Deva RajeevNair

Deva RajeevNair

Future Job: Aerospace Engineering 

Years making short films and doing photography: Photography for 3-4 years; Making short films for 1 year.

Future College: Texas A&M or University of Texas at Austin

Wingspan: What inspired you to go into photography and the production of short films?

RajeevNair: “So what inspired me to get into photography is that I would go to these get togethers and everyone would be like, ‘Deva! Would you take a picture of me?’. And I took their pictures and people at these get togethers who were actually experienced photographers at the time would say, ‘Wow, nice framing’, or ‘that’s really good’. That just inspired me to take time out of my day to expand on that skill; to watch YouTube videos, I bought a DSLR, and all those things. For short films, one of my friends asked me if I could film for him since he was going to direct the film. I was like, ‘sure, why not?’ and it turned out that he really liked it. I always say that if you’re good at something, don’t stop doing it. So I kept making more and I extended that skill too by watching YouTube videos on transitions or audio and sound engineering.”

Wingspan: How does this impact you as a person?

RajeevNair: ”Being a photographer for so long makes see things from a different perspective. For example, ‘how would this subject look different if you look at it from a different angle’, and all those things- and I think it’s really useful.”

Wingspan: What do you normally take pictures and videos of?

RajeevNair: ”Normally, I do more photography of nature, but I do portraits of people once in a while as well. I take pictures for our Liberty Orchestra as the historian. I take pictures for large events and big organizations.”

Wingspan: How do your parents and friends influence this interest?

RajeevNair: ”My parents like that I have this skills. However, they don’t really want me to pursue it because they want me to be focused on something that would possibly give me a higher pay. But they still support it; they still give me constructive criticism and comments and compliments for pictures and videos I take. My friends really like it because if we go anywhere, I’m the person that takes all the pictures for everyone. I kind of enjoy it because it’s like I’m in charge of capturing moments that no one else can capture.”

Wingspan: How do you better yourself in this interest?

RajeevNair: ”I take my camera everywhere I go and I try to take small clips or pictures of the things I see. I watch YouTube videos on how to make them better with editing techniques, or how to better take cinematics. I’m self taught in all of this and I think I got decent in photography through YouTube videos and just doing it every day. Even if it’s only for thirty minutes, just snaps of pictures, and edits of pictures”

Wingspan: How did you realize that this is something you found interesting and loved to do?

RajeevNair: ”I don’t know, but I know that if you see something, you might only see it for a second, and you only have an imprint of it in your mind. But it won’t be exactly how you see it. But by taking pictures, it’s there with you for as long as you want it to be. That’s really cool to me that you can just capture that moment and preserve it in time.”

Wingspan: What equipment do you normally use and are you hoping to expand it?

RajeevNair: ”I currently use a Nikon D3400 and I have extra lenses and tripods too. I really want to get a Nikon Z6 or Z7, but they’re really expensive. For cinematics, I want to buy a gimbal. A gimbal is a stabilizing mechanism. So no matter how you move, the camera will stay stable.”

Wingspan: How does this impact your daily schedule of academics and how do you work around it?

RajeevNair: ”It actually sometimes helps me in my academics with projects and videos. My skill comes in handy during that time, in my opinion. But other times, I try not to mix this with academics. If I’m studying something, then I’m focused on that and if I’m taking pictures or taking videos, I don’t really think about studying.”