We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vaishnavi Patil a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Vaishnavi , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today One of our favorite things to brainstorm about with friends who’ve built something entrepreneurial is what they would do differently if they were to start over today. Surely, there are things you’ve learned that would allow you to do it over faster, more efficiently. We’d love to hear how you would go about setting things up if you were starting over today, knowing everything that you already know.
Honestly, my starting-over story has already happened. I was in law school and graduated from it in June 2021. From day one, I knew it was not the place for me, and I did not want to do this for the rest of my life for many reasons. My friends, family, and photography kept me sane. The week I graduated, my dad sat me down and asked me what I wanted to do next. I told him photography it was. If I did not try it, I would regret it all my life. But if I still had to change how I started it all, it would be getting into photography sooner. It took me time to gain confidence in myself and my work, and starting sooner meant reaching that place of confidence sooner.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m Vaishnavi Patil. I am from India. I graduated from the New York Film Academy, Los Angeles, with an MFA in Photography. I love photographing people, portraits, and landscapes. Thanks to a few classes, I could meet amazing people and visit amazing landscapes. I have just started to make images of still life and am very excited to do that. I can make meaningful work and write about it. I have discovered that I can write well, haha. I would love to do the same. My recent work, my thesis, is the work I’m the most proud of. It is called “The Ecology of Healing.” I talk about healing from any physical, mental, or emotional scar. Nature to me is healing, and so I placed my subjects in different natural environments, like by the beach, a creek, or a park by our house. You can check it out here: https://www.vaishnavipatilphotography.com/the-ecology-of-healing. The other thing that gives me pride is talking to people. I’ve always been shy, but doing this work, meeting new people, and having conversations with them has helped me overcome that. While working with all these talented individuals, it came to how everyone’s effort and contributions make teamwork dream work. So, I make sure to give due credit to all the people I work with. To me, crediting or acknowledgment is something that boosts my confidence and makes me proud; that’s how I want all the people who work with me to feel when they see the work or show it to others.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
Portraying my feelings through art and watching people understand and resonate with them has been the most rewarding. The appreciation I’ve been getting and just having the confidence and belief in my work are the keys. Another aspect is meeting and working with people who feel what I feel.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
Something I thought earlier was that if I knew the technical aspects of photography, I would be sorted. But no, that’s just the beginning. As I spent time at photography school and met my amazing professors, I soon understood there was so much more to what I was getting into. I read about why artists were making their work and the meaning behind each artwork. I know I want to do this and do meaningful work with all the technical knowledge I have. This has been my experience, and while some might disagree, this is something I put into practice when I create my artwork.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.vaishnavipatilphotography.com/
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/patil_vaishnavi20?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
- Linkedin: http://www.linkedin.com/in/vaishnavi-patil-536086194
Image Credits
Anthony J Jyotiraditya R Kayla R Iskandria S Dea R Sandisiwew N S Valentina S Daniel S Clara B