During my visit to Delhi when I met Nitesh and Anurag, I was carrying my camera with me. When I was showing it to Nitesh he asked me where exactly I have made the set up at home that I use for taking pictures. He was asking because he has seen the red or white background in the images I have posted.

Others have asked me to if I have a studio at home or what sort of a set up I have for taking pictures so I thought I would tell you how I take pictures.

In terms of equipment, I have a camera and a tripod. I don't have any lights, a dedicated studio or space and I don't have a light box either. Through trial and error I have figured out how to make the most of what I have.

To take pictures I need a source of light. It shouldn't be a direct light as it will create shadow, I don't like using Flash as the Flash in the compact cameras are not worth using, apart from casting shadows, they create a dark area around the edges. In shots where you have some depth as in one object is closer and the other is further away, it only is able to light the closer object making everything else dark. Keeping this in mind, my source of light is the sun. I take pictures near my window and have to wait for clear afternoons so that I get enough light. I switch on the lights in the room as well to get as much light as I can.

The next is the background of images. I tried taking pictures against bed sheets but found them too hard to manage and the wrinkles also show up. A better alternative is using big sheets of papers so I buy chart papers and pastel sheets of different colour. What colour I use depends on the subject. Depending on the object and the angle, either I lay the sheet(s) of paper flat on the ground or paste them on the wall. When pasted on wall, half of it is on the wall and half of it is on the ground to make sure I have the same colour background under and behind the object.

Now everything is ready and I am ready to take my shots. Most of the shots are hand held because it gives me the freedom to take shots from any angle that may be a problem if I am using a tripod. Having a steady hand is a great help in such situations. Now as I have said, my source of light is the sun and I can't move it so I have to move around myself to take different kind of shots. For example if I am trying to underexpose a shot, I go against the sun.

So you see this is all I do. I am planning to make a light box myself so I can take shots without light reflecting from the subject. How I am going to make a light box is something I will share with you once I am done.