Sudhir was invited as one of the guest speakers at Adobe MAKE IT, an annual global event held at Sydney, Australia on August 2nd and 3rd 2017. His session was about how technology aids in Wildlife photography. The overall event was attended by more than 2000 people and had an online viewership of more than 50,000 people from the Asia Pacific region.
The event boasted some of the biggest international names in the design and creative imaging industry, and Sudhir was one of two Indians on the panel as speaker.
Sudhir led an enthusiastic group of photographers in a photo walk, where he demonstrated to them how to overcome some of the common challenges of shooting outdoors. He gave them practical tips on how to employ the equipment and its numerous features to one’s advantage. This presentation was extremely well received, so much so that the participants later confessed to Sudhir that they were unaware that their cameras even had so many features and settings!
Sudhir at the event!
The conference room all set for Sudhir’s workshop:
Participants of the photography workshop at the Sydney Zoo.
A view of the Sydney harbour where the event was held:
It’s not exactly pleasant news when the taxman asks you to speak up. But Sudhir did speak up, addressing not one but a whole class of in-training taxmen. The prestigious National Academy of Direct Taxes at Nagpur is the apex training institution of the Indian Revenue Services. Sudhir was invited to be a part of their annual cultural fest, ANUBHUTI 2017.
National Academy of direct taxes
He conducted a photography workshop for the numerous photography hobbyists and enthusiasts there who were keen to learn some tricks of the trade from him. The workshop included a presentation on wildlife photography in general, Sudhir’s journey as a hobby to professional wildlife photographer/teacher, and tips and tricks of wildlife photography on August 29, 2017. This was followed by a short field outing the next day, where the trainees got a hands-on experience of shooting outdoors.
It was as much an honour for Sudhir to address such an accomplished group of youngsters as it was enjoyable for them to learn from their favourite photographer. By the looks of it, he will be pulled up every now and then by these taxmen.
Guest post by Camilla Malvestiti www.tigersinthewild.org
A few years ago, the tiger changed my life. The call of the jungle, the sheer thrill of tracking the most elusive of cats and an innate stubbornness made me realize that it was time to leave my routine as a vegan chef in Paris and move to India.
Junabai Cub at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve
It all started with a personal project on writing and photography : Tigers in the Wild.
In January 2017 I saw my first wild tiger in Ranthambhore and got hopelessly hooked on both stripes and long tele lenses.
Very soon, I was in one of Sudhir Shivaram’s photography learning tours in Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve. Little did I know that it would only be the starting point of a great learning experience with one of India’s most talented wildlife photographers and an amazing teacher.
So why should you attend one of Sudhir’s workshops ?
1. Let out your passion for wildlife photography and get carried away
Sudhir started his professional journey after deciding to quit his corporate job to follow his passion for wildlife photography.
Not only this passion shows, it’s also contagious.
By signing up for one of his workshops you’ll surely end up with all the technical information on how to become a confident photographer, as well as getting inspired to follow your dreams.
2. Visit some of the country’s best wildlife destinations with experienced drivers and guides while making new friends
Sudhir with Gudda (Naresh Singh), one of the best drivers / naturalist at Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve
Sudhir organizes intense learning workshops which require a lot of work but are also great fun.
Believe me, you won’t mind the 4:30 am wake up call to be first in line in front of Bandhavgarh’s hottest gate for tiger spotting. Nor you’ll be able to withdraw from passionate evening discussions after having enjoyed amazing food.
Always leave early to be the first in the line for the safari
While driving in the park, you’ll experience the skills of some of India’s most experienced drivers and guides. In their hands, the game of tiger tracking is as smooth as it gets. Let the magic of the forest unfold under your eyes and concentrate on making images.
Tigress MB3 with her cub at Kanha Tiger Reserve. Photo by Camilla
3 – Learn how it works, but most of all start finding your style
One of Sudhir’s most famous catchphrases is “Move away from taking images to making images”.
Learn all about technical principles, the paradigm of photography theory, master the rules. Then break them. Experiment. Rules are there to be smashed. Just saying.
4 – Step out of your comfort zone, in a safe environment
Learn how to critique an image and give valuable feedback. Sudhir organizes a healthy photo competition during each workshop. While finding time to review the images taken during the day might be a daunting task for those who tend to overindulge on the blasting of their shutterspeed, an honest peer-to-peer evaluation will give you invaluable insights on your photography.
A healthy competition is organised among participants of the workshop.
5 – Be part of an active, benevolent online community
Let’s keep in touch. How many times have you heard or told this phrase but haven’t really followed up ? Life kicks in and with it all the time-consuming daily activities. Sudhir’s team devotes quite a huge part of their working hours to the animation and maintain of his online community. They encourage WhatsApp and Facebook groups, theme competitions and an overall active dialogue to clear all your doubts and help you continue learning even after the workshop has ended.
Voilà, these are reasons which have made me a big fan of Sudhir Shivaram’s photography learning tours!
