Hello friends.

Welcome to my site! I’m Swami. I’m an engineer, product designer, photographer, and co-founder of QTR.

A little bit about me: I grew up near the beach in Chennai, moved to Malawi (the warm heart of Africa) during my high school years, went to college at ASU, and currently live in Pleasanton (California) with my wife, Mala.

Somewhere along the way, I picked up an interest in photography. I think it was when my dad got me a video camera in the 90s. I took the camera to school and videotaped my classes, and those recordings have become my most precious memories of Africa. Here’s Mr. Studd getting annoyed with the camera while trying to explain ligands.

I shoot landscapes and portraits. In the past, I've shot Bollywood concerts and sports, mainly tennis tournaments. In 2018, I was an official photographer at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. The coolest part was getting to ask Roger Federer a question.

Last year, I started a podcast called ShotMasters where I had conversations with world-reknowned landscape photographers about how they succeeded as an artist. I had to suspend the podcast due to a life change, but I'm currently hosting another podcast called How I Got Here, where I interview remarkable people about their career and life journeys.

Being a full-time engineer with side hustles and multiple hobbies, I’ve had to learn the hard way how to manage my time effectively. I share these lessons in my newsletter. These lessons have now become the foundation of a productivity tool I've created called QTR. It's a time management app that helps you achieve in 13 weeks what most people struggle to achieve in a year.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope you find something here that inspires you!

Swami Venkataramani
swami@swamiphoto.com