Archive MMXXVIDocumentary PhotographerKochi, IN
Meera Iyer, an archive
of work.
Longform photography from coastal South India. Patient work, printed slowly.
PracticeDocumentary Photographer
StudioKochi, IN
EstablishedMMXVIII
I. Colophon
A quiet practice,
patient work.
Documentary photographer based in Kochi, working across coastal South India since 2011. Longform projects on fishing communities, port towns, and the monsoon. Two solo books with Tara Books. Published in National Geographic India, Mint Lounge, Scroll, and The Caravan.
Every project is authored slowly, printed carefully, and edited to the bone. No volume practice, no stock frames, no content calendars. Just bodies of work, one after the next.
14Years
6Monographs
27Exhibitions
9Publications
II. Selected assignments
Exhibitions & commissions.
0.
Contributing Photographer, National Geographic India
Three published stories including the 2024 monsoon cover. Commissioned for their 2025 coastal Asia special issue. Ongoing relationship built over 14 months of pitching.
2022 – NowKochi
1.
Staff Photographer, Mint
Lead photographer on the Lounge vertical. Covered the 2019 general election, the 2020 pandemic lockdown, and the 2020 monsoon floods in a rotating two-person bureau.
2018 – 2022Mumbai
2.
Photojournalist, Scroll.in
Breaking news and longform. Cover credit on fourteen major features including the 2017 Tamil Nadu drought essay which was longlisted for the RedInk award.
2016 – 2018Bangalore
3.
Photography Assistant, Studio Raghu Rai
Two years assisting one of India's most celebrated photographers. Darkroom printing, archival work, exhibition prep, and occasional assignment shoot lead.
2014 – 2016Delhi
"A single strong frame outlives a hundred technically perfect ones."
Studio note · Kochi, IN
III. Plates
Selected bodies of work.
pl. 0
Monsoon Cities
Three-year project on how six Indian cities prepare for and live through the monsoon. Co-published with Tara Books. 180 pages, 94 plates, first print run sold out.
Book · 2022–2024
pl. 1
The Last Catch
Longform photo essay on artisanal fishing along the Kerala coast. Published in three installments in The Caravan. Included in the 2021 World Press Photo longlist.
Essay · 2020
pl. 2
Port Town Monograph
Solo show at Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2022–23. Six-city touring exhibition through 2024. Catalogue published by Kochi Biennale Foundation.
Exhibition · 2023
pl. 3
Coastal Atlas
Slow-moving typological survey of the 7,500 km Indian coastline. Five years in, two more to go. Thirty-two towns photographed using a large-format 4x5 camera.
Ongoing · 2019–
IV. Craft
Disciplines practiced.
00 / skill
Editorial
01 / skill
Documentary
02 / skill
Portraiture
03 / skill
Longform
04 / skill
Assignment work
05 / skill
Darkroom printing
V. Education
Formal training.
2016
M.A. Visual Communication
Symbiosis Institute, Pune · Distinction
RecordDistinction
2014
B.A. English Literature
Stella Maris, Chennai · First Class with Honours
RecordFirst Class with Honours