Swathi Nayak

By day, I am an Engineering Manager, building the mission-critical systems that the financial world runs on — where 'ship fast' and 'ship right' both have to be true at once, and a roadmap needs to stay as sharp as a 50mm lens at f/1.4. By night, and most weekends, I'm somewhere in New York with a camera around my neck, a record on the turntable, or both.

I grew up around colour — the kind that spills out of Indian markets, wedding silks, and a roll of film left a little too long in a hot drawer. That palette followed me here, into a city that runs on neon and concrete. Most of what I make, shoot, and wear is an attempt to find where the two collide.

I run teams the same way I shoot wide open: fast glass, fast decisions, and zero patience for anything that stays out of focus. Move quickly, ship the sharp frame, and don't waste the roll.