Using an ancient 18th century technique to develop photographs of toddlers and newborns, Ankit Chawla has made space for his special works. He speaks to SHAlINI SAKSENA about the ageold process he uses how it suits his clients best
At 27, when people his age are looking at technology to get things done in the shortest possible time, he is using 18th century technique for developing photographs. Self-taught Ankit Chawla was 13 when he took his first photograph. Though back then he had no intentions of making photography his profession, 14 years later, he is doing just that and just fine.
A graduate from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Chawla always loved children and knew he wanted to do something relating to them — may be, open a school for toddlers. But to shoot children’s pictures professionally didn’t occur to him. He did click his nieces and nephews and put them up on Facebook but nothing more.
When he decided not to study further, his plan A failed to take off. Since he didn’t have a plan B, he was at a loose end. He tried joining his father’s business — manufacturing electrical parts. He even tried working in a corporate set-up. But nothing appealed to him and he was soon jobless. It was in 2012, on the insistence of his friend he put up a kiosk at a mall to showcase his work that it took off for him. He didn’t have a portfolio or packages he could offer. He had a week to manage all this.
The response he got was good but not good enough to give him the kind of work that he was looking for. Six months later, when he put up another kiosk at the Select City Walk, he got many clients. Clicking maternity portraits, first-day photos of babies, newborn portraits, kid portraits and family portraits are his speciality today.
This 27-year-old is using two styles. “I use albumen and cyanotype. As the name suggests cyanotype uses two chemicals: Ammonium iron citrate and potassium ferricyanide. The tinge one gets is indigo. In albumen, one uses silver nitrate, water and egg white. The tinge is brown,” Chawla explains.
To get his prints, he uses cloth, dollies and even water colour paper that has a texture. This, he tells you, gives the image a softness that one associates with babies. “Newborns have a softness to them. By using these mediums, I capture the moment and softness which a photo paper can never achieve,” Chawla says.
It all starts with choosing the technique and then the medium. Depending on what the client wants, Chawla makes a solution for either cyanotype or albumen which is then brushed on to the medium he is using. It is then left to dry naturally. This takes time — less in summers, more in winters. While one can use a hair dryer to hurry the process, the end result will be different.
He tells you that each print is different. “This is because I use natural light. If a portrait is being clicked at 10:30 am, the sunrays are different from those at 2 pm. So the negative is also different. Also, each day is not the same. There could be a cloud. All these have an effect. Once my base is prepped, the negative is put onto the cloth or paper. The trick is to not move it once the negatives have been placed. It takes 20 minutes, sometimes longer. The medium is next washed under tap water and left to dry. This is when the image starts to form,” Chawla tells you, adding that the next step is to experiment with stone, wood and glass.
The reason why he uses this ageold technique is because it gives the final product the look that he is looking for photos of children. Chawla is probably the only photographer in Delhi using this technique on a commercial basis. He learnt it from a Goan artist, Edson Berry Dias, co-founder of Goa Centre for Alternative Photography. The artist, one is told, is trying to revive the ageold technique and Chawla is supporting the artist in his endeavour.
The process is time consuming but his clients don’t mind waiting as the product is fantastic. “Initially, clients wanted results instantly but three years down the line, they love my work and are ready to wait,” Chawla says. For him, it is not dealing with parents where the challenge lies.
“It’s the children. Toddlers need to be bribed. They have no pretensions. To be open with them, lying to them, giving them gifts, it is all part of the game. One has to ensure they’ve had a nap & eaten. As for newborns, clicking them when they are 10 days old is the best. They keep sleeping so one can make them lie in any posture and add props,” Chawla, who works out of his studio in Gulmohar Park, explains. How much does it cost to get a 6x4 portraitIJ “It will be anywhere between Rs1,000 to Rs2000. It all depends on the kind of framing the client chooses. I prefer to do the framing myself as I know the technique involved,” Chawla says.