Picture this: Mom & workaholic gets global accolades for her passion in photography

Special Interview by Amrita Paul

Photographer Ashu Mittal’s Twitter bio reads, “Suffering from a disease called photography. Curing it one shot at a time”. And aptly so, her flicker account boasts of a collage of photographs – portraits, landscape and close-up shots which are extremely visual and radiant as if transcending their immediate space to tell the viewer the story of their being.

it was the first step towards becoming observant and look beyond what normally meets the eye

She says, “I started clicking photos about seven to eight years back. At first it was just point and shoot images and a little dabbling with travel photography, but as my interest grew I invested in an SLR and have been clicking ever since.”

Ashu, a native of Jodhpur is currently working with the software company Adobe as a Senior Program manager in Noida. She pursues her love for photography on the weekends, but on office days, she has her
iPhone handy so that she can shoot anything interesting which catches her eye.  

“Although I am currently working on Acrobat, their document management software, being in an organization like Adobe helps me get free access to their tutorials and photo editing softwares like Photoshop and Lightroom. Moreover, the company is full of creative and artistic people and this provides us a conducive environment to also continue with our hobbies,” she adds.

She pursues her love for photography on the weekends, but on office days, she has her
iPhone handy so that she can shoot anything interesting which catches her eye

Growing up, Ashu remembers travelling extensively across the country because her parents were avid travellers and her father loved clicking photographs as well. For her, it was the first step towards becoming observant and look beyond what normally meets the eye. Although she doesn’t plan on pursuing photography full time, it is a matter of great pride to her that her photos have been exhibited a number of times at the Annual Art Fair organized by Adobe for showcasing the works of their employees from all around the globe. Her works have also been published by reputed media houses including The New York Times.  

“When not working or shooting, I spend my entire time with my three-year-old son. And apart that there is really no time to invest in a second hobby,” she adds, laughing.