began traveling to New York to spend days in Manhattan learning street photography. At the time, I really enjoyed the candid and fast-paced process to which I credit my ability to adapt to different shooting conditions and to make split-second camera setting decisions based on what story I want to tell. Most of my time photographing in 2017 and 2018 happened in Manhattan and one of my biggest inspirations of that period was “Humans of New York.”
In 2019 after moving to Miami, I began to work with models to improve my lighting, posing and directing skills. Unintentionally this also helped me learn to interact more readily with strangers and to break down some of my social barriers I’ve built up over the years. I now absolutely love the creative process of using light and shadows to set mood, directing posing to tell stories and bringing to life a preplanned message which is a combination of wills between the model and myself.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It has not been a smooth road by any stretch of the imagination. My biggest obstacles, I’ve found, have been the access to one on one education and my pride.
YouTube is a great source of education. However, one of the issues I’ve had was the one-way transfer of information. One example I can give is learning frequency separation in Photoshop. I’d been attempting to learn the technique for months, but for some reason, my results never looked the same as what I’d see on YouTube. I eventually put it on the back burner and a few months later, I was on a trip to New York with a friend of mine and he suggested I apply frequency separation to a photo from a shoot I’d recently done. I explained my issue with the technique and within minutes, he explained it to me in a way I could understand, mainly because I could ask questions and get immediate feedback. I’ve found that learning from people, not videos, works best for me.
Secondly, one of the accepted ways to improve on anything is to submit work for feedback. I don’t have a long explanation and examples but almost every time I was close to giving up on photography, it was because my pride took a hit when getting feedback on my work. Learning to overcome my pride was one of the most valuable skills photography had taught me.
Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I don’t do photography as a company, rather as a passion. Sometimes I do take paid jobs depending on the intended use for the images or the particulars of the shoot. For example, I do charge for portrait sessions and events when approached, however, more often than not, I seek out others who I am drawn to create with and I go after those projects as an amateur. I would rather that my love of creating not be affected by a necessity to pay the bills. This gives me the leeway to only work on projects that I feel connected to in some way. I don’t specialize in anything at the moment, as I’m working towards a greater understanding of the process and tools required to create pictures laden with emotion.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
My goals for 2020 are a collaboration between a friend of mine, Stephania Greco and myself for a media business we want to get started in Miami. The goal is to create a system where anyone interested can get into the world of modeling, photography or any other creative venture they may be interested in. A holistic approach to content creation and networking between people who may be interested with no experience, or experienced but needs an avenue to create. YouTube is a good source of information, but nothing compares to practicing any craft you want to develop. We want to create an avenue for that.
Alongside this, a goal of mine is to get started on doing fine art photography and getting into printed work. It may be nostalgia but to me, nothing beats holding a print in my hands. One day when I have my home, I want my walls to be covered in photos of my travels, my friends and my family. I’m sure that people would appreciate the same thing as well. We just live in a very social media world. I’d like to bring back photographic print into the lives of the people I collaborate with.
Pricing:
- On Location Photoshoots – $100.00/hr
- In Studio Photoshoots – $150.00/hr
- Events – $150.00/hr ($1000.00 for 8 hour coverage.)
- Photobooks start at $400.00
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.vmulchanphotos.com
- Phone: 347-654-2861
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vmulchanphotos/?hl=en
Image Credit:
@azshmusic
@stephania_greco
@prettylittlemj
@cecijayo
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