Lucid Pictures From Lucid Bhaiya! - Sartaz Ali Barkat

 "I took up Science in 11th Standard, just for fun. But, I soon realized that it isn’t my cup of tea. I was already going through a tough time in my life and I started photography to escape from the troubles. I used to click random pictures and upload them on my personal profile. Lot of people appreciated those pictures and asked me to open a page dedicated to my photography, which I eventually did. I named it “Sartaz Photography".

One of seniors suggested that I should use a unique name for my page. So, I came up with “Lucid Photography”. When I started to gain a little popularity through the page, everyone started approaching me as, “Lucid Bhaiya”. Then, came the username “Lucid Bhaiya”.

Before photography, I was a Jack of all trades. I tried my hands at playing tablas, basketball and cricket, but I left them as soon as I joined. But, with photography, came consistency. It’s been three years now and I am not leaving it anytime soon. 

I absolutely adore Prateek Talreja. He works at a Monginis store in Mumbai. He bought a DSLR randomly and after using it regularly, he became a pro and HOW! Even, Canon sponsored him. I also love Namrata Vedi. She once said, “A person with a camera is just a cameraman, but a person with skills is a photographer”. These guys inspire me and keep me going. I also got to learn a lot from the people who attended my workshop. 

We, a team of photographers, have started a hashtag called “chitramandali”. Once, when in BBSR, a person was standing behind me in queue. I was scrolling through my Instagram feed and he noticed it. He then asked me to use “#chitramandali” for my pictures. When I told him that I am one of the members who initiated the hashtag, he was shook and he praised me. That, literally made my day!

A lot of teenagers feel that photography means having a DSLR. But, it is simply untrue. The fact that I don’t use a DSLR bothers me in no way, because I know photography only requires skills and camera. My phone sufficiently compensates for the latter. Use your talent and whatever resource you have in hand and you are good to go!" – Sartaz Ali Barkat aka Lucid Bhaiya.