From a very young age I was always fascinated by wildlife!! Birds especially were an integral part of my life. I had to wait for my camera till I was 22 yrs old and there after I have tried to capture their beauty and show to the world about their importance in the natural world. My only aim of doing wildlife photography is to promote the goodness of CONSERVATION in whatever small way that is possible and to spread awareness about importance of wildlife for the ecosystem. I have to thank my wife Julie, my daughters Andrea and Gloria for their co-operation in allowing me to disappear in to wild places very often and to enjoy what I like doing the most. I hope that you enjoy watching the photographs of God’s creations in their natural beauty as I did.
Birds have conquered almost all the possible habitats that exist on planet earth. You go to the Himalayas or the Thar Desert or riverine habitats or grasslands; you always find different bird species living there. Their flight just mesmerizes me. Also, one cannot define freedom better than birds – they migrate across continents at will, they appear at the most unexpected places and they just consume you by doing the things that you least expect them to do. You can see the smallest of the warblers, for example the greenish Leaf Warbler – a common winter visitor to almost the entire Indian subcontinent – breed in the Arctic Circle; it’s only one third the size of a house sparrow. When it chirps in your garden in October, the common man overlooks it most of the time, but for a birder and photographer like me, I am awestruck; how could a tiny bird of around 10grams migrate tens of thousands of miles?
I am definitely fascinated more by the raptors. They are species of birds that prey on other animals and birds. Eagles, Hawks and Falcons belong to this group. The Bonelli’s eagle is very close to my heart – if you see one hunting a large prey like a black-necked hare or grey heron or even a peacock, you are overwhelmed by its power, tenacity, single- minded approach and commitment. So when you get a good picture of them, it is a very satisfying feeling; you are on top of the world!
The YOU JUST HAVE TO BE THERE!! Punch line for this website was an idea derived from a conversation my very dear friend Niranjan Sant and I had while bird watching in one of the grasslands of Belgaum.. we always felt that good images and great bird sightings happen only when you are there at the home of the species and going there again and again to better the opportunities..
My request to wildlife photographers :
- Do not photograph nests, unless it’s a very rare species and you want to photograph it from the point of study or science. Birds do become aggressive and agitated during the time of their breeding.
- Never photograph only for awards. Awards should not only be the purpose of your photography. Craving for awards leads to selfishness and human selfishness can lead to destruction of birds and their habitat.
- If you don’t get what you wanted from the field, do not get disappointed. Mother Nature always rewards your perseverance and patience.
- Always get involved in some kind of conservation activity by either your time or by your finances.
- Nature here in our country is vanishing day by day. When you see the Great Indian Bustard in its splendor and realize that less than 150 of them are surviving in the wild in India, you feel like crying. How irresponsible are we that we allowed this to happen?
- Keep your environment clean when you go into the wilderness. Always be aware that you are invading the private life of the denizens who live there. Give zero tolerance to garbage dumping visitors. Educate them and if you can grab a few plastic bags here and there and safely dispose them in the dustbin, you have done your part and mother nature will surely smile at you.
