Mumbai Weekend Shoot – 11th Jan 2009

How would you react if someone asks you to come to Mumbai’s Chor Bazaar on a Sunday morning at 9 am? Well, at least, I was a bit apprehensive about this adventure.

I was apprehensive because, one, I was new to the group I was meeting. Two, the reputation of the area and three, I am not the kind who wakes up early in the morning. 🙂

In any case, I did manage to reach the meeting point @ Mumbai Central by 8:45 AM and other people started coming in and by 9:15/9:20 we had two taxi full of people heading for the Chor Bazaar. There was some minor confusion about the general direction we were to go but it was clear quickly.

Rootless_wanderer (Paromita) was very good at co-ordinating with people who were either on the way or already reached the area. She was kept busy on her phone guiding people.

Around 9:45 we reached Chor Bazaar and we were to meet few people who had already reached. However, finding directions and landmarks in the maze of streets and by-lanes of Chor Bazaar/Bhindi Bazaar is an adventure in itself.

Finally around 10:00/10:15 we started wandering around and started warming up to shooting people and places.

At the start of our odyssey, an elderly gentleman did ask us who we are and what we are up to, and once I clarified, they did not bother us any more. We also show few policemen on the bit but they left us to our own devices.

For almost three hours we wandered around the area and started shooting whatever we found interesting. Barring a small rebuff to Devansh by a Muslim Clergy, there was no incidence of any note. The people there were mostly curious and largely co-operative.

Today I get to know many people and made friends with Anirban, Ashish, Beca, Devansh, Gopal, Krunal, Kush, Paromita and Vishal. Please add your name in the comment if I have missed you somehow.

It was a great learning experience for me. I leaned few things about photography from this amazing gang of photographers. I learned about lighting, preference for selecting either morning or evening for outdoor photography, issues related to noon photography, frame composition, selection of subject and use of appropriate lenses. Of course they were discussing their gears all the time and most words were alien to me. However, I will hopefully pick-up as I interact with the group more.

I hope to learn and acquire more experience with the help of Mumbai Weekend Shoot and getting tips tricks and feedback on my work.

If you are interested in photography, you are most welcome to join this very active and thriving community of photographers at either flickr group and facebook group