Playing with light and shadow

When you combine passion with work, something rare and inimitable emerges, says Namita Gupta,after talking to young photographer Anup Joseph KattukaranHow long have you been capturing images?Photography has always been my hobby, but I have been taking it seriously for the past two years. Behind the lens: The female form at the pyramid of the Louvre, frame within a frame at Eiffel tower and the lone, chequered corridorWho or what is your inspiration?I think the time spent on the online art forum, Deviant Art, has served as a major source of inspiration for me.Are you fond of travelling?Of course. Like someone said, if life is a book then one who doesn't travel reads only one page of it. A photographer cannot afford that risk.I see a lot of European influence in your photographs. Any specific reasons?I think that question has come up because most of my better-known photographs have been shot in Europe. I am sure that if I put together a gallery of photographs shot in India you will not notice any Western influence.u00a0Actually, I did not travel on a mission to take photographs, but to attend an international Web design competition. I spent four days in Paris a year ago and except for two photographs, all others in this exhibition were shot there.This show has Parisian influence in the form of the Eiffel Tower. The monument is an amazing piece of art. It's very inspiring and it is mind-boggling that humans can make such a colossal structure. Three panes of love: Shot in front of the Louvre in Paris by Anup What are the places in India that have caught your fancy?I like Mangalore. In my Mangalore images I have tried to explore the connection between man and nature, water and the physical being.Tell us something more about Le Voyage, your first exhibition?My first solo exhibition, Le Voyage is on till April 3 at the F&B restaurant on St Mark's Road. Apart from my Paris pictures, I have also captured the Palace of Versailles, as I was quite captivated by the sheer beauty of its symmetry and patterns. I took numerous shots within the palace but unfortunately the space is too huge to be covered completely. Thus my favourite continues to be the image of the lone, chequered corridor.You seem to be quite a romantic at heart. I'm referring to your picture taken of a couple in love. I noticed this young couple in an embrace as they were parting. The emotions fascinated me. Another photograph I have clicked is about a wedding in the middle of a jungle, which I feel is quite romantic. Parisian romance gives way to the deeper truth of beauty only to reveal certain mysteries, the answers to which lie right before us.There is a lot of play of shadows and silhouettes in your photographs. What's your take on it?I think shadows offer a completely new way of looking at things. But overall I never analyse what attracts me too much. Aesthetic sense is incredibly complex and I prefer to leave the interpretation to the audience.u00a0