Meet Saimaa Venky | Professional Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Saimaa Venky and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Saimaa, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?

Authenticity

I would attribute my recognition to a few key life principles I follow 

1. A) be realistic – I am a firm believer in making sure my clients understand what they are signing up for when they work with me. Be it a work product or the way I conduct my shoot and when people can expect deliverables from me; I am honest and realistic in setting expectations
2. B) be creative – I bring an element of surprise and creativity, and hence each shoot – even maternity, weddings – have little of cliches and more of what my clients can spontaneously participate and pose
3. C) no distractions – I don’t let any of my personal situations or moods impact my work. Usually, I spend about half hr focusing and orienting myself, listening to some music and mentally mapping what I want to achieve in the session. Once I am in the venue, I usually don’t use my devices unless I’ve to check on a storyboard theme or idea. While doing events I also ensure I become aware of the client and their close family, so I ensure no one is left out in my pictures
4. D) the element of surprise – I fully involve my clients intimately in the photo sessions. A catchy phrase, a different kind of prop or even a message or theme from the language and culture of my clients, all of these bring that element of surprise which are very apparent when I capture them on pictures.
5. E) no ego – many of my sessions call for working together with videographers as well as being in a team of photographers covering events. Immersing myself, understanding my role and playing the part is much more valuable than comparison and judgement of other crafts.
6. F) understanding events – the recent pandemic has impacted the way events are celebrated. Many of my clients can’t event have their parents be part of their wedding and life events due to travel and visa challenges. I understand cultural nuances especially in South Asian and Indian cultures, dos and don’ts and key milestones of the event I cover and am even able to guide my clients when I feel it worthwhile.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

I am woman-owned and led small business enterprise specializing in documenting weddings, maternity and life events photography. My bespoke and creative editing is what defines my photography brand for all of my clients making it a memory for them to remember forever.

My editing is unique to my pictures and the bright, colorful vibrancy along with my ability to put my clients at ease is what I consider my forte. My specialty is photo-documenting Weddings, Maternity and Life Events.

My deep roots in my traditional upbringing and my keen sense of timing towards focused attention to the various ceremonies and rituals in Weddings and Life events set me apart from others as I anticipate things that will happen and also coordinate with the wedding coordinator or the priest to ensure that I follow along the rituals and schedule of the day and ensure I capture all of those precious and life-changing moments of yours.

Be it making sure your accessories are looking right – adjusting them as needed; talking to your family to ensure that the saree is draped fine or the lehenga is worn right – these are all things that I naturally do to ensure that I don’t compromise on the look of my clients wherever they are; something that my clients have later remembered and appreciated.

I speak English, Hindi, Marathi, and Tamil fluently and understand Gujarati, Malayalam, and Telugu well enough to understand a spontaneous requirement or comment and work and adjust accordingly. This gives me a huge advantage in capturing Indian Wedding ceremonies and Life Events or putting my Maternity clients at ease.

So where is all this passion and creativity coming from?? I have always been creative as a person and am a post-graduate diploma holder in Film and Television Production from the University of Mumbai, India, and also completed a specialization course through the New York Institute of Photography to enhance my creative editing skills. I have worked in Bollywood as an Asst Director before I decided to continue my passion for Wedding and Event photography and make that my career choice. Managing the hustle and seamlessly working with my team of other photographers or videographers is just another day in the life of……

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?

New York City – always my first choice! Being from Mumbai and having gotten used to the noise of the city; no other city matches the charm of NYC!

I would go to Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge and dine out at the numerous bespoke and unique restaurants in the area!

No visit to NY or NJ is complete without the “Indian” experience so Edison and Jackson Heights are a must visit.

An early morning visit to the beach, having a good breakfast and then some ice cream from the “The Bent spoon” in Princeton….

All of these are things I would look forward to doing!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?

My family – my husband and son who come to the shoots and events and help and constantly provide encouragement and creativity; at times irritating me but nevertheless very helpful 😊

My mom who has been a constant source of inspiration and someone whom I look up to even though she is no more!

Website: saimaavenkyphotography.com

Instagram: saimaavenkyphotography

Facebook: facebook.com/saimaavenkyphotography