Passion differs from person to person. For some it’s a mere passing phase. Others take it seriously and make a career of it. Dinesh Chandrasekar, who completed his MBA from PSG Institute of Management, Coimbatore, is one such lucky soul. His passion was photography.

The big boost came when some of his photographs were selected under different categories by the Pixoto portal, an online community for photographers. This was all the
assurance that Dinesh needed.

“My interest in photography started when I took part in a college competition during my BE days. Since then, there was no looking back for me as I concentrated on developing my photography skill,” he began. “It was my friend Sundaram Krishnan, who not only gave his camera, but also taught me the basics of photography. As luck would have it, I got an opportunity to glance through the photographs of Sriram Santhosh (cinematographer P C Sriram’s assistant) on a social networking site which inspired me to continue with my passion for photography,” he said, and added that his first most expensive camera, a Canon 550D model, was a Diwali present from his mother in 2012.

His first acclaimed work was a still photograph featuring an old man sitting on the roadside, smoking his beedi, and lost in his thoughts. Dinesh named it, ‘Naanum En Ninaivugalum’ (My thoughts and I). Comments and criticism from others, including experienced and professional photographers, helped Dinesh fine-tune his skills.

Even as a student of civil engineering, Dinesh used to send his pictures to pixoto.com. He was voted as a nominee for awards in categories including novice (for his picture of happy tribal kids). Another photograph, titled ‘The golden straw and the red lady,’ was taken at the Anaikatti tribal area. This was chosen for the Instagram category. ‘Welcome showers in Coimbatore,’ and ‘Butterfly’ won him the Rising Star award in the Nature Up Close category and Animal Category.

Dinesh Chandrasekar revealed that his magnum opus was to capture the panoramic view of CODISSIA trade fair complex on Avinashi Road in Coimbatore, which, he said, was photographed with seven single shots.

As for his big ambitions, he said he wanted to join an ace photographer to learn the nuances of photography.