Bhubaneswar: Photography is not just a form of art which captures precious moments, a good snap often expresses a thousand emotions. In a bid to pay tribute to the art of photography, August 19 is observed as World Photography Day. However, the pandemic has restricted photographers’ freedom across the globe due to enforcement of lockdown. On this occasion, a couple of lensmen spoke to Orissa POST about the day and the challenges ahead.
Well known photographer Siddhartha De said, “I consider a photograph not just as a document but as an expression of creative art form. A photographer sometimes locks a few moments which words may fall short to describe.”
Siddhartha is a member of Bhubaneswar Photography Circle, an association of professional photographers. He said his group in collaboration with 113 Signature Studio, is hosting an online musical show and a digital photo exhibition in the city Wednesday to commemorate the World Photography Day. This is an attempt to help out budding photographers and musicians.
Ace lensman Sanjit Patnaik said, “The pandemic has definitely restricted our movements, but interestingly ‘life under the mask’ is also a great subject for the photographers to work on.”
Asked about his message to the beginners, Sanjit said, “This is definitely a challenging period for everyone including the photographers. There is need to give your best instead of leaving the profession at this hour.”
However, both the photographers admitted that the state of professional photography in Odisha is not in a good shape if compared to other states. This is the reason, many promising photographers are moving to cities like Bangalore and Mumbai to boost their careers, the duo added.
Some shutterbugs, however, have returned to Odisha following the imposition of countrywide lockdown. But they find it difficult to meet ends here.
The photographer-duo, on the occasion of World Photography Day, urged the art lovers to buy photographs and support the lensmen during these dark hours.