The

Human
Knots
Howard Schatz

Spotlight
on Wildlife
Richard Peters Hanami
Rohan Shrestha

The Ochre
Paradise Offroading Affair
Arturo Lopez Illana with Spiti
Priyashi Negi

Chiiz Gallery Tips & Tricks

Best of chiiz.com Drone Photography
 THOSE WHO MADE IT POSSIBLE

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Editorial
Jassi Oberai
Prakhar Garg
Priyashi Negi
Ankit Tyagi
Editorial
Chief Visualiser A good photograph, they say, is one which takes you back to a
Sheetal Mann moment otherwise gone. A great photograph, however, does
more. It brings the viewers to the scene as if they’re living the
Design moment, as if they’re somehow in the scene, watching it as one
Bhavyaa Parashar
with the visionary that is the photographer. With this aim, Chiiz
Abhishek Gangwar
brings to you its Landscape Edition that is bound to take you to
Analysis places that you might have seen but not quite this way.
Prateek Kashyap
With the advent of spring, Rohan Shrestha takes us to witness
Writers the ‘Hanami’ (the cherry blossoms festival) in Japan and recreates
Rahul Batra
the beauty of the breathtaking pastel pink blooms. Landscape
Shrey Malik
Vishakha Jha photography may be a popular subject among the photographers
Aditi Puranik but it takes a lot of mastery, patience, and a certain frame of mind
Meenal Singh to capture imagery that will really stir the viewers. Follow the
journey of Arturo Lopez Illana to the “Ochre Paradise” that is the
Technology Leh-Zanskar Valley and witness how the valley unfolds between
Sachin Arora
these pages.
Rishabh Jain
Bharat Bhushan
Aditya Baghel From grand landscapes to intimate details, the best photos
demonstrate the photographer’s own connection to nature and
Business Development capture the essence of the world around them. Wildlife photographer
Rajesh Basu and Nikon UK Brand Ambassador, Richard Peters gives us a glimpse
Amit Ghosh
of his connection with nature and takes the art of photographing
Dimas Fajar
wildlife and landscapes a notch above the rest with his amazing
Sales work in “Spotlight on Wildlife”. Mandira Bahl captures the “Tough
Krishna Srinivas Beauties” of New York City as they ride out the stereotypes and
Amit Gupta redefine strength, determination, dedication and fervor.

Marketing
Chiiz showcases brilliant photographers from chiiz.com and features
Sahil Gupta
Anurag Khaneja amazing content that will leave you enthralled in the “Chiiz Gallery”.

Public Relations The food photography by Subhadip Malakar will have you
Barkha Chandra drooling over the pages as you wish for those delicious dishes to
magically appear in front of you. Also, keep an eye on how the
Staff Photographers
ophthalmologist-turned-photographer, Howard Schatz, came up
Surbhi Sharma
Susana Gomez with the amazingly creative concept of “The Human Knots”.
Tarundeep Singh
Urshita Saini Landscape photography evokes a sense of belonging to the place
that has been photographed. It makes your heart jump and elicits
Finance a whole spectrum of emotions. Join in on this 100-page journey
Neelu Singh
and align yourself with the sense of the world that these amazing
Consultant
photographers saw and captured.
Apratim Saha
Mansa Inc.

CEO Regards,
Mukesh Kumar Jassi Oberai

Cover Photo
Leyla Emektar
 Contents

Tools Feature
28 Tips and Tricks Spotlight on Wildlife 8
Drone Photography Richard Peters
Devang Sethi

74 App of the Month The Ochre Paradise 50

Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC Arturo Lopez Illana

Offroading Affair with Spiti 62

Priyashi Negi
76 Chiiz Gallery
Hanami: A Walk through 84
Best of chiiz.com
the Cherry Blossoms
Rohan Shrestha

The Human Knots 94

Howard Schatz

Triggers Classics
14 Nuswanto Lobbu
Movie Review 36
Manufactured Landscapes
20 Stanislav Malykh
Edward Burtynsky
34 Subhadip Malakar
Old is Gold 54
38 Mandira Bahl Ansel Easton Adams

42 Kanwar Pal Singh

46 Anton Agarkov Hall of Fame

56 Jassi Oberai
Model of the Month 88
GL Sanjana
58 Karthik Ravindran

70 Fedor Lashkov Make Up Artist of the Month 90

Diane Martin
72 Safar Bakhyshev
 Spotlight on Wildlife
Richard Peters talks about the challenges in wildlife photography, being a
Nikon ambassador and how he handles competition.
Richard Peters is a Nikon
ambassador with a style that
often favours dramatic light and
contrast. He has won multiple
international awards including two
Wildlife Photographer of the Year
titles and is one of the few British
photographers to have received
the accolade of European Wildlife
Photographer of the Year.
8 FEATURE
Q. What was the reason that you
chose wildlife photography and
how have you kept your work
unique from the other wildlife
photographers?
A. I have always been more
creative than academic. I also
grew up enjoying natural history
documentaries. And so I think it
was always going to happen that
when I found photography, I drifted
towards photographing wildlife. I
like that doing so allows me to see
the beauty in the natural world, both
close to home and further afield, that
is often missed or overlooked by the
vast majority of people. There is also
something incredibly calming about
sitting quietly and watching a wild
animal living out it’s life right in front
of you. However, keeping work
Family Portrait
Nikon D810 170mm F/5.6 1/2500 ISO110
unique is the big challenge. For
me, it’s not so much a question of
what I can do to make my work
stand out but more of what I can
do to keep myself from getting
bored. I like to challenge myself
to look at things from a different
angle and concentrate on the light
more than the subject within it. Of
course that doesn’t always produce
unique images but I find working in
that way gives me a better chance,
than if I concentrated on the
subject first.
Q. Being a Nikon Ambassador
has given you an extreme
exposure. What changes do you
see from then onwards?
A. I’ve been asked this question
many times before and it’s difficult
to answer. There is no doubt at all that
being invited into such a prestigious
line-up of photographers has helped
put my name in front of many
people but it’s impossible to know
the long term impact because I
don’t know how my career would
have advanced had that not
happened. What I can say is that
I am forever grateful to Nikon for
seeing something in my work that
caught their eye, and that it has
been a career highlight to work so
closely with them. I was involved in
the D850 press launch, was lucky
enough to start shooting with the
camera ahead of it’s worldwide
release and was the first wildlife
photographer in the world to shoot
with the brand new 180-400 1.4 TC
lens, shooting the wildlife images
for the worldwide advertising of
the lens. Being given such big
responsibilities to represent a
company and its products certainly
can’t hurt a photographer’s career!
Q. How competitive is wildlife
photography? What different do
you do to make your work out of
the box?
A. Very. These days there are a
lot of people who call themselves
a wildlife photographers, whilst
secretly having real jobs on the
side, but who are every bit as
capable at taking striking pictures
as us full time professionals. The
problem is that if it’s not your main
source of income, you can afford to
work cheap or sell your images for
cheap, and that makes it difficult
for the rest of us. That means to
stand out from the crowd your
work has to be that much better. I
try not to stick to the same formula
all the time to keep things fresh
whenever I can. So, I’ve got some
great images from Africa and other
countries but also, I’ve got some
great photos taken in my garden
at home. And I mix up telephoto
work with wide angle work, and
ambient light images with artificial
light. The more variety I have in my
portfolio the more interesting it is
for me to look at, let alone anyone
else. When it comes to sharing
work I follow the rule of ‘less is
more’. I take a lot of photos each
year but I don’t push them out on
social media and various other
platforms day after day. Instead, I
think very carefully about what I share
and try to put out only images that
please me. Being my own worst
critic, means that I share fewer
images but that keeps the standard
higher. Even my own website has
only 12 images per gallery. It’s an
approach that seems to work or at
least, has done so far!
Q. What are the difficulties you
face while running a wildlife
photography business?
A. Any job which requires you to
be self employed is a challenge.
Unless you’re lucky enough to be
one of the few photographers who
is sent on assignments on a regular
basis, you need to be multi-skilled.
I was having this conversation with
someone recently and telling them
that, the reality is, to be a full-time
wildlife photographer you also need
to have good people skills, be a
good teacher, be a good writer,
be a good speaker and also be
motivated. Being able to take a
good photo isn’t enough; although
it’s your photos that will help you
sell yourself and your other skills.
Plus, most people forget to mention
that, you need to be organised
with your paperwork because filling
out tax returns is by far the least
enjoyable aspect! I’m sure we’ve
all seen the infographic that shows
how a photographer spends their
time and it’s true. My friends think
I fly around the world ‘on holiday’
without a care in the world,
photographing animals at leisure.
However when I am travelling, I’m
mentally and physically on call for
my clients 24/7 to ensure they are
getting the most value out of me
and learning something.
Ostrich
Nikon D500 F/2.8 1/2000 ISO100
 Travel aside, I spend far more time
emailing, advertising, organising
talks, writing articles (and
interviews!), processing images and
trying to find new clients because
without them there’s no business.
No matter how good the photos!
Thankfully, I really enjoy meeting
new people and teaching others; so
I enjoy private and group workshops
as much for the education I pass
on, as I do taking photos for myself!
For my business, I feel that is key.
Q. According to you which
animal is difficult to photograph?
What tricks do you use while
photographing them?
A. I would actually say all wildlife
can be difficult to photograph in
a way that captures the viewers
imagination. For example, I recently
had success in the European
Wildlife Photographer of the Year
with a photo of a pigeon taken in
my garden at home. This is a
10 FEATURE
subject that is incredible easy to
photograph, even though they are
often overlooked, but that doesn’t
mean they are easy to photograph
well. I’d even go as far as to say it’s
harder to capture a striking image
of one of these birds than it is a
lion, even though most people see
them every day.
Q. What lighting techniques
do you use while doing wildlife
photography? What suggestions
can you give to our readers who
are into wildlife photography?
A. Regardless of whether or not
I have my camera in hand, I’m
mentally aware at all times of what
the light is doing. Be it golden
sunrise or overcast; I’m looking at
how light and shade interact with
the subject and trying to work out
how I can use that to my advantage.
Sometimes it’s as easy as dialing in
some under exposure on the camera,
other times it would be a complete
repositioning of myself relative to
the subject and sometimes it could
mean the introduction of artificial
light to balance and emphasise
the ambiance. My number one
piece of advice for photographers
wanting to elevate their work is
the cliche that you need to learn
to ‘see the light’. Once you start
doing that, it really transforms your
image. Learning how your camera’s
metering and sensor interpret
light is a great start, because it
will see and expose for lighting
in a vastly different way to how
the human eye sees it, especially
when lots of contrast is involved.
If you understand that process
and know how to bias exposures
with exposure compensation,
that’s when you can start creating
far more dramatic images than
you would have thought possible,
based on how your naked eye is
viewing the scene.
White Pelican Shadow Walker
Nikon D810 170mm F/5.6 1/4000 ISO64 Nikon D810 31mm F/8 30s ISO1250

Beautiful Chaos Light Shafts

Nikon D810 F/18 1/6 ISO64 Nikon D5500 16mm F/8 1/200 ISO200

Sentinel
Nikon D500 F/2.8 1/2000 ISO100

“Any job which requires you to be self

employed is a challenge. Unless you’re lucky
enough to be one of the few photographers
who is sent on assignments on a regular
basis, you need to be multi-skilled.”

Sheetal Mann
sheetal@chiiz.com

A silent tigress working up her way against the societal norms. One hell
Skomer Sundowner of an interior designer for your beautiful homes and thoughts, she is
Nikon D810 14mm F/9 1/160 ISO200 quite an introvert and serenity drips from her face.
 Undivided Attention
Nikon D810 600mm F/4 1/500 ISO360

Innocence of Youth
12 FEATURE Nikon D850 550mm F/5 1/1600 ISO320
 Nuswanto Lobbu, known as Nus in short, is native
to Indonesia. He was born and raised on the small
island of Talaud, Northern Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Nus was amongst a very privileged few who began
their underwater adventure under the supervision
and training of Larry Smith, one of the pioneers of
diving, in Lembeh Strait. Throughout his career,
Nus met and worked with many professional
underwater photographers, marine biologists
and scientists. When not on dry land managing
Maluku Divers Resort and assisting with dive and
travel logistics for trips around Indonesia, Nus still
finds time to dive. After many years of guiding
professional photographers, Nus now takes great
pleasure in taking his own photos too. Nus’s
photography has been featured in several dive
magazines include Scuba Diver Indonesia, E-Zine
underwater macro photography, Korean Scuba
diver and inflight magazines for local airlines!
Blanket Octopus
Canon 5DS R 100mm F/22 1/250 ISO640

Psychedelic Ambon Frogfish

14 TRIGGERS Nikon D300 60mm F/11 1/250 ISO200
Hairy Squat Lobster in a tube sponge
Nikon D300 105mm F/18 1/250 ISO200

Flasher Wrasse with Cleaner Wrasse

Nikon D300 105mm F/22 1/250 ISO400
 Waspfish
Canon 5DS R 100mm F/22 1/200 ISO100

Phyllodesmium sp nudibranch
16 TRIGGERS Canon 5DS R 100mm F/11 1/200 ISO100
Southern Flying Lizard
Santhosh Krishnamoorthy

Draco Dussemeri Southern Flying Lizard

Nikon D800 300mm F/8 1/400 ISO640

Southern Flying Lizards, more commonly known

as the Draco, are amazing reptiles found across
the Western Ghats and other hill forests of
southern India. They have this unique ability
to glide from tree to tree, something akin to
flying, thus getting their name. They are most
commonly seen climbing up on tree trunks amidst
the areca-nut plantations. A Draco’s day begins
just as the light of morning sun starts streaming
in through the canopy. Starting at about the
lower middle of the tree trunk, the Draco makes
its way up the tree, en-route, gorging on the
numerous ants that keep crawling up and down
the trunk. Once it makes it to the top of the tree,
it glides on to another tree nearby and repeats
this process. While on the tree, that tree’s trunk
becomes the Draco’s bastion and it defends the
same, quite aggressively. It extends the gular
sac, the membrane on its throat, as a means of
communicating its threat or a courtship intent.
Normal, was how the day started, one fine
morning in Agumbe, for a male Draco, the star of
this story. However, things weren’t to be quite so
normal. It was to be one really hard day for him.
As always, he starts climbing up the trunk of a
tree, happily feeding on the crawling ants. As he
is about 3/4th’s up, he notices that another Draco
Draco glider display
has come on to the same tree and is feasting on Nikon D800 300mm F/8 1/1250 ISO640
 Draco climbs down to threaten intruder Draco climbs down to threaten intruder 2
Nikon D800 300mm F/8 1/400 ISO640 Nikon D800 300mm F/8 1/320 ISO640

the ants out there. He doesn’t feel good about

this and decides to defend his territory. So, he
darts down the tree trunk, with his gular sac
stretched, as a way of indicating threat.
He even runs around the intruder, in a circle, trying
his best to intimidate that fellow. He goes about
this a couple of times. But, the intruder doesn’t
seem to be affected in the least. On the contrary,
he seems quite relaxed and goes about munching
on the ants.
After a few more valiant attempts to scare the intruder
off go in vain, our hero gives up and glides off to
another tree close by.
Things weren’t going to be fine just as yet, because
Draco Male territorial display Draco Female threat display to male
another surprise was in store for our hero. The tree Nikon D800 420mm F/5.6 1/6400 ISO1250 Nikon D800 300mm F/8 1/500 ISO640

on which he just arrived, seems to have an occupant,

already and it looks like a female.
Our hero, now, gets into a different mood and tries
his hand at impressing the female, by stretching
his gular sac and displaying it to her, as a hint of
courtship. Alas, it was to be a disappointment for
our hero, as the female brings about a display,
stretching her patagial membrane ( the wings ),
something that seemed like total disapproval.
option for our hero, but to abandon that tree
as well. So, he decides that he has had enough
and glides off to a tree far away from here.
It was wonderful to observe the behavior of these
Dracos and this article is an attempt at sharing
that experience of mine through a photo story.
Santhosh Krishnamoorthy

He attempts to entice her a few more times, He is a passionate naturalist and an award winning nature photographer.
He likes to observe and document the interesting aspects of nature
but she wouldn’t budge. She didn’t seem to be and its inhabitants using photography as a medium. He runs Birdwing
Travel & Photography where he mentors budding and amateur nature
interested and makes her thoughts loud and photographers. Visit www.birdwing.in to know more about the various
photography tours and workshops that he runs. He also posts as @
clear. After this, there seemed to be no other santhosh.kris on Instagram and blogs @www.framesofnature.com
 Trakai
20 TRIGGERS Nikon D300 35mm F/6.3 1/200 ISO200
 Russian Fields
Nikon D300 12mm F/8 1/80 ISO200

Stanislav Malykh is a 40-year-old travel

photographer from St. Petersburg, Russia.
He has been taking pictures for more than 7 years
and primarily shoots landscapes. He travels and
takes pictures mostly in the eastern Europe and
western Russia. Usually, he uses a Nikon D600
with a 28-300 lens, and also a Canon 5D Mark III
with a wide-angle lens in order to not change the
lenses on the run. In his photos, he tries to convey
the mood and emotions, which he experiences
during the expeditions, because for him the most
important thing is not merely taking pictures but
the adventure behind the photos.
Evening Shadows
Nikon D600 200mm F/8 1/320 ISO800

Moravian Waves
Nikon D300 92mm F/16 1/20 ISO200
 Tranqullity
Nikon D80 80mm F/25 15s ISO100

Cold Trap
22 TRIGGERS Nikon D300 12mm F/6.3 1/60 ISO800
DCP Expeditions LLP today, is one
of the fastest growing Wildlife
and Travel Photography Training
Academies in India, with a strong
team comprising of highly skilled
and established photographers
of the country and veterans in the
field of digital photography. We
boast of one of the best panel of
experts comprising of renowned
wildlife photographers, travel
photographers, digital artists,
travelers, writers, divers, explorers,
naturalists, conservationists,
taxonomists, microbiologists,
scientists, environmental biologists
and digital imaging specialists. We
are also the first in the country to
have created a nationwide
community platform involving
wildlife, nature and travel
photographers together ranging
from amateurs to professionals,
to build a very unique ecosystem.
Our vision is to make Wildlife and
Travel Photography a full time
career opportunity for thousands
of wildlife and travel enthusiasts
of the country. Our team of
experts handhold and facilitate
personalized knowledge sharing
to help one sharpen the skills fast
and eventually join the crew. We
educate, recruit, train, empower
and create entrepreneurs who in
turn, take the mission ahead.
For every workshop we conduct
and every expedition or photo
tour we lead, in addition to the
development of photographic skill
sets, conservation photography
remains one of the key learning
element. We help people to learn
how to make better images and
how to use photography as a tool
to depict the untold and unseen
beauties of nature. We work in
association with environmentalists,
conservation activists, naturalists,
scientists and researchers in an
attempt to impart knowledge
and generate awareness amongst
common man about the earth’s
natural history.

Rajesh Jyothiswaran Alluring Olaf Rajesh Jyothiswaran Stars Glowing on Trees

Texas, USA Sony a7RII 18mm F/2.8 20s ISO5000 Texas, USA Sony a7II 18mm F/2.8 25s ISO5000
Rajesh Khatri Aurora Borealis at Ondverdarnes lighthouse, Iceland
Maharashtra, India Nikon D810 16mm F/4 30s ISO3200

Swaroop Patil Karvi Bloom at Chalkewadi Platue

Maharashtra, India Nikon D4S 24mm F/16 1/13 ISO100

Dr Rajesh Jadhav Skogafoss Waterfall, Iceland

Maharashtra, India Sony A7R 18mm F/11 10s ISO100

Ravin Jadhav Sunset at Hellnar

Maharashtra, India Canon 5D Mark IV 20mm F/16 1/25 ISO50

Ravin Jadhav Blue Waters of Bruafoss Dr Rajesh Jadhav Kirkjufell Waterfall, Iceland
Maharashtra, India Canon 5D Mark IV 16mm F/16 1/15 ISO200 Maharashtra, India Sony A7R 18mm F/13 4s ISO100
 Amit Rane Kirkjufell Waterfall, Iceland
Maharashtra, India Nikon D800 16mm F/16 2.5s ISO64

Great American Eclipse

Two cameras and two lenses were used

for this composite image. All images
were shot on location and during the
event at the exact spot.

For the Landscape:

Camera: Sony a7II
Lens: Sony Zeiss 16-35 f/4
EXIF: 16 vertical shot panorama each
exposure ISO 50, 17mm, 1/ 40s at f/22

Eclipse Shots:
Camera: Sony a7RII
Lens: Sony SAL 70-400 G2 with LA-EA3
adapter and 1.4x Teleconverter in
APS-C mode
EXIF: 16 shots of the eclipse phases at
840mm equivalent. Camera settings
varied according to changing light
conditions. The corona image was shot
at ISO 200, 1/10s at f/8

Rajesh Jyothiswaran
Texas, USA

Prashant Shewade Aurora at Kirkjufell Waterfall, Iceland

Maharashtra, India Nikon D810 16mm F/4 20s ISO3200
 Anjuna Beach, Goa
28 TOOLS DJI Mavic Pro

Drone photography is picking up in
India and especially with the entry
of new and improved drones which
are smaller and much cheaper. It is
set to be more and more popular
because drone photography takes
it to the whole new level and this is
really helping photographers in some
major breakthrough ideas.
It attracts people because with
the help of a drone, they see what
is otherwise impossible to see
or very difficult to capture. The
view of fields from the top, boats
floating in a sea, following a car on
a mountain, such scenarios are not
easily perceived through a normal
camera or without aerial assistance.
I bought my DJI Mavic Pro last year
and it has taken my work to whole
new level. My travel videos were very
much improved and I got a lot of
projects because of the drone only.
Tips for better drone videos:
- Visualize the shot first. Because
the battery of any average drone
lasts for about 20 minutes and you
would not want to spend 15 minutes
in finding the perfect shot and then
left with no battery to shoot it.
- The shot that you plan to take should
show the scale of the landscape for
example height, width far reach of
the lens etc.
Tips and Tricks
Drone Photography
- There should be a moving object
within the landscape, like a person
or a car. It makes a good impression
if it is slow motion video and also, it
gives an edge by showing the grand
scale of your shot as compared to a
slow and small moving object.
- Element of surprise: Try to add an
element in your video. For example,
the shot might reveal a person or a
hut while moving backwards at the
very end showing a perspective.
- Add more motions to your videos
and not just the drone flying away
from you. Treat your drone as
paintbrush and the sky as your canvas.
- Keep the camera in Manual settings
mode. Sometimes while the drone
is up in the air, the light can be too
bright or too dull, you need to adjust
the aperture and shutter speed to get
a nice detailed shot during such time.
- Keep spare batteries with you. For
DJI Mavic and Air, always buy the
combo kit which lets you have 2 spare
batteries and carry them with you all
the time.
- Use of ND filters. Just like any
other camera, your drone camera
also needs ND filters on it to filter
that extra light. It will help you in
adjusting the light with a finer margin.
DJI Mavic Pro
Nikon D5300 35mm f/2.8 1/2000 ISO200
- You can use the drone camera
without flying it as well. It has a gimbal
and a good camera, so you can just
switch it on and shoot while holding
it in your hands.
- Currently there are no documented
rules in India regarding the flying
restrictions, which is why most
people are confused about where to
fly a drone and where not to. Even
the police are not sure about it. So,
to be on a safer side, don’t fly it in
cities, near government buildings
and especially not near airports. If
you want to, do take permissions
from local administration first.
- Don’t expect anything from the
weather. Weather can be a nuisance
sometimes. The best way to
prevent bad luck is not to expect
anything from the weather. Keep
ready for the worst case scenarios.
Pack anything necessary to cope
up with the bad weather and you
will be good. Always keep camera
protection gear which can protect it
from water, ice, fire, wind and other
detrimental things.
TOOLS 29
30 TOOLS
Kazakhstan
DJI Mavic Pro 5mm f/2.2 1/3200 ISO100
One of the most prevalent myths
regarding the drones is that they are
difficult to fly. Well, it’s not. It just takes
you a couple of flights to get hold of
the controls and as long as you have
steady hands, you’ll be doing great.
And moreover the drones nowadays
have smart functions and they come
with various smart modes like follow
me, follow subject, stationary point
and return to start point etc.

Last but not the least, fly safe whether

you are flying a drone or flying in a
plane. Always stay authorized and use
safety precautions.

Narkanda
DJI Mavic Pro 5mm f/2.2 1/320 ISO200

Devang Sethi likes to describe himself as a full time techie but a part time hippie. From the
heights of Himalayas in the north to the shores of Andaman in the south, from the white Rann of
Kutch in the west to the Living Root Bridges in the east, he has lived his Indian dream. The world
is too big and he wants to see the most of it. A solo euro trip was the first step towards this goal.
After europe, trips to Kazakhstan, Kerala, Goa, Spiti followed. He’s now planning his next trip to Sri
Lanka. You can follow his journey on his website (thepunjabiwanderer.com) and YouTube channel
where he documents all his travels.

Charyn Canyon
32 TOOLS DJI Mavic Pro 5mm f/2.2 1/560 ISO100
 Tofu and Keema Fried Rice Apple Cake
Canon 70D 50mm F/7.1 1/60 ISO800 Canon 70D 50mm F/7.1 1/50 ISO800

Subhadip Malakar was born and raised in Kolkata

and moved to Mumbai in 2007 to pursue his love
Mutton Kosha and Pulao
and interest for VFX. He is a VFX compositor by
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profession and a passionate photographer,
currently working with Red Chillies VFX, Mumbai.
Being an artist at heart, he loves his job as it
entails creativity. He had the privilege to work
with leading VFX post production and animation
studios like Prana Studios and Prime Focus as well
on various projects by renowned houses like Disney,
Warner Bros and Marvel among others. Although
he is more inclined towards food, portrait, fashion,
product and bodyscape photography, he likes
shooting anything that catches his fancy.

Lemon Butter Baked Tuna

34 TRIGGERS Canon 70D 50mm F/2 1/100 ISO400
Som Tam
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Movie Review
Manufactured Landscapes
Duration: 86 minutes
IMDB Rating: 7.3/10
Released: 2006
Starring: Edward Burtynsky
Directed: Jennifer Baichwal
Genre: Documentary

Photographer Edward Burtynsky travels the world

observing changes in landscapes due to industrial work
and manufacturing.
There was a time when the word “documentary” was
associated with a very factual, neutral and to-the-point
style of narrative in motion picture but this notion is
changing, mainly because of the change in the format.
You can see documentaries gaining a lot of popularity;
you can also see filmmakers being more experimental
with their subjects. Documentaries have become highly
stylised and this stylisation comes with a possibility of
abstraction of context but hey, no one is complaining.
One example of this kind can be found in the 2006
documentary, Manufactured Landscapes.
Director Jennifer Baichwal travels with and documents
the photographer, Edward Burtynsky as he attempts to
capture the industrial landscapes of the world. Based
majorly in China (the obvious industrial capital of the
world) with a quick trip to Bangladesh, the film stands
somewhere between being about Burtynsky as a
photographer and the impact of industrialisation. Burtynsky
has been shooting industrial landscapes for the major part
of his career; he prefers to shoot massive construction sites,
factory operations and industrial litter, insisting that he isn’t
trying to glorify the scars that industrialisation leaves on the
planet, or trying to condemn it. He just wants to show it
“how it is”. Baichwal doesn’t seem to follow this line of
neutrality though, which is visible right from the beginning
with an eight minute long opening shot showing factory
workers in China assembling products as the camera pans
from one stage of assembly to another. The director’s
cinematography is simple and impactful, she edits her shots
of the landscape with cuts to Burtynsky’s photography, often
zooming and panning on his photographs, revealing the
photo at a steady, slow pace and letting us see what
she sees. It’s clear after watching the film that people
play a much bigger role in Baichwal’s narrative than that
of Burtynsky. While Burtynsky’s photography shows how
miniscule people are in front of these giant landscapes,
all of which are ironically man made, Baichwal’s shots
reveal the impact that these industralisation processes
have on the people that live there.
What’s great about Manufactured Landscapes is how it
puts you right in the middle of the narrative, you feel
like a part of the story and not just a bystander. Every
location that they visit, so do you. The sheer scale of
these landscapes are indeed a sight to behold, even if
they trigger more sense of an impending apocalypse and
awe. There is a part in the film where the photographer
points out how he uses all the materials and devices that are
a result of the same industrialisation that has led to these
sites and visuals of our planet. While he talks about this, you
can’t help but think how the exact same logic applies to us,
the viewers. This is where the film succeeds, making a clear
statement of how it’s clearly our demands that have led to
this. But this is something we’ve known for a while. Despite
all of this the film lacks in a true examination of the subject,
leaving a lot of blanks in the statements. It feels true enough
as an observation of a spectacle, an art piece in a gallery,
much like Burtynsky’s photos. Beautiful, yet somewhat
vague.But a documentaries job is to document, to
record the events or sights, to offer your perspective
so that other people can see through your eyes and if
possible engage in a discussion of the subject and for
that very reason I would definitely recommend watching
this film at least once. It deserves that much attention.
Shrey Malik
shrey@chiiz.com

Self proclaimed intellectual, reluctant nihilist and a wannabe comedian. He is a

36 CLASSICS graphic designer with impressive problem solving skills.
 End of a day in a Garage
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Tough Beauties
When one thinks of motorcycles, racetracks and the sport of
riding, the image that instantly pops up is that of rough and
tough men wearing leather boots and flaunting around their
biker persona. Ever wondered what would happen if women
replace the men? Watching women decked up in that same
shining leather, pressing the accelerator of heavy motorcycles,
leaving a cloud of dust when they ride by and letting the
wind blend in with her hair can be quite intimidating. Tough
Beauties is inspired by Marilyn Monroe’s quote “I don’t mind
living in a man’s world, as long as I can be a woman in it”.
The project is about women who share a common passion
for motorcycles and the sport of riding. Hobbies/activities/
professions that have majorly been perceived as ‘male’ now
taken up by these women is the plot, as they seek to break
the stereotypes of the female gender. By these choices,
they have redefined strength, dedication, determination and
fervor. As times are changing, women are getting out of the
roles society has stated for them and challenging and changing
stereotypes. Stereotypes of the female gender that in itself
is too much for people to take. The Sirens is New York City’s
oldest and largest only women’s motorcycle group with KT
Ballantine as President is a group that is sure to question and
influence. Founded in 1986, the group has only grown in
numbers since. Bonding over a common love for riding, they
have not only brought new meaning to the idea of toughness
but have also outshined their male counterparts. The Sirens not
38 TRIGGERS
The Biker’s Tools
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just call themselves sisters but have lived up to that for years,
as they always stand by and continuously uplift each other,
making the group stronger. The love that they share and the
fuel that drives them is a thread that binds the characters
of my story. This same passion for motorbikes and riding
merged both worlds of a photographer and of professional
riders that only developed into a long-term project; with the
group progressing from being subjects to family. The Sirens
welcomed me with warm arms and helped contribute to this
documentation through interviews, photoshoots and candid
moments at every step. Every group member has a different
story, which only inspired and collectively motivates any
woman who wants to chase her dreams. Apart from ruling the
roads, the Sirens also actively participate in the Pride March
and in transporting breast milk to children in need. With this
motherly instinct and their act of kindness, several children have
nurtured to be healthy and talented. The sisters do have other
primary professions but riding is the fuel that brings them back
on the track. Tough beauties aims at inspiring women all around
to break stereotypes and follow what their heart desires. The
project celebrates the spirit and strength of these iron ladies.
The approach and choice of story is very apt today, as several
questions about women’s security are being raised. By exploring
these various roles, we get a well rounded, balanced and a
factual aura of what it is to be a woman in a man’s world. After
all it is just one life that should be lived to the fullest.
 Mandira Bahl is an Indian photojournalist based
in NYC. Having graduated from the International
Center of Photography (ICP), her work is a blend of
documentation, research, abstract and commercial.
She has also shot for a few emerging designers at
the NYFW’17 and JCFW’17; and will be covering
the ACFW, NYFW and NYPFW in 2018. Her work
has been published in Art India, Peta (India),
Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), Mora
Modeling Magazine, Magnificent Woman Magazine,
Shutterbug, Downtown Magazine, India Abroad and
India New England.

Spirit of Freedom
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The Siren Sisters

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Biker Enjoying Time Training at Floyd Benett base

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 Core Member of the Sirens MC
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Hands that ride also repair Bikers in a Formation

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The Garage
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 Kanwar Pal wants to make best of the life that god has blessed him
with and each time he wants to learn something new and try to have a
different perception.

A Barren Romance Colours of Fall

42 TRIGGERS DJI FC220 5mm F/2.2 1/440 ISO100 DJI FC220 5mm F/2.2 1/120 ISO100
 Born and brought up in the 1000-year-old
town of Chamba in Himachal Pradesh, Kanwar
Pal Singh grew up admiring the culture and
beauty of his hometown which made him want
to capture it all. The most inspiring person in
his life has been his father who used to click
pictures in 80’s and developed them himself. He
believes it is his art that he naturally inherited.
He discovered his passion for photography
during his many travels and later enrolled in the
veteran Raghu Rai School of photography in
Delhi. Now, with an experience of 4 years, he
has finally opened up his own production house
in Chamba where we also provide wedding
services, commercial videos and shoots. For the
better and more advanced creatives, he also has
a Drone which has widened his creative horizons.

Together in Green
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Curvy Terrain
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 Touch of Divine
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Photography for him is not merely clicking pictures. Rather, it is something that he
is truly passionate about. Photography for him is an art. An art that defines life. He
loves the way he captures those little precious moments and is able to revisit and
relive them time and again.

The Colour White

44 TRIGGERS DJI FC220 5mm F/2.2 1/480 ISO100
exodia.in exodia.chiiz.com
 City of the Dead
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Anton Agarkov is a professional travel and landscape

photographer with more than 10 years of travel
photography experience. Nowadays, Anton spends more
than 200 days a year travelling in distant and hard- Winter as It’s meant to be
Nikon D700 13mm F/14 1/100 ISO640
to-get regions of Russia and Central Asia with special
stress on natural reserves. Anton organises workshops
and lectures on landscape and travel photography and
works with huge brands like Nikon, WWF, Gitzo,
Manfrotto, The North Face, and more. He is a Tamron
ambassador as well as finalist and winner of multiple
photography awards such as Landscape Photographer
of the Year and Global Arctic Awards. During his work
at one of the most distinguished internet-portals on
tourism in Russia, he travelled all around the country
and became one of the most renowned landscape and
travel-photographers in Russia. He has travelled and
photographed in Russia, central and south-eastern Asia
and Southern America.
Cold Veins of Altai
Anton takes credit for single-handedly starting the Nikon D700 14mm F/11 1/320 ISO400

ethnographic multicultural project on Central Asia called

“Successors of the Steppe”.
During the first expedition season of this project, he spent
over three months in multiple countries of Central Asia.
He also has vast experience of working in extreme
weather conditions such as rain, snow, blizzard, extremely
cold weather (-40 degree C and below) and has
experience of night photography.

Reflection on Ice
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 Anton single-handedly
started ethnographic
multicultural project on
Central Asia “Successors
of the Steppe”. During the
first expedition season of
this project, he spent over
three months in multiple
countries of Central Asia.

Explorer
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Forgotten by the Endless Sky Blossom of the Summer Pastures

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Streams of Tien-Shan
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 Light of the Inner World
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Fossils of Aral Sea Light of the Inner World

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Sleeping Giant
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 Semi Deserts of Leh
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The Ochre
Paradise
Arturo tells us in an exclusive
interview what all a good
photographer needs to
possess, how he fell in love
with Asian countries and what
makes him keep coming back
Q. It’s been over 30 years since
you started your travel adventure
carrying your camera along to
capture one of the rawest forms of
your surroundings and customs.
What motivates you to pursue
this lifestyle?
A. I still hope to prepare a baggage
and go to the airport. If I am not
traveling, I am preparing for the next
destination or, simply, dreaming
about wonderful destinations. Being
able to get so many sensations with
a simple click, makes you addicted
to this lifestyle. I always thought that
as I grow older, the excitement of
traveling would wane and that I would
focus on other more comfortable
photographic fields, but today, I still
think that I have many images to
capture, many countries to travel and
much to learn from other cultures.
Q. You have traced your path along
the Asian land majorly covering parts
of India, Nepal and Indonesia. What
was the inspiration leading you while
travelling to these countries?
A. Thirty years ago, Asia was like a
50 FEATURE
distant and almost extraterrestrial
paradise, so different from what
surrounded me. A friend of mine
who had already visited Nepal, told me
about the people, the landscapes,
the light. I had always wanted to go
until finally, I decided to buy a plane
ticket and embark on the adventure in
the early 80’s. That first visit to Nepal
was a change in my life: so intense,
so colorful, so spiritual. Since then,
I have returned whenever I have had
the occasion. Now, when I see other
visitors, there are times when I stop
to think, looking at them carefully,
trying to guess whose is the first time
in Nepal and what impact that first
time will have on their lives. For me,
the most intense memory I have is
when I first descended the ladders
of the plane in Kathmandu, with
the Himalayas in the background;
I felt that I was about to start a life
adventure at the end of the world.
Q. In the ‘Transversalidades’
contest entitled ‘Photography
without Borders’, you have been
called an absolute winner for
Inhabitants Unprepared
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Beauty in the Textures
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your Ethiopian portfolio. What
were the intricate details that you
focussed on?
A. I feel very lucky because the
jury valued my work and named it
as the winner. These recognitions
always encourage you to continue
working and to seek excellence and
new ways of capturing the essence
of the subject of the images. It is
gratifying to see how your work,
which is sometimes very hard and
heavy and in which you put a lot of
enthusiasm and energy, is recognized.
I made the report in Lalibela, Ethiopia.
This place fascinated me to no end;
every day, at dawn, I would take the
camera and go, explore the streets
in the dark, and observe how the
pilgrims and parishioners come to
the churches. Their devotion moved
me and inspired me to reflect the
mysticism that is breathed there it
is overwhelming. I put all my effort
in not occupying their space, and
not invading their privacy. I tried to
become invisible so as not to interrupt
their rituals. Another key point was
to choose carefully the places where
 Tsetan Guest House
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I stood and waited with infinite
patience so that I could capture the
light seeping through the gaps and
reveal the magic of the place.
Q. Talking about your Ethiopian
portfolio which had the most
exquisite still pictures covering
your holiday of Saint George, what
would be your best memory or
lesson that you took home when
you left the land of Ethiopia?
A. The trip to Ethiopia was a very
enriching experience. It has been
one of the most interesting trips
I’ve made in Africa, this country has
real gems to know. It is a country so
different, from north to south and
from east to west, that when your
trip ends, you have the feeling that
you have left a lot to see.
One of the moments I remember
most fondly was being able to visit
Lalibela during the celebration of
Saint George where thousands of
pilgrims filled the churches, sang,
and prayed together. What I take
away from that trip is having been
able to observe all those incredible
moments without having interfered,

“The worst enemy of a

photographer is laziness,
you have to leave the
comfort of your sofa and go
for many photographs. The
beginnings are hard and
you never see a good shot
no matter how hard you try.
It is very important to be
objective and honest with
your own work since you
have to recognize why you
have failed.”

Zanskar River
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 Kingdom of Guge
52 FEATURE Nikon D300 200mm F/4.5 1/640 ISO200

Shadow Play
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Arturo Lopez Illana is a spanish
photographer and freelance traveler
living in Madrid. These two activities
are united for him, he can not do
one without the other. Going around
the world with his camera is a way
of life. Since childhood he was
interested in photography and he
was forming gradually, year after
year, until in 2005 begin to publish
stories about his travels and to
consider photography as something
more than a hobby. He has published
and collaborated in different media,
both magazines and travel books
and specialized publications in
photography. In addition, he had the
honor of seeing his work rewarded in
several photographic competitions,
both national and international.
making the pilgrims live their faith
and I could capture those spiritual
moments with my camera.
Q. According to you what details
a photographer should emphasis
on while capturing critical details
of landscapes inside a frame?
A. There are people who believe
that landscape photography is the
easiest to get, because you have
all the time in the world and the
landscape is there, immutable;
sooner or later, you will get a good
shot. For me it is a complicated
discipline since you have to take into
account many factors. Light, in each
photograph, is the main axis, so you
have to study the characteristics in
advance of each place to be able to
choose the right moment that goes
to contain what you want to show
with your shot, because in addition
to the composition and sharpness,
as a professional, you want to transmit
the sensations. There is no secret
formula to get a spectacular
landscape photograph, but I always
follow this rule: you do not have to
be lazy and you have to plan your
adventure while searching for the
places you like and the best hours
of light for each one.
Q. Zeal to learn new things and
the boundless amount of hard
work must have been the reason
that has led you to expand your
horizon and accomplish a great
level of success. What advice
would you like to share with the
amateur photographers?
A. This is undoubtedly the most
complicated question. As I said, the
worst enemy of a photographer
is laziness, you have to leave the
comfort of your sofa and go for
many photographs. The beginnings
are hard and you never see a good
shot no matter how hard you try. It is
very important to be objective and
honest with your own work since
you have to recognize why you have
failed. Self-knowledge is the only
thing that will help you improve
and grow as a photographer.
Controlling light is the technique
that takes longer to master, but
nothing important will be achieved
until you can use the light for the
benefit of your work. Finally, you
have to enjoy, make it fun, creative,
and different. This applies both for
taking photos and for living life; if
not, we will not get very far.
The Copper Valley
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Vishakha Jha
vishakha@chiiz.com
She is 3/4 engineer, a dedicated learner and believer in
magic of words and power of pronoia. She is bibliophilic
and an explorer to a new Utopian world.
Old is Gold
“When words become unclear, I shall focus
with photographs. When images become
inadequate, I shall be content with silence.”
Born in San Francisco, February 20, 1902, to Charles
Hitchcock and Olive Bray, Ansel Easton Adams was an
American photographer and an environmental activist.
He came into spotlight after his iconic pictures on
Yosemite National Park, especially the black and white
ones which proved it to everyone that photography
is another kind of an art where words don’t speak but
visuals do.
In the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, when Adams
was only four, a powerful aftershock threw him against
the hard ground leaving a mark of injury on his nose
forever. Young Adams’ soft nasal bones were badly
affected and couldn’t be cured. Having undergone a
financial crisis in 1907, Adams always understood the
importance of money. In his early days, he lived under
the pressure of sustaining a family and his mother was
utterly disappointed as Adams’ academic results weren’t
satisfactory. However, his father had enough faith in him.
Adams was a hyperactive child with only a few friends.
He frequently got sick and was diagnosed with
hypochondria as well. He was allegedly a dyslexic kid.
Even after trying hard, Adams’ poor behavior in different
schools compelled his parents to withdraw him from
formal educational system. Thus, he was tutored at
home by his family members and private tutors. Adams
developed a passion for piano at the age of twelve and
started teaching himself. It was in 1916, on his family
trip to Yosemite National Park, that he discovered his
talent of photography. In his own words, “the splendor
of Yosemite burst upon us (him and his family) and it
was glorious… One wonder after another descended
upon us… There was light everywhere… A new era
began for me (Adams).” Indeed, a new era began for
Adams. Before figuring out that one could build a
career in photography, he worked as a pianist and was
almost certain to pursue it as his career. This sudden
shift of passion was, probably, a necessity for the world
of photographers. He started reading photography
magazines and began experimenting with different
photography techniques. He had been in touch with
the Bests when in Yosemite as they allowed him to
practice piano on their old instrument. In 1928, Adams
married the daughter of Bests- Virginia Best. Her father
was a photography studio proprietor. After the death
of his father-in-law in 1935, he became the owner of
Best’s Studios. At 27, he joined Sierra Club. The club
was dedicated to the protection of wilderness and
54 CLASSICS
Adams was hired as a caretaker of the Sierra Club
branch located in Yosemite Park. He swore a lifetime
allegiance to the club and served it as a director since
1934 to 1971- 37 years of his life. He once said, “It is
horrifying that we have to fight our own government
to save the environment.” Adams’ work gained a
professional touch between 1929 and 1942 and he
prospered as a photographer. 1930 was a fortunate
year for him. Not just his clicks, but his narrative also
brought him fame. His first book- “Taos Pubelo”- was
published in the 1930s. His first solo museum exhibition
was held in 1931 at the Smithsonian Institution. In 1932,
Adams, along with a group of friends, laid foundation to
the Group f/64. The manifesto of the group was- “Pure
photography is defined as possessing no qualities of
technique, composition or idea, derivative of any other art
form.” In 1945, Adams was asked to form a fine arts
photography department at the San Francisco Art
Institute- a department which later on produced wonderful
photographers like Benjamin Chinn and C. Cameron
Macaulay. In 1952, he became one of the founders of a
photography-based magazine- Aperture. With hikes in his
career, Adams became a successful photographer known
worldwide for his astounding work and breathtaking clicks.
In 1984, this great personality’s demise occurred due to
a cardiovascular disease. Apart from receiving numerous
awards in his field of excellence, Adams gave name to
many awards and established himself as an epitome of
photography. He proved it to the world what wonders the
power of a lens could do. Indeed, his works stand true to
his words: “You don’t take a photograph, you make it.”
Meenal Singh
meenal@chiiz.com
She aspires to be a lecturer in English Literature. Meenal wishes to fight
for the equality of women worldwide through the power of her words.
 Celestial Dance
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 Canon photo mentor, founder of Light
Chasers Photography, and a Delhi based
photographer, Jassi Oberai has captivated
many with his work. Versatility being his key,
he loves the challenge of shooting wildlife on
one day and fashion the other. His company,
Light Chasers Photography Private Limited,
thinks nothing beyond its core competence
that is photography. It believes in delivering
value in whatever it has to do, and as
mentioned above, it has got everything to
do with photography; be it conducting photo
workshops, organizing photo tours or model
shoots, or being more adventurous and
combining all three. He believes patience,
practice and the courage to be different is the
key to better photography.

Spotlight
Canon 5D Mark III 227mm F/10 1/800 ISO200

Brand Ambassador:
Nisi Filters India
Godox India
BlackRapid
Fotopro

Supported by:
MindShift Gear
Think Tank Photo

Frozen Dreams
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 Cinque Terre, Italy
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Karthik Ravindran is a software engineer living and working in California. He always had
the travel and photography bug in him but never really did anything about it until he got
married to his wife, Anu. She inspired, motivated and pushed him to venture out to explore,
experience and capture the wonders in our amazing planet. Both of them have had many
adventures together and those adventures eventually became their escapades!

Paradise Bay, Antarctica

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Sunrise at Golden Gate, San Francisco
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Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe

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 Sunset at Gate of Valley View Yosemite
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Sunset at Santa Cruz

60 TRIGGERS Nikon D600 85mm F/4.5 1/1000 ISO100
Offroading Affair with Spiti
“Call it one of the mercies of
the road: that we see it only by
stages as it opens before us, as it
comes into our keeping, step by
single step. There is nothing for it
but to go, and by our going take
the vows the pilgrim takes: to be
faithful to the next step; to rely on
more than the map; to heed the
signposts of intuition and dream;
to follow the star that only you will
recognize; to keep an open eye for
the wonders that attend the path;
to press on beyond distractions,
beyond fatigue, beyond what would
tempt you from the way. There are
vows that only you will know: the
secret promises for your particular
path and the new ones you will
need to make when the road is
revealed by turns you could not
have foreseen.” I recalled these
words by Jan Richardson as I,
along with a colleague, joined the
Xtreme Offroaders, a cavalcade of
4X4 vehicles, as they set out to the
cold desert terrain of Spiti Valley for
their eighth edition of Snow Drive
Expedition. The Drive was powered
by Krishna Motors and Isuzu while
Tethys and Adventure People were
the hospitality partners.
Spiti, I had heard, is a traveler’s
muse- a cold desert mountain valley
with barren hills, long winding roads,
colorful prayer flags fluttering in
the wind, pristine lakes, quaint little
hamlets and beautiful monasteries
perched dramatically over it’s
62 FEATURE
landscape. A “middle land” where
India and Tibet blend graciously
and a place that was cut off from the
outer civilization for thirty years has
now become the Mecca of travelers
from across the world. We were
about to find out why.
As this was a winter drive, we
had to opt for the Shimla-Kinnaur
route to Spiti which is longer
and for the brave heart intrepid
travelers wanting to experience the
harsh lifestyle of locals during the
snowed out winter months. Various
modifications were made to the
vehicles according to the various
terrains that we might encounter
in our off-roading adventure; big
tyres and lift kits for more ground
clearance to name a few. We began
our journey from Delhi to Narkanda
where we were to meet the other
member of the club.
The drive up to Shimla was
uneventful with a few pit stops here
and there. It was after Shimla that it
had started to get cold, and we had
to put on an extra layer of clothes.
We drove through the remnants
of the snowfall that had occurred
a few days back and checked in at
Narkanda by sundown. There, we
received a warm welcome in the form
of a bonfire where we got better
acquainted with our fellow travelers
over music, food and laughter.
I woke up to the mesmerizing view
of the sun paying its respect to the
Hatu peak, atop which lies the
famous temple of the Goddess
Hatu. After stuffing ourselves with a
savory breakfast, all the Offroaders
assembled for a briefing where
important driving guidelines were
given as the terrains were expected
to change. With the flag off, three
Isuzu V-MAX D-Crosses, one Toyota
Fortuner, and one Mahindra Thar
set off for Dharan Ghati, with the
local deity overlooking from her
mountain-top throne.
The terrains changed from smooth
tarmac to rough roads and the
vehicle density lessened as we
advanced further into our journey.
Lunch was another traveler’s
experience as we had our meal on
the side of the road with the Satluj
flowing below and the mountains
rising steeply to where we were
eating. Later, we drove through the
apple orchards flanking our way and
along the forests of cedar and pines.
After some grueling driving through
the bumpy roads, we reached our
campsite just moments before the
sun bid a fiery adieu to the sky. We
all stood awestruck besides our
vehicles as we witnessed its last rays
kissing the snow capped peaks a
sweet goodbye. Silhouettes of birds
flew home across a sky and in just
a while, the biggest star had set,
giving way to a thousand others.
The camps were set, the bonfire
lit and before I knew, we were all
tracing constellations and enjoying
ourselves with Bryan Adams,

Mean Machine Accessories
Canon 60D 18mm f/3.5 1/800sec ISO100
Kishore Kumar and Muhammad Rafi
playing in the background.
The morning’s sunrise was yet
another breathtaking display of
nature’s wonders following which
we left for our next stop. On the
way down, we were met with snow
covered roads where we had to
tread with caution. We even had
an incident where we helped a few
locals whose vehicles were stuck in
the snow. Thereafter, we continued
our journey from the picturesque
Kinnaur district to Pooh. We drove
through winding roads which
required the utmost attention of the
driver. Some of them really tested
the nerve of the drivers as we
passed along narrow roads with
gorge on one side and the towering
mountains with shooting stones
on the other. We reached Pooh
extremely exhausted and fell into
our beds at the PWD Guest House
after a quick bonfire and dinner.
The next day had even better plans
for us as we ventured ahead for
Spiti. From here on, the driving got
more intense as we crossed the
famous Khab zig along the towering
mountains which were totally arid
and the path replete with rubble.
On our way, we also crossed the
infamous Malling Nala which was
rendered frozen owing to the
extreme cold weather. We stopped
at Sumdo to get our vehicles
Sturdy Giants
Dharan Ghati
Canon 60D 18mm f/4 1/500sec ISO100
registration logged and made our
way along the sea blue Spiti. We
even took an off road to the river
below and had a quiet lunch on its
banks. We reached Tabo late in the
afternoon and made a stop there
before we were on the road again.
The views got better with a little
vegetation. The willows and the
grey-silvery poplar trees making
grey quadrangles across the plain
paired with the cloudy weather
made the entire ride a visual treat.
Kaza welcomed us with high
rising mountains that seemed to
challenge the skies and with such
warm hospitality that we didn’t feel
the temperatures dipping down to
zeroes and sub-zeroes. The weather
outside our home-stay predicted
FEATURE 63
snowfall and while we were hopeful,
the locals were not so sure. Spiti
is said to be the land of Gods and
I think the Gods there must have
heeded our prayers for we woke up
to a white winter-land the next day.
The majestic mountains seemed
all the more regal with their white
shawls on.
While some people preferred to
stay back in the home stay, others
went to the nearby helipad to
take their 4X4s on a spin. Starting
the vehicles in the morning was
a task owing to the temperature
that reached a whopping -25
degrees the previous night. Despite
the precautions like the use of
antifreeze for fuel and alcohol to
protect the windshields, we still
had to heat up the vehicles, using
steam, for them to start.
While all this was happening, I
decided to venture out on my
own to visit the monastery where I
experienced firsthand the kindness
and hospitality of the people of
Spiti that everybody talked about.
Seeing how cold I was, the monks
offered me, a total stranger, warm
tea and breakfast and made me feel
right at home. They educated me
about life in Kaza and told me a lot
about Buddhism, the monastery,
and their way of living. As I was
getting late for the drive ahead, I
rushed back to the home-stay and
joined everybody to narrate my
encounter with the monks and listen
to their stories as well.
After the initial brief, we all set
off to enjoy the drive in the snow
towards Losar. The fresh snow
provokes such responses that takes
us right back into our childhood.
And these Xtreme Off-roaders, at
that moment, were just boys with
their toys; drifting and spinning
their vehicles at Phaldar Ground and
just having fun. Nothing could deter
them from enjoying themselves- not
the pitfalls on the way and definitely
not the freezing temperatures.
The following morning was quiet. It
was going to be a long day. The
snow had melted down and the flow
of the rivulets assumed strength as
they caressed the rocks around. The
winds were gently breezing through.
We were prepared to leave. As I
looked back at the snow capped
peaks, I could witness a demeanor it
did not assume in the past few days
and I came face to face with the
knowledge that even though these
mountains will be long standing for
years to come, I will never be the able
to view them the same way again.
As we drove back I felt a strange
pull holding me back from leaving. I
wore a smile as I resisted that force
and drove along. I was assured
that I will be back again; for my
escapades have never been about
moments but experiences that I will
cherish forever. In the words of Jack
Kerouac, “What is that feeling when
you’re driving away from people
and they recede on the plain till you
see their specks dispersing? - It’s
the too-huge world vaulting us, and
it’s good-bye. But we lean forward
to the next crazy venture beneath
the skies.”
Xtreme Offroaders is a 4X4
Club founded in 2009 by Sammy
Khangura (President), Aman Bedi
(Co-Founder) and Karan Grewal
(Co-Founder). They took their
Grub Prep
Canon 60D 24mm f/4 1/250sec ISO400
love for travelling and projected it
into a club of like-minded travelers
that have a passion for driving
4X4s through challenging terrains.
The club currently has more than
250 members and organizes
Xtreme expeditions across the
Himalayas. This group, with their
xtreme off- roading, pushes the
boundaries of adventure traveling
and takes the road less travelled
in their 4X4 vehicles. If you want
to be a part of the Xtreme Off
roaders, then all you have to do is
to get your 4X4 and get on board.
Khab Zig Moment of Peace Dirt Trails
Canon 1200D 29mm f/8 1/125sec ISO100 Canon 1200D 48mm f/9 1/200sec ISO100 Canon 60D 18mm f/3.5 1/800sec ISO100

Vertical Limits Ride to Remember

Canon 1200D 55mm f/13 1/400sec ISO100 Canon 60D 18mm f/3.5 1/800sec ISO100

Kaza, Spiti Valley

Canon 1200D 18mm f/10 1/250sec ISO100
 Merry Go Round Pangmo, Spiti-Valley
Canon 60D 60mm f/5 1/1600sec ISO100 Canon 1200D 29mm f/11 1/320sec ISO100

Dreamscape
Canon 1200D 41mm f/11 1/400sec ISO100

Snow Drifitng All for None

Canon 60D 35mm f/4 1/1600sec ISO100 Canon 60D 18mm f/3.5 1/1600sec ISO100

Prateek Kashyap
prateek@chiiz.com
An adventure seeker by heart, his passion for photography was ignited
in the Great Himalayas. Clicking clear frames and solving the mysteries
of life, he just wants to spend his time as a confused photographer.
Priyashi Negi
priyashi@chiiz.com
Trekking in the top of the hills through tiny little paths and between
pines is nothing short of paradise for Priyashi. Books and poetry are her
refuge. She is a foodie at heart and seems to be blessed with a sweet
tooth (sweet-teeth rather) and a love for all things cheese (pun-intended).
 In-Street is a collective of passionate street and documentary photographers, mainly based out of
India, sharing a common passion – “walking the streets, seeing the seemingly common life around us
in different, unusual and original ways and representing the same through our own visual language”.

In-Street is committed to promote the works of In-Street members and overall street photography in
India and beyond.

In-Street also encourages other photographers to participate in different street photography

programs, which will be showcased on In-Street website.

Finally, In-Street is a platform for collective learning and growing together as photographers.

The In-Street Collective Members are Manish Khattry (Varanasi), Saumalya Ghosh (Kolkata), Raj Sarkar
(Kolkata), Sankar Ghose (Kolkata), Swarat Ghosh (Hyderabad), Zahir Abbas (Gurgaon), Jayati Saha
(Kolkata) and Sreeranj Sreedhar (Dubai).

This picture represents the

perfect use of vertical framing,
color, scale and geometry. The
way those squares stack up gives
a feel of blocks of dreams on
which the little kid is climbing,
as if towards a magical garden.
Though the path seems to be flat
or downward but the illusion is
of a stair set going up.
~ In-street Collective

WINNER
Bhaskar Kundu
F/2.2 1/100 ISO32
1st Runner up F/7.1 1/15 ISO100
Ab Rashid

2nd Runner up F/13 1/90 ISO1600

Subodh Shetty
 Autumn Night in Pavlovsk
Canon 5D Mark III 14mm F/5 15s ISO1600

Waterfall in the gorge

Canon 5D Mark III 17mm F/8 1/80 ISO500
Fedor Lashkov, born in Stavropol, is a
photographer from Saint Petersburg. He is
a color expert who can deliver subtle nuances
in the bright palette: a dawn during the
first moments of a new day, twilight which
seems to be a light fog among mountains
and plants, elusive beauty of the sky or the
charm of the nasty weather. Fedor Lashkov’s
landscapes are imbued with a deep sense of
admiration for nature: In his work, he shows
that the nature is our home-the beginning
of our soul. The Nature inspires him, gives
him joy and happiness. Thus, he has a strong
desire to share this beauty with people. For
him photography is an opportunity to share
The Bay of Water Lillies
Canon 5D Mark III 17mm F/10 1/100 ISO250
this pleasure.

The Steppe is Full of Flowers

70 TRIGGERS Canon 5D Mark III 44mm F/14 1/320 ISO100
Creativity of Ladoga Sculpture of Ladoga
Canon 5D Mark III 16mm F/18 1/250 ISO200 Pentax 645Z 28mm F/18 1/320 ISO100

Golden Domes
Canon 5D Mark III 600mm F/11 1/640 ISO200

Hoarfrost in the Steppe

Canon 5D Mark III 24mm F/13 1/320 ISO100
 Cloudy Nature
72 TRIGGERS Nikon D810 14mm F/13 1/125 ISO100
 Waiting for the Clouds
Nikon D810 14mm F/11 1/3 ISO100

Flowers Rarely Found

Nikon D810 15mm F/11 1.3s ISO31

Safar Bakhyshev was born in Siberia, Russia but moved with his
parents to the Urals at the age of 12. As a child, he was never
interested in photography or video shooting. He picked up
photography by chance at the age of 22. It has been almost 6 years
since then. Now he travels a lot and is engaged in video shooting of
landscapes. He works in one of the Russian TV channels dedicated
to nature and often travels all around the world. Despite that, he has
not forgotten the stunning corners in Russia that are less explored
by man. Photography allows him to admire the world, to breathe the Purity in Sunset
Nikon D810 22mm F/11 5s ISO31
clean mountain air, and to meet sunsets and dawns, to keep himself
in good physical shape. While shooting nature, he always tries to
capture that special moment that may never happen again. And
almost always, it takes a long time. Sometimes, he spends three or
four days in one place, to get that perfect shot. But he feels that this
approach allows him to capture unique shots.

Autumn of Altia Weather Changing

Nikon D500 28mm F/11 1/60 ISO50 Nikon D810 18mm F/9 1.10s ISO31
App of the Month
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC
Rating: 3.5/5
Platform: iOS, Android
Cost: $5 per month
In this digital era where everyone has to click it and
instagram it- be it the #iwokeuplikethis picture or your
brunch that looks just as delicious as it might taste (once
you actually have it); the picturesque sunset that you just
have to click or even the amazing astro shot that you finally
got right. But what is common to all these pictures? They
all need little retouches here and there before they make
it to your gallery. We have all been there and let’s just face
it, sometimes the filters are just not enough. It is here that
Adobe’s Lightroom Mobile, which is well known for editing
images, even on mobile phones, comes into picture.
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom CC+ for mobile is an official
app that lets you capture, edit and share your photos.
What’s more is that you can organize your pictures,
synchronize them with other devices, work with pictures
and do all that in a sleek, user-friendly interface. While iOS
users had that user-friendly interface from early on, Adobe
redesigned the UI for android from the ground up to make
it more efficient and well “android-y”.
For those who don’t have a Lightroom account or another
Adobe plan, this application is just a trial version, so for
thirty days you can use Adobe Lightroom Mobile freely,
but after that time you would have to pay.
There’s a wide range of editing options available like
cropping, fixing geometric perspectives, lens profile
corrections, and adding metadata to your images while
importing them. You can also adjust the tonal scale of the
picture and finely tune the tonal scale using the tone-curve.
Adobe has also provided the features to adjust clarity,
dehaze, and add vignettes to the images. Another great
feature is that you can use a wide range of gesture
shortcuts to perform some of the most common actions
in a much easier way. The Rate & Review panel in the
Loupe view allows you to quickly give a star rating and
flag (pick or reject) your album photos. You can also view,
share, and export photos. However, the Export Original
option is disabled for those synced originals that were added
from Lightroom Classic CC on your desktop. Lightroom has
some good editing tools, although not many more than
Google photos stock app, but my gripe is that it has no
74 TOOLS
ability to save your edit back to the SD card. There
should also be an option to turn off the auto upload to
Creative Cloud as it bogs down the connection while
uploading huge RAW files to Creative Cloud. This can
be problematic in areas where the connectivity is low.
Adobe has amazing premium features like the RAW
support, selective edits and search. However apps like
Google Snapseed offers most of the expensive premium
features of this app as standard. The way Adobe expects
hobbyists to pay enormous prices for “pro” (actually
basic) is way behind times and Adobe might have shot
themselves in the foot with this one.
Also, the controls for split toning could use a text box for
typing in values rather than a person trying to dial in the
right hue and saturation. It would have been way more
convenient if we could save our own presets or even
import a custom preset but that doesn’t happen here. The
iOS version has a details section which is missing from its
android counterpart. This details section provides the option
of noise reduction and color noise reduction along with
the sharpness adjust slider which is absent is android.
Overall, Adobe Lightroom for mobile is a great app for
editing but you can only enjoy the app to its full potential
only if you pay a whopping 5$ a month(!!!), which is way
too expensive for a hobbyist, especially when there are
apps in the market that provide almost all of the premium
features as basic.
Aditi Puranik
aditi@chiiz.com
A budding journalist , Aditi watches the world with wonder in her
eyes. Talented but lazy, introvert but sarcastic, she is a nature lover,
continuously trying to work on her photography and writing skills. She is a
wanderer at heart and dreams of travelling the world.
Taghi Hamidimanesh
Iran
CHIIZ GALLERY
To get published, upload your photos on Chiiz.com

Water Border
Canon 6D 24mm F/8 1/500 ISO100
Pawel Zygmunt Narnia Land
Oldtown, Ireland Nikon D810 24mm F/7.1, 2s ISO 100

Leyla Emektar Strawberry Greenhouses Nirupam Dutta Taktsang Monastery

Istanbul, Turkey Canon 7D 59mm F/13 1/250 ISO100 Kolkata, India Nikon D7000 17mm f16.0 1/200s ISO800

Vineet Singh Go Wild for a While

Noida, India Canon EOS 7D 200mm f4.0 1/640s ISO 100

Giovanni Corona Semaphore of Night-Vigators

Villaperuccio (SU) Sardinia - Italy Pentax K-3 10mm ƒ/3.2 30” ISO 3200

Sourabh Gandhi Chandratal Lake,Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, India. Madhur Wadhwa True Colors of the Sky
New Delhi, India Nikon D810 14-24mm f/8 1/500s ISO64 New Delhi, India Canon700D f/18 1/100s ISO200
 Udayan Sankar Pal Tell Tale Trees
Chennai, India Canon EOS 5D Mark III 50mm f/11 1/180s ISO100

Laura Bernas Blue Up Close On Davidson Glacier Debashis Mukherjee Nature’s Creation
Syracuse, NY, USA Canon 60D 400mm f/6 ISO400 Kolkata, India Nikon FM2

Chinmoy Biswas Rural Landscape Saha Surjit In the Clouds

Kolkata, India Nikon D7200 26 mm f/3.8 1/1250s ISO100 India Canon 5D Mark IV 56mm f/11 1/80 ISO200

Mansor Mohamadi A wave of the light Alipriya Ghosh Minimal Mountains of Ladakh.
Iran Nikon D300 18-200mm f/18 1/200s ISO100 Kolkata, India Nikon D7200 18-140mm f/4.8 1/1250sec ISO 100
Sudip Roy Kanchenjunga,the great Himalayan beauty
Kolkata, India Canon EOS Rebel T5 75-300mm f/9 ISO100

Dipankar Karmakar Great Coexistence of Serenity In Front of Enormity Emrah Uygun Eruption of Mayon volcano
Kolkata, India Nikon D7200 18mm f/10 1/250s ISO100 Istanbul, Turkey Nikon D810 100mm f/6.3 1/40sec ISO400.

Nafis Ameen Broken Dreams

Dhaka, Bangladesh Nikon D7100 11-16mm f/2.8 30sec ISO100

Soumya N Ghosh Let’s Cross

Kolkata India Fuji-XPRO2 10mm f/14 1/420s ISO500

Tanay Das Where the Stars Live Irfanali Baburao Borgave Colors are the smiles of nature
Kolkata, India Nikin D5500 18mm f/8 1/30 ISO100 Ichalkaranji, India Nikon D610 18mm f/13 2.5s ISO64
Taiyab Jamal The Scenic Beauty The Gate to the Heaven
Rahul Pradip Kinikar Yamini Krishna Walk on the Salt
Bolpur, India NikonD5300 18-55mm F/9 1/100sec ISO100 Sangli, India Fujifilm XT-10 Fujinon XF-10-24 f/10 1/2sec ISO1000 Thane, India Nikon D750 15mm f/9 SS 1/40s ISO2500

Joydeep Paul
Kolkata, India Nature and Life
Nikon D3300 18-55 F5 1/500s ISO100

Khalid Faraj Mubarak AI Wdahi Demar Beach

Salala, Oman Nikon D5300 11mm f/22 9.6s ISO100

Jhuma Dutta The fearless

Kolkata, India Canon 600D 24-105mm f/10 1/5s ISO100

Aritra Nath The Silk Route Morteza Cameran Sistan Valley Khalid Faraj Mubarak AI Wdahi Almogsil Beach
Kolkata, India Canon 80D 10mm f/5.6 1/20s ISO100 Mashhad, Iran Nikon D7100 35mm f/2.5 1/500s ISO640 Salala, Oman Nikon D5300 11mm f/22 9.6s ISO100
 In The Trend
Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/1.4 1/125 ISO1000

Hanami: A Walk Through

the Cherry Blossoms
Rohan Shrestha captures the essence of Hanami, the
cherry blossom festival of Japan, through his projection The Princess
Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/1.6 1/125 ISO800
photography show
“Within each one of us, there exists a nomad
who seeks the world outside; within this
nomad, we carry our home with us.” With
this sentiment the celebrity photographer,
Rohan Shrestha’s first projection photography
exhibition – Hanami – was showcased at
the Diesel store in Juhu, Mumbai, as a part
of the Diesel + Art initiative.
The 33-year-old son of pioneer celebrity
photographer Rakesh Shrestha along with
his curator, Ambika Hinduja Macker has
attempted to recreate the beauty of Hanami
(Cherry Blossom Festival in Japan) in his
projection photography show.
Shrestha, who is a student of the New York
Film Academy, began his photographic
journey with working under his father in
2004. Along with working with his father,
Shrestha has also worked with various
photographers in different fields to widen
the scope of his creative horizons.
Hanami exhibited 25 image series using
six ultra-projectors along with a moving
image piece, housed in the backdrop of
print images.

Accidental Encounter in Japan…

Shrestha, who is also a professional scuba
diver, was in Guan for a diving trip to Chuuk
Island when a typhoon hit and he had
to seek refuge in Japan for a few days.
The accidental journey to Japan left an
indelible imprint in his mind and soul. It
was the advent of the spring season when
Shrestha first visited Japan in April 2015.
As he spent time in the country, he fell in
love with the country and kept extending his
trip, to just about when his visa was close
The Cherry Blossom
84 FEATURE Canon 1D Mark II 21mm F/6.3 1/8000 ISO400 to expiring.
Inspired by Japan, the cherry blossom
and the Japanese aesthetic, Rohan
Shrestha’s debut solo exhibition is
a result of his love for photography
and passion to experiment. The cherry
blossom represents the fragility and
the beauty of life. It’s a reminder that
life is almost overwhelmingly beautiful,
but that it is also tragically short.
The notion is called wabi-sabi life.
In the search of Sakura, a flowering
cherry tree, the artist visited Kyoto,
Japan where he experimented with
a converted infrared camera to
capture some enthralling landscape
and artistic photos. The images shot
in Shinjuku Gyoen Garden in Tokyo,
Kyoto and Koyasan were published
in National Geographic Traveller.
The Second Visit…
The Bachelorette celebration of
Shrestha’s best friend took him back
there again in the autumn of the same
year. This time, he shot in Kamakura,
an hour away from Tokyo by rail.
He captured surreal images of old
Japanese temples and Buddhist
monasteries through photographic
techniques of zoom burst and
rotational slow shutter.
The Experiment: Fashion +
Landscape Projection…
Shrestha, who has shot covers for
prominent magazines like Noblesse
India, Cosmopolitan, FHM, Grazia,
Verve and Filmfare among others,
took this project further to blend
two styles of photography - his
travel and fashion work, completely
different from each other, into one.
By combining images of the Sakura
projected on an Indian model
dressed in the traditional Japanese
clothes, Shrestha embarked on
projection photography.
An artist of the floating world…
“We are all artists of the floating
world in which there’s no such thing
as a perfect craft. Just like there’s no
such thing as perfect despair,” quotes
the nomadic photographer who
handles an Instagram account under
the pseudonym- ‘Nomad Within’.

Hello Nature Reuniting Blossoms

Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/2 1/125 ISO800 Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/2 1/125 ISO800

Drawing on the legacy of his father, Rakesh Shrestha, Rohan Shrestha’s passion for photography
was fuelled from his childhood. While still in college, he studied under his father and other
prominent photographers in an effort to widen the scope of his creative horizons. At a very
young age, he has worked with numerous celebrities, photographed covers and editorials for
leading publications and has developed campaigns for several leading brands.
Well known for his celebrity and fashion photography as Rohan Shrestha, he also loves to create
fine art and travel images under the pseudonym- ‘nomad within’ which is an exploration of his
more personal style of photography.
 Flowers in the Bowl
Canon 1Ds Mark III 85mm F/16 1/40 ISO100

Traveler Going Nowhere

Canon 5D Mark III 19mm F/16 1/5 ISO500

“We are all artists of the floating world in which

there’s no such thing as a perfect craft. Just like
there’s no such thing as perfect despair.”

Rahul Batra
rahul@chiiz.com

Rahul is a culture based writer who left his engineering job to pursue a career in
writing. He is a flaneur who thinks that the ideas brewing up in his skullsized kingdom
can transform this world into a better one. He wishes to write a psychological thriller
The Angry Moon
86 FEATURE Canon 5D Mark III 35mm F/22 1/5 ISO100 one day.
Purity in White Blending Styles
Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/1.6 1/125 ISO800 Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/1.6 1/125 ISO800

Projected Shadows
Canon 5D Mark III 85mm F/1.4 1/125 ISO1000
Model of
the Month
Super chirpy and high on energy, GL
Sanjana is either giggling or laughing at
her inside jokes most of the times. She
has a love for food (specific kinds) and is
always putting on loud music, dancing,
jumping around when she’s alone and
laughing out loud. However, she also has
a very silent side to her where she just
goes all mute, journals and contemplates
her way into overthinking. She likes to
cook and loves experimenting with food.
She’s originally from Andhra Pradesh but
she has lived in the northern part of the
country and Bangalore for the most part of
her life since her dad is from the defence.
She was a second runner up at the Elite
model look India 2014, one of the top
20 finalists of miss India 2016. She has
been modelling from past two years
in Bangalore and Delhi and recently
moved to Mumbai to pursue acting
and modelling. She has done television
commercials for Close up, Tropicana,
Fastrack, Subway and Fbb and currently
working her way into films. She’s loving
the process of it and is excited about
what Mumbai has in store for her.

Clicked by: Studio Basic

Clicked by: Rafique Sayed Stats

Age: 24 Shoulders: 46 cm
Height: 5’9’ Sleeve lengths: 58 cm
Upper Bust: 79 cm Arm hole: 45 cm
Bust: 80 cm Neck: 47 cm
Lower bust: 70 cm Dress Size: S
Upper waist: 66 cm Cup size: 32 B
Lower waist: 78 cm Shoe Size: 39/40
Mid waist: 68 cm Jeans Size: 28
Hips: 93 cm Trouser Length: 100 cm
Thighs: 53 cm Hair: Black
Knee: 37 cm Eyes: Dark Brown
88 HALL OF FAME Ankle: 26 cm
Clicked by: Sameer Dhalwani

Clicked by: Yashasvi Sharma

Clicked by: Yashasvi Sharma Clicked by: Sameer Dhalwani

Make up Artist of the Month

Diane Martin is a French makeup artist and hairstylist based in Paris. It’s
in front of the cameras as a model and actress that she first discovered
makeup and hairstyling which fascinated her in the fashion world .
Polyvalent and eager to learn new skills, she decided to learn both. She
has always been attracted by art, and those skills allow her to combine
her love for beauty with an artistic technique.Graduated from the Makeup
Forever Academy for makeup and the Scotto di Cesare School for
Hairstyling, she has participated in many projects, mostly in fashion, but
also in movies and live events.
She was published on many editorials and continue to discover new
aspects of her work during each new project. For her, materials and colors
are things which you can use and play with to transform and beautify, just
like a painter. She likes variety, and this job allows her to do something
different and unique every single day.
Her style? She likes to change it as she wants so it’s rather difficult to
define her style but overall, she prefers refined, dark or colorful, graphic,
rock and beautiful artistic looks. A makeup artist job requires dynamism,
creativity, perfectionism and to be able to react quickly when confronted
with adversity. Things that challenge her also make this work fascinating
to her. You can see her work on:
Website: dianemartinmuah.com
Naughty Red
Instagram: diane_martin_

90 HALL OF FAME The Flower Petals Golden Tears

Rainbow Trance
 Sensual Attraction

92 HALL OF FAME Posing Drill Furred Up


Q. What is the idea behind Body
Knots series?
A. It started when I was doing a large
project with dancers and they would
work very hard and then we took a
break they would just sit together.
Sometimes, men and women
would just sit down, huddle and
hold each other and when I looked
at them I saw a sculpture. That is
when it occurred to me. I call it the
‘Biological Sculpture’ whose human
curves, valleys, bends and twists look
like a beautiful sculpture. So, I began
to make photographs with a wide
angle lens and coming very close
to the subject and did everything I
could to hide their faces because it
wasn’t a portrait, it wasn’t about who
they were but rather about what their
bodies were doing together as a
knot tied and twisted together. Then,
when I made the pictures they were
pretty nice but I felt like I could go
further and so what I did was, I sat
down with my computer and tried
a lot of things. Art is, after all, all
about trial and error. When I came
upon the idea of using colors; it
really resonated with me and made
me feel like this was wonderful. I
photograph to surprise and that really
caused me great surprise and delight.
Q. From ophthalmology to
photography, how did this change
take place?
A. Well, in medicine, it’s about
getting it right- exactly right. It is not
trial and error and you cannot take
chances and you have to be really
well prepared and doing it exactly
right. In art, it’s all about trial and
The Human
Knots
Howard Schatz talks about
how he came up with the idea
of shooting his muses in such
unique and quirky ways. Below
are excerpts of his conversation
The Backrest with Chiiz writer, Ankit Tyagi
error, making mistakes and You are open to all sort of ideas and
discovering new things; it is all about you can relax and lose yourself and
imagination and creativity. So, I there is a willingness to experiment.
was taking photographs during It is a very different life and I enjoy
the weekends while I was a doctor it very much.
in the weekdays. As we have a lot
of attention for art here (we have Q. How do you manage to explain
museums shows, and gallery shows), your concept to your subjects?
I started getting phone calls to do A. Well, that’s a very good question.
more and more work. But I was a It is very important to establish a
physician, a teacher, a researcher sense of trust and so I am always very
and a scientists and couldn’t take kind, considerate, interested and
out much time for photography. So, positive when I direct my subjects,
my wife suggested that after my 25 whether they are dancers or athletes
years in medicine, I should shift from or other important people. I never
San Francisco to New York, take a 1 use the word no; I say ‘Yes, very
year sabbatical, do photography full good, let’s try this’, so they know that
time and let’s see what happens. At they are collaborating with me and
first it was so much fun, interesting cooperating with me in making
and exciting, we would go to bed something wonderful. I try to make a
giggling and happy. This went on good picture all the time but to make
year after year and 5 or 6 years a fantastic picture, a picture that has
later when the sabbatical had still impact and which is magnificent is
not ended, it was clear that I was very hard and it requires both of us,
not going to return to medicine. The the subject and myself. In medicine,
two areas are very different and in a one learns what’s called the bedside
way it has changed me; when I was manners. Learn to be kind and
a physician I was always very serious, generous and sensitive and that helps
very careful, controlled and rational me in photography too.
but being an artist is just the opposite
Q. Your upcoming book KINK is
about to be launched. Can you
please share something about it?
A. One Sunday, my wife and I got
into the car and drove to Folsom
Street in San Francisco and saw a
street fair. We saw people dressed
up and behaving differently and it
was just fantastic. It was a BDSM fair,
a different and interesting experience.
There was masochism and bondage,
dominance, submissive and it was a
Upside Down rich, wonderful experience and people
 Capsicums

were very creative in what they wore

and what they did. So, as I learnt
about it, the Folsom Street Fair is held
every year in San Francisco on the last
Sunday of September, celebrating
the world of kink and bondage. I
rented a booth, made a studio,
brought people into the studio and
did this for 25 years for about 20
times. I must have shot about 250
people every year and more than
6000 photographs in these 25 years
which were just spectacular. Then
I sent every photo to the people I
had captured with a questionnaire
and when they would answer the
questionnaire they would get
another photograph.

Q. How do you plan your concept

when you work on Figure Study?
A. I am very well prepared before
the shoot, I take care of every detail
from my gear to the concept and
then I go on to start with the shoot.
I use my imagination and creativity
to create art which I like to call the
‘Biological Sculpture’. Entangled

An ophthalmologist-turned-photographer, Howard Schatz has received

international acclaim for his work, which has been published in twenty
two monographs, and is one of the most sought-after photographers working
today. Over the last 25 years 20 major books have been published of his
work; he has won virtually every award in photography and has had over 100
museum and gallery exhibitions worldwide. His latest publication, Kink, the
result of a 20 year long portrait project focused on the participants of the
Folsom Street Fair, an annual BDSM celebration of sexual diversity, will be
out this Spring.
He has also captured extraordinary images for advertising clients such as Ralph
Lauren RLX, Escada, Sergio Tacchini, Nike, Reebok, Wolford, Etienne Aigner, Sony,
Strawberry Adidas, Finlandia Vodka, MGM Grand Hotel, Virgin Records, and Mercedes-Benz.
His Work
25 Years, a magnificent 2-volume retrospective of the
photography of Howard Schatz was published on May 15,
2015. And this coming spring will see the publication of
Kink, the result of a 20 year-long portrait project focused on
the participants of the Folsom Street Fair, an annual BDSM
celebration of sexual diversity. Howard Schatz has received
international acclaim for his work and is one of the most
sought-after photographers working today.  Over the last 25
years, 20 major books of his work have been published; he
has won virtually every award in photography and has had
over 100 museum and gallery exhibitions worldwide. Schatz’s
20th book, “Caught in the Act: Actors Acting,” was just
published (October, 2013). In it, he gives us a unique window
into the world of stage and screen as he explores the magical
transformation that happens when an actor takes a hold
of words on a page and becomes another person.  Schatz
directed and photographed 85 actors to explore an enormous
range of scenarios in one-on-one improvisation, capturing
the dynamic energy of the actors in full creative flight. The
book includes powerful and compelling portraits of each
96 FEATURE
actor along with an extensive interview, focusing on the
creative process. 
In 2012, his 19th book, “At the Fights: Inside the World of
Professional Boxing”  was published.  The result of a six-year
exploration, it is a magnificent collection of photographs and
revealing interviews of current champions and promoters,
managers, announcers, referees, judges and trainers. 
Published in 2011, “With Child,” is the result of a 20-year
long exploration of the landscape of the human body in the
last two weeks of pregnancy.
In 2007, Bulfinch Press published H2O, the third in Schatz’s
landmark series of explorations of imagery made on, over
and underwater. This series, including H2O, Pool Light
and WaterDance is a breathtaking feat of underwater
photography and a visionary celebration of movement and
form. He has made extraordinary images for advertising
clients like Ralph Lauren RLX, Escada, Sergio Tacchini, Nike,
Reebok, Wolford, Etienne Aigner, Sony, Adidas, Finlandia
Vodka, MGM Grand Hotel, Virgin Records, and Mercedes-
Benz. Schatz’s fine art work is represented in galleries in the
United States and abroad.
Handy Foot

“In art, it’s all about trial and error, making
mistakes and discovering new things; it is all
about imagination and creativity.”
Playing Lemon
Ankit Tyagi
ankit@chiiz.com
Ankit has intense love towards photography and
is now working as an Asst. Editor with Chiiz. He
has been writing for us for a long time now and
believes in the power of words. The dream is to
explore and find different perceptions in life. He
likes watching classic movies and is inspired by
Alfred Hitchcock as a director.
98 FEATURE
98 FEATURE Self Healing