As Bruno Barbey once said, “Photography is the only language that can be understood anywhere in the world”. This is so true. Be it any click, people can understand what a photographer has to say. To grace my favourite day i.e. ‘World Photography Day’, I feel privileged to write about 5 photographers who went beyond clicking and received recognition for the same.
1) Nayan Khanolkar
This beautiful photo got Nayan Khanolkar a second prize in the coveted ‘World Press Photo Awards 2017’ for ‘Urban Leopard project’. This leopard was clicked in an Adivasi pada of Aarey Colony. He has also won ‘BBC Wildlife Photographer’ of the year for the same picture and California Academy Sciences – Big Picture 2016 for the same click. He took four months capture that perfect moment.
He started clicking in 1990s and the first camera he used was Pentax K1000 which he borrowed from his friend. For the next three years, he survived on borrowed cameras. In 1997, he bought his first camera Nikon F90X. In 2002, he went one level up and put together 5 years of hard-earned money and he had no regrets as he invested it in another camera.
If the camera is used as a tool, then you can really make a difference with a picture. We Indians should try and click some hard core issues which are important in the country. Photography should be hard hitting. For clicking such photographs, one should give out a strong message and secondly, photography technique should be outstanding. If it is not conveyed properly, it won't have a good impact.
Check out his amazing clicks on his Instagram page
https://www.instagram.com/nayankhanolkar/?hl=en
2. Pravin Talan
For Pravin, photography started 12 years ago. He started off as a wild life photographer and moved to fashion and commercial work. He calls himself lucky as he is the only photographer who got to shoot inside 'Taj Mahal'. However, in the last few years, he has been closely capturing special forces in India. He gave a tribute to unsung heroes. He has shot almost all the forces including NSG force and CRPF.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BTecdoPhw1g/" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">A salute to our brave jawans BSF -Border Security Force *India' s first line of #defense #soldier #border #bsf #cinematic #pravintalan #actionphotography #commandos #NationFirst #BorderSecurityForce #respect #pride #IncredibleIndianForces #l4l #likeforlike #picoftheday #trainingday
I felt that I need to pay tribute to Mumbai Police as they are the best force I have come across. I have travelled a lot and I feel Mumbai Police is the best. So, as a token of appreciation, I started clicking their pictures. You will hardly find their photos. I have been doing it for three years now. I also publish a calendar of Mumbai police where I click photos of police in action. This is the second year I came up with a calendar.
Talan loves inspiring people and hence he clicks inspirational photos. He believes that it is a chaotic world and photographers should capture what people are not aware of. He wants to click pictures which will outlive him. When he is gone, his photos will narrate the tale.
Check out his some photos on Instagram page
https://www.instagram.com/pravintalan/?hl=en
3. Pratham Gokhale
Pratham is a photo-journalist and is associated with Hindustan Times. He is an award winning photographer whose picture of 'Damu Nagar' bagged an award in Mumbai Moments 2017 calendar.
https://www.instagram.com/p/-_yR60ECyZ/" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">A man stands on roof of shanty during fire in Damu Nagar slum colony at Kandivali in Mumbai, India, on Monday, December 7, 2015. Over a thousand houses got gutted in the blaze. (Photo by Pratham Gokhale/ Hindustan Times) #hindustan_times #prathamgokhale #news #fire #smoke #disaster #instagram #indiagram #instaphotos #photojournalism #dailylife #everydaymumbai #everydayindia #everydayasia #everydayeverywhere #indiaphotos #indiapictures #indianstories #_soi #indiapictures #storiesofindia #instawithht #mumbai #india #asia
When I was in the 12th grade, I started clicking pictures from my dad’s camera, a Pentax K 1000. I studied commercial arts and I used to click photos for my assignments. I also did a photography course from JJ School of Arts. Apart from this, I used to work as a still photographer on the shooting location. 2008 onwards, I started shooting professionally.
Though Pratham gets to click for all beats, he personally likes clicking off-beat pictures and loves street photography. He believes that mere clicking is not sufficient and one should click it beautifully. He recalls one of his clicks, where a boy is seen standing on a semi-demolished structure with a hammer in the same frame. He clicked it in such a way that he got a hold of the boy with a hammer and high rise building in the background. He mentioned this click saying that the angle matters while clicking as well as composition. He added that passion and interest are very important to anyone who wishes to click.
You can check out his clicks on his Instagram page
https://www.instagram.com/pratham.gokhale/
4. Anushree Fadnavis
Railways are our lifeline and that is the medium we chose to travel. But, this girl captures the lifeline like nobody else. Anushree Fadnavis, the photojournalist, has been clicking photos while travelling in a train and puts up on Instagram under the handle ‘Train Diaries’. Right from fisherwomen to transgenders, one will get to see different flavours of the Mumbai local.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BUAGEvpgdLu/" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">Kinjal , a transgender , poses for a picture in the ladies compartment of the Mumbai local train. I happen to know Kinjal from a social gathering I had attended with my trans friends and she recognised me. We had a lovely conversation in which I told her that I loved her gajra ( flower garland ) and her half saree ( the south indians wear this as their traditional wear) . #traindiaries
IT engineer by profession, Anushree Fadnavis used to seek respite by clicking pictures on weekends. Soon, it became her point of interest and she pursued photojournalism in 2012. However, what made her famous on Instagram is her vibrant vision.
I had not planned for it. Basically, I wanted to capture my daily life when I used to travel in a train. And I click photos from my cell phone as it doesn't intimidate others. I enjoy the clicks as you get to meet and see a different side of the city.
Anushree says that for a photographer, vision is the important factor and not the medium. Currently, she is working with Indus Images as a photojournalist.
Check out her clicks on her Instagram handle
https://www.instagram.com/anushree_fadnavis/
5. Kedarnath Maganur
Kedarnath loves travelling and clicking pictures. He does it with ease and loves what he clicks. He started clicking from 2013 and has fallen in love with photography since then. Though he hails from Chennai, he loves clicking in Mumbai.
Whenever I visit Mumbai, I go around the airport, the beach and other scenic places in the city. It is simply beautiful. I feel there is a lot in this city which I can capture in my lens.
After participating in inter-company contests, Kedarnath won three awards.
1: On Mahindra World City
2: Winner of Biodiversity Day contest for Landscapes
3: Winner of PhoneClick (Contest conducted for mobile clicks)
Check out his clicks on his FB page
https://www.facebook.com/kedarnath.maganur/photos_all
Personally, whenever I lay hands on my camera, I am trapped in a different dimension which is kind of pleasing. Just like books, photography takes you to another world. You get to capture some of the best moments and cherish that particular moment way into the future. Keep smiling, keep clicking!
‘Happy World Photography’ day, Mumbaikars!
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