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SAFFRON - SESHU'S DOCUMENTARY WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY & PORTRAITS BLOG
Contemporary Photography For Discerning Cosmopolitan People |
 Looking for a photographer who understands multiple cultures? Well, step right in. My name is Seshu and I am a wedding and portrait photographer based in the heart of Connecticut, with easy access to clients across the nation. This is my new blog: Saffron. Feel free to explore this site using the categories listed above. If you enjoy seeing the images or reading the posts, please subscribe and tell a friend or two.
I feel truly blessed and fortunate to experience the most important moments in my client's lives. Saffron will be as much about you as it will be about me. It's a diary, a repository and an open canvas all wrapped into one. It will give me an opportunity to display some of the images I have produced and share thoughts and ideas about my metiér, or life in general. This blog will further enable you to get to know me, my style and my approach to photography and people.
For those of you have come here from my old blog, Bliss, welcome again. I also actively maintain Tiffinbox, a blog for photographers and artists worldwide. Here are my profiles on Facebook, Friendster and Flickr. I would
love to connect with you. I recently became a member of WedFog - The Wedding Photographers Directory, Photographik – The Elite Photographer's Network and Wedding Party, a wedding planning website. So, if you are visiting from any of these websites, welcome!
I greatly value your comments. If you would rather email me your thoughts, you are more than welcome to do so at saffron [at] seshu [dot] net. If you are checking to see if I am available for your event or want to commission me for a portrait session, please use the contact form on this site.
Lastly, this website was custom built for me by the incredibly talented Brock Martin of Infinet Design. Brock, you rock!
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Monday, August 11, 2008 News |
The Sound Of Contemporary India Getting To Know Itself |
When I received an email about an upcoming concert by the band Indian Ocean, for CRY (that's Child Rights & You), I knew I had to volunteer and photograph the concert. I had heard about the band, but hadn't heard any of their music.
Members of CRY help "towards restoring to underprivileged children, especially Indian, their basic rights to survival, protection, development and participation."
The band's lineup, just about every single track, was a foot-stomping, let's get off our seats and dance kinda music. Even though the lyrics were wholly beyond my comprehension, the passion with which Susmit Sen, Asheem Chakravarthy, Rahul Ram and Amit Kilam perform is to be experienced first-hand. Indian Ocean, a favorite of college campuses in India sure know how to rock the house. And the music was a mix of rock, jazz, fusion and folk. The acoustics was ok, despite the venue: a high-school auditorium. But it did take the band a little longer to get their sound-check out of the way. That in turn gave me more time to photograph them as they were getting ready. So, it all worked out. |
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Special thanks to Madhu Reddy, a Connecticut real estate agent, who sent me that original email about the concert. Also, thanks to Sujay Saha and every single CRY-Connecticut volunteer on hand that day who made me feel welcome and allowed me to document the concert without any restrictions.
So, here is a sample of what I saw and felt. Can you hear the music when you see these images? Feel free to comment below. |
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Announcing The Launch Of A New Slideshow Feature |
"Go big, or go home," is the favorite mantra of Australian photographer Jerry Ghionis.
Taking his words to heart, on June 13, 2008, I closed one chapter of my life, as a photo editor at ESPN and opened another as a fully committed wedding and portrait photographer for my clients in the US, Canada and really anywhere and everywhere around the world. Yes, I will be in Udaipur, India, in October, to photograph a beautiful palatial wedding. So, don't hesitate to contact me if you are planning your destination wedding for 2008 and beyond.
One of the first steps I took was to have my website redesigned, including the integration of this blog. In fact, there are more changes coming soon. I continued to think of features which could help my clients have an enhanced viewing experience of their images after the wedding or portrait session. In that vein, allow me to introduce you to what I call THE BIG SHOW. It's a premium slideshow that has the ability to scale up my client's images and display them really, well, big, limited only by the size and quality of the monitor they are being viewed on.
I am very excited to be able to offer this option now for my clients. Remember Pramilla and Dhyan? Well, here is their BIG SHOW.
Current clients and those whose weddings I will book before the end of 2008 will receive the BIG SHOW as a gift from me. Even if you are getting married in 2009 or 2010, reserve my photographic service and receive this add-on valued at $600.
Let the absence of music in the BIG SHOW not trip you up. I am looking for ways where I could legally license music for just that purpose. And, given how even more subjective music choices can be, I sometimes ask my clients to offer up some of their suggestions. If a royalty-free option exists, I'll be able to use music for the duration of the slideshow.
I will soon be publishing a slew of blog posts here with the words – BIG SHOW displayed at the bottom of the post. Simply click on that word to immerse yourself and relive a moment; one you either experienced first-hand or heard about through your family and friends. Either way, it's going to rock your socks off.
Thanks go out to Kitty Wells and Meghan Bingle of IntoTheDarkroom for helping me customize the BIG SHOW to my specifications. |
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As I lay in my hotel bed one night during a multiple-day Indian wedding I was photographing in Massachusetts, I watched the movie Blood Diamond starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou and Jennifer Connely.
I was moved by what I saw; African children and their parents having their human rights violated in unspeakable ways, all in the pursuit of diamonds for sale and resale around the world. It made me wonder about the diamond ring I had bought my wife in India a couple of year's back. Where did it come from? What was the real price of that shiny stone?
And it had me thinking about all those grooms who are probably getting down on bended knee just about now to ask their partners to marry them. Could they possibly buy conflict-free diamonds and save the fate of hundreds of thousands of people?
The answer is, yes. Canadian diamonds. Check out Brilliant Earth, home to conflict-free diamonds and the use of renewed gold and platinum.
"At Brilliant Earth, we are dedicated to tracking our gems to ensure that every single gemstone is mined, cut, and finished in a socially and ethically responsible manner. All of our diamonds come from Canadian mines that follow environmentally sustainable practices and are committed to delivering high quality gems. Our well-established suppliers authenticate the source of their diamonds as conflict free and follow established domestic business practices."
Please note, I am in no way associated with Brilliant Earth nor do I financially gain by mentioning their business. However, between today and the end of the year, if you buy your diamonds through Brilliant Earth and can prove it, I'll be happy to offer you a special day-long photo session (valued at over $1000) for just you and your beloved when you also book my services for your wedding.
So, buy your diamond(s) through Brilliant Earth. Then contact me about booking my service for your wedding. I'll then schedule a day-long photo session that will rock your socks off. Simple as that. Small caveat, though, if you live anywhere outside of Connecticut, travel and hotel fees will apply.
The next time you are shopping for some bling bling, make sure they haven't been involved in any bang bang. I hope we can all do the right thing. |
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I just stumbled across this incendiary article by a Washington, DC writer. The writer gleefully states that she found a photographer for her wedding by seeking out a fellow alumnus of the University of Missouri's School of Journalism. Fine. Bravo. Give yourself a slap on the back, I say. She didn't go the traditional route and that says something.
However, the fact she took the trouble to find a photojournalist was about the only thing I found agreeable with the article. Take this, for example: "Another tip is to designate a neutral organizer who can help with photography direction, round everyone up, and make sure the photographer is capturing photos of both sides of the family."
Excuse me? "Make sure the photographer is capturing photos of both sides of the family?" How sophomoric. Any professional photographer will have her/his eyes peeled where the action is and photograph the interaction of both families. This is almost an unwritten fact of what a photojournalist has been trained to do. To have someone shadow your photographer throughout the day just to make sure everyone is photographed (a feat that is nearly impossible anyway) is a futile attempt at trying to control everything.
Well, Ms. Halonen perhaps means well but she and others like her must know that a photojournalist is trained to visually narrate the day's activities as it unfolds. What is happening in front of the lens is what a photojournalist documents. Seeking out family members from each side and making sure everyone is photographed during the day will likely mean that key moments will forever be lost. I somehow doubt she would want that to happen.
If she is referring to formal portraits with the bride and groom, I can totally understand. When I photograph a wedding, I request the bride and groom to introduce me to someone in both their families who can willingly bring their respective families to where the formal portraits are being created. I work quickly; no more than 30 minutes if everyone is prepared and people flow in and out of the "set". I want my clients to get back to partying with their family and friends.
If, however, she is not talking about the portrait session and is indeed suggesting that someone hand-hold the photographer during the entire event, the poor soul in Nashville who signed up for this gig is probably in for a rude surprise when the bride/writer hands him a "shot-list." This is the list of "must-have" moments that, oh, crosses my mind for about a couple of seconds during an entire wedding because as a visual artist I prefer to work with the freedom and independence that strict directions about what to photograph and when would be terribly stifling to the body of work I create for my clients.
When my clients first tell me about an uncle, aunt or friend whom they haven't seen in ages but who will be at the wedding, I am always eager to document their emotional meeting because I know it will mean so much to my clients. But it has to happen naturally. If you have placed an enormous amount of trust and faith in your photographer to capture your wedding day like no other and you are interested in having images that are unique, interesting and even inspiring, do yourself and your progeny a favor and toss that shot list out please. |
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It's been a while since I checked out Douglas Merriam's website. Doug, as we called him, is a terrific photographer and teacher in Santa Fe and I had the honor of enrolling in one or maybe even two of his on-location lighting classes way back when at the Santa Fe Workshops.
So, when I opened up his Portrait section I was pleasantly surprised to see a portrait he had shot as I sat in as a test subject. Check it out below. That's me on the left, longer hair, cooler looking glasses and looking utterly comfortable on that couch. I had the makings of a model and I didn't even know it. |
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While Pramilla and Dhyan are from New York originally, they drove down to Connecticut from their new home in Boston for an evening engagement session. I am really looking forward to photographing their three-day wedding in October and had the pleasure of < a href="http://seshu.net/blog.cfm?postID=47&Pramilla-Dhyan-Engagement-and-Reception">photographing their engagement ceremony last year. Check out the reception pictures to see the kind of energy these two bring to the party!
I am posting just one image for now (working on a slew of other weddings and engagement sessions), but I will post several of my favorites soon from this engagement session soon.
This one is quiet and I believe presents their shy, introspective side. At any photo session there is always a "warm-up" period where the bride and groom are still getting used to the idea of being photographed. This was shot during that time in Collinsville, Connecticut, a quiet little beautiful town. |
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I am always honored when I am asked to photograph a couple's engagement session. It's a time for them to exhale, relax, take a break from all the planning and just enjoy each other's company.
Tanicka and I had been playing phone tag and then we had weather problems. As I was loading my car up with my gear and heading out to the first time I scheduled an engagement session, large, ominous dark clouds thundered above. Lightning and a rain storm followed and we had to postpone our meeting on the University of Connecticut, Storrs campus.
Well, I am really glad I waited. Couple of weeks back, Tanicka, Jerry and I met on that same campus. With Summer here, most of the students on campus were long gone for their break. We walked around a few spots on the campus that meant the most for Tanicka and Jerry, as they both graduated from that university a few years ago.
When people smile with their eyes, it makes making images really easy. Tanicka and Jerry were naturals. Wholly comfortable with each other, they allowed me to work effortlessly. So, Tanicka and Jerry, thank you.
Here are some images from that engagement session. Feel free to post a comment. |
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Michelle and Hugo have these radiant personalities that clearly makes them such an attractive couple. Friendships, I can tell, run deep with these two. They had one of the largest bridal parties I have ever photographed. So large that Michelle and Hugo had them drive up to the church and the reception in rented blue and yellow Mini Coopers. Very cool, eh? The bride and groom rolled in style in a souped-up Land Rover limousine. It was HUGE!
The Catholic wedding ceremony was followed by two pit stops for photo sessions and then onto some hard-core dancing led by a Portuguese band. It was the first time I had heard Portuguese music and I couldn't help but stomp my foot with the down beat.
Michelle and Hugo, thank you for the introduction to the Portuguese-American culture here in New England. While I clearly cannot understand the language, it meant a great deal to me that you allowed me to so easily blend in and out of the events of your day. |
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It's been a while since I posted any personal images, though I must say all the photographs I create for clients, friends or relatives are all personal to me.
Here is one of Ketan. Those eyes of his herald what is to come; pure mayhem. I set my strobe, off-camera and with a grid spot about four feet from Ketan and about as many feet high. Hence the harsh, high-contrast light which may not really be such a great thing to show off a baby or child, but its use could produce some dramatic images in the field when adults are my subjects.
More on my new gear and what I hope to achieve from it in a future post. For now enjoy Mr. Mischief. |
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