Posts tagged chennai

IRST Photography: Aesthetics at Its Finest

When I first glanced at the photos of IRST Photography, my eyes were drawn towards the aesthetic natural tones of the models. Shot predominantly across beaches, flowers, and indoors, they brought in a sense of calmness through their simplicity. Interestingly enough, the person behind the camera has a story of simple beginnings and how he never imagined that he would be shooting popular celebrities one fine day.


Behind the Camera(s)

Rewind to his school days, Irshath shot the most random things on his Nokia Lumia. What began as a photoshoot for his ‘good looking’ cousin, it eventually led him to a photoshoot for a girl who offered to pay. From renting his first camera to experiment with different cameras from Nikon D350 to Sony and Canon, he lets his shoots flow at the moment, to capture the natural essence of the models. Irshath, 27-year-old works full time as a product designer and never wants his passion for photography to be seen as full-time work.

Irshath - IRST Photography


Au Naturel Process

Once Irshath visited a popular actress’s house for a shoot. He simply asked her to carry on with her daily routine in her natural look and attire. Even now, she credits him for capturing her differently and helping her get noticed among filmmakers.

“I love to capture people, their lifestyle, and their daily routine in my photographs. And, the results are an accurate reflection of themselves,”

Irshath

Irshath loves early morning shoots where he tactfully uses the sunlight to his advantage. A majority of his shots are at the beach. He makes each one of his models stand out in simple locales like the beach or alongside a flowering plant on random streets.


Photography Philosophy

A self-taught photographer, Irshath learned the techniques of photography and editing from various resources on the Internet. Annie Lebovitz, the 71-year-old celebrated American photographer, and P.C Sreeram, an Indian cinematographer continue being an inspiration to him.

Calmness, a connection to daily life, and natural angles are the three ingredients that Irshath follows to make IRST photography stand out in the aesthetic photography niche.

“I consider shooting national award-winning cinematographer Santhosh Sivan at his house as my greatest achievement till date. He gave me the creative freedom to shoot him and he was appreciative of the result,”

Irshath

A Pro Tip for Budding Photographers

Irshath’s only advice is to not listen to others’ advice. He wants people with a love for photography to go with the flow. The worst of cameras can give the best results. It all comes down to the technique and the love for photography.

“A job of the photographer is to show the picture of the real world. The job of the cinematographer is to use equipment, grand costumes, and specific locations. I chose to be the photographer,” signs off Irshath.

Restaurant Review: That Mallu Joint

With a traditional wooden ceiling and minimalistic tables and chairs, That Mallu Joint, a new fine dining Kerala restaurant has a welcoming homely feel to it. We went on to try this new restaurant in the city and its worth a visit.

That Mallu Joint

The slightly ripe raw mango marinated with green chillies and sugar arrives as a welcome snack, and is a delicous addition as we wait for the food. Starting with the Erachi Ularthiyathu (beef), it hits all the right notes in terms of flavor and texture. The spicy dish has a dash of green chilies with the fried dry coconut and the curry leaves adding an authentic touch to the dish. The Prawn Porichathu is fried to juicy perfection with a crispy covering comprising of rava (semolina), adding a nice crunch to the dish.

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Coming to the main course, we opted for the Puttu, Egg Appam and Meen Manga (mango) curry. The Puttu was soft and grainy with fewer coconut shavings, the egg appam came with a cooked egg instead of the half boiled egg omlette in the center. Though not a preferred combination for puttu and appam, we opted for the Meen Manga curry which arrived in a mini clay pot that had a homely flavor to it with well-cooked pieces of seer fish.

That Mallu Joint - Meen Manga Curry

That Mallu Joint has a simple menu and excels at delivering the dishes in style. The presentation is good, the service is quite slow, which for sure will catch up as the restaurant is a new player in the city. The quantity could have been a little better, especially for the starters. The restaurant is certainly a place to fulfill your craving for authentic Kerala food.

A special thank you to Arathy Menon for her valuable inputs.

That Mallu Joint Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato