#CMCSnapshots

Telling the tales of her clicks, our photography student, Shailija shares with us what she learned through outdoor photography.

Mumbai being the city that is constantly in motion, it’s an experience for someone to treat the lens beyond the walls of the classroom. My excitement levels to explore the subject of outdoor photography weren’t met with any disappointments, as I thoroughly enjoyed each phase of this learning. The idea was to not accumulate images but to dwell upon the learning point from different locations and photography subjects. Here’s a peek into my journal:

Byculla Zoo:

Our first outdoor session was conducted at Byculla zoo, for wildlife photography. I spotted adeer who held a calm pose while it’s friends were eating away to glory. Witnessing a range of interesting animals at the zoo, I got to shoot their images from a variety of angles and compose the pictures in an interesting manner, highlighting different aspects of the image. This session basically taught me macro photography, framing and how to use natural lighting. 

The Butterfly Park:

Lit up with sprightly colors, this park was absolute fun. Different forms and sizes of the butterflies not only made the day look like a canvas painting but made me understand the format of using colors of the natural habitat in the best manner. This session also deepened my curiosity about the working of aperture under natural lighting.

Elephanta Caves:

The trip to Elephanta Caves was exhausting. I can vividly recollect the umpteen number of steps I had to climb to get there. I could account his one as one of the most difficult outdoor sessions as the entire experience was very different. Elephanta holds a magnetic charm for history lovers and I too was caught in its spell. Even though the subjects to be photographed here were stationary, it was an exciting task to make each frame look like a story carved from a rock. This session helped me understand framing and angles from an interesting perspective.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus:

Behold, getting an assignment to capture one of the oldest structures in Mumbai which is also a world heritage site was a ‘wow’ moment for me.Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus it was! The building appeared no less than a palace with all the lighting. Toying around with the technique of long exposure and creating a beautiful mix of the stationary objects and moving subjects was an unforgettable experience.

Maharashtra Day Parade:

I had to cover the Maharashtra Day parade at Shivaji Park, Dadar. The synchronization in the march was mesmerizing. To be able to capture this symmetric flow of movement was the core idea. This session was very different as compared to the others as the motion involved here in had a rhythmic pattern and to be able to get the same in my photo journal was a different high in all.

Sewri Flamingo Point:

One of the best outdoor session was conducted at Sewri dock. Sewri has a jetty cum dock which is home to thousands of Flamingos. To my surprise some of these awesome migratory birds come from Siberia to the mud flats in Sewri through Rann of Kutch. It was the probably the best experience I had. The highlight of this session was the kind of patience and observation one needed to have besides the skill, to be able to capture a creature in action with quick reflexes. The winged buddies were swift to move, hence a task to capture.This session was paisa vasool none the less.

In all, my experience during the outdoor photography sessions was great. It takes me back to Sam Abell’s words- Essentially what photography is; is life lit up!