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Showing posts from 2017

Life in Bullock Cart

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Being a wildlife photographer i also have seen and meet many peoples around me who make mark on my mind, and after seeing their pitiable condition my heart fills with great sorrow. Here i am sharing he story of Kalicharan, a man who`s life was full of struggle. He with my maternal uncle in his farm house as a full time labor with his family. Since when he was of age 20, he is working here, now he is 78 years old. One of the most obedient and hard working personality i ever meet. He has 3 son and one daughter, like many others he do not have any land for farming. He take care of my uncle`s farm and lives in a Bullock Cart. What ! "A Bullock Cart", yes its true, he lives in a bullock cart the reason is that he do not have much space to live with his family, since when his son get married the space in his house is less and the family is growing year by year, so its been nearly 10 years he is living in his bullock cart, nearly every year he has to repair his cart to protect hims

Camera Settings For Bird Photography

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One of the pastimes that many photographers enjoy is bird photography both birds in flight and perched birds. While photographing birds you and your camera must be ready, this article will tell you about some bird photography camera settings that you may consider.       1.    The 3 Ps                 Always remember its not about the lens or the camera, it is about you. If you have 3 Ps that are necessary for bird photography, than you are all set.  Patience Perseverance Practice Now start with the Best Camera Setting for Photographing Birds. Aperture Priority     In this mode you just have to care about aperture or Depth of Field and nothing else, chose one or two stops down than the maximum aperture value to keep the bird and its wings in focus. Shutter Priority If aperture priority is not giving you enough shutter speed to freeze the action or to blur the action, then choose shutter priority. Select the shutter speed you think is the best depending on the birds

The Crocodile Story

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Recently i get a chance to photograph this beautiful creature, nearly 30 to 35 Km away from my home there is a swamp area of 70 Km which connects 2 major district of Uttar Pradesh that is Bareilly and Pilibhit in Pilibhit there is a large reservoir where these animals have their natural habitat on December 2015 i was ensconcing at home, and relishing my boredom. Then the pleasant evening weather pushed me up to do what i fervor, then i decided a place which is not so good for photography but i love being there. Within an hour i hit there with lust in my heart of having some great shots, when i went there i was totally surprised to see that these creatures are laying on the bank of reservoir, i unpack my camera and started capturing the images, that was my first chance in my life when i was watching this creature with nearly 3 to 4 feet away from him, i have heard many stories that how crocodile dragged a man and many domestic animals into the water, at that moment i was very nervou

Rescuing Bengal Monitor & Bran Owl

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Bengal Monitor or common Indian Monitor is widely distributed over the Indian Subcontinent, this lizard is mainly terrestrial and its length can range about 60 to 175 cm young lizards are more colorful than adult, young have series of dark crossbars on the neck, throat and back. Bengal Monitor are usually solitary and found on the ground, although the young are often seen on trees. These lizards are shy and avoid humans, they have keen eyesight and can detect human movement nearly 250 m away. When caught a few individuals may bite, but rarely do so. Folk mythology across the region includes the idea that these lizards are venomous and local people of my village and rest of the parts of India believe that they become venomous only during rainy season. But as i come to know that bite of these lizards are poisonous resulting in swelling and excessive bleeding.     It was the month of January of 2016 when i rescue this lizard from the crowd of daily labor who is willing to kill

Sarus Trail

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This is one of the widely spread species of bird which can be found in Indian subcontinent, this bird is a State bird of Uttar Pradesh also. This is the tallest flying bird in the world standing at a height of 180 Centimeters, size of adult Sarus Crane is between 140 to 160 cm. The overall color is gray and dirty white, the upper neck and head is bright red in color. The bare red skin of the adults head and neck is brighter in breeding season. In my village there are nearly 6 pairs that i have count in different locations, these are the birds of wetland areas the natural habitat for this bird is diminishing fast as many farmers are seizing and turning the open uncultivated land into farms. Sarus Crane is an omnivorous bird, they feed on marshes, berries, seeds, roots, insects, frogs etc.   According to a survey in Bareilly done by forest department revealed that the state bird of Uttar Pradesh faces increasing threats from insecticides and chemical fertilizers present in

Wildlife Conservation In India

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Wildlife conservation in India has a very long history, if we go back to the colonial period when it was rather very restrictive to only targeted species and that too in  a defined geographical area. Then the formation of the wildlife Board at the national level and enactment of wildlife act in 1972 laid the foundation of present day "Wildlife Conservation" in post independent India. Keeping in view the recent human encroachment, the Indian government did take effective initiative to conserve wildlife in the country, and among-st it most commendable initiative is the wildlife protection Act which prohibits trade of rare and endangered species. However this is not the only laudatory measures taken by the government of India there is so much more than that needs to be told about the schemes and projects that have helped the country maintain its rich wildlife. Here is a glance at the important wildlife conservation initiatives that Indian Government has taken:-   Pro

Clicking The Wild

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Photography is an exceptional medium of self-expression. It deals with taking photograph of wildlife and non-domesticated animals, Here the focus is on nature and wild creature, Wildlife photography shoots photograph of wild animals and plants in its most natural and habitual form. It is an art form that demand a sens of technical expertise. An individual who includes a hobby in photography can successfully make it profitable by venturing into professional photography, by taking it as a career option also in Indian context. Wildlife photography requires immense passion for wildlife, nature and conservation along with in depth knowledge of the subject. To become a wildlife photographer one should possess sound technical skills, such as being able to expose correctly, good field craft skills, sharp eyesight, true color vision, coordination and willingness to work outdoor in all weather conditions. Wildlife photographer should also be very comfortable with being outdoor for long per

Exploring Dudhwa

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The  Dudhwa   National Park  is a national park in the terai of Uttar Pradesh India and covers an area of 490.3 km (189.3 sq mi), with a buffer zone of 190 km2 (73 sq mi). It is part of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. It is located on the Indo Nepal border in the Lakhimpur Kheri District and has buffer of reserved forest areas on the northern and southern sides. It represents one of the few remaining examples of a highly diverse and productive Terai ecosystem, supporting a large number of endangered species obligate species of tall wet grasslands and species of restricted distribution. Entry Point for Jeep Safari Route For Jeep Safari Recently I get a chance to visit Dudhwa National Park it was very much amazing as I expected, every thing is according to the details as mentioned in their official website, I drive to Dudhwa from Bareilly in my own four wheeler, the route was excellent, I drive to Sahajahanpur – Powayan – Khutar – Mailani – Paliya Kalan and then Dudhwa.

The Sculpturer

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The Id ol Maker                            Savitri Devi is an another example of self made parson, she makes these God idols with the help of mould and clay taken from near by river and she is doing this work since from her childhood and now she has her husband and son to help her in many ways. She told me that this is her hereditary profession, like Raju she dose not sell her idols door to door but despite of this she prepare these idols for some special occasions and festive seasons in India like Dipawali, Durga Puja, Shivratri and many more. She sell her idols in village fairs and small village shops only. She takes her idols to the biggest fair of "Chaubari Mela" of Bareilly district where she stay in tent for 5 to 8 days to sell her idols and at the end she has a good amount of money for her family. While asking about the income she laugh and told me that she has different price for different idols the starting price is from 10 Rupees till 50 Rupees, as it depend

The Doll Maker

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The  Doll maker     This is a story of a man named Raju, he lives in a small village of district Bareilly India. His main work is to make dolls out of waste materiel, like pisses of cloths, laces and other plastic material. He sell these dolls in different parts of our district in villages only, as no one buy these dolls in cities, while i talked to him i come to know that he has a bicycle modified with a large tin container placed on the carrier, mostly he visited to those places where village markets and fairs are engaged he also visit door to door to sell his craft and peoples buy them, and at the day end he earns nearly 100 to 150 Rupees, the cost of these dolls are very low, the price of one piece is 20 Rupees, as Indian villagers are unable to buy expensive toys for their children and the children are not habitual of expensive toys also. So whenever they get this type of toy for them their happiness is on seventh heaven. This is the only way of income of Raju he works very h

Little Dreams

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Little Dreams This is the most appreciated image of the year as many people like the expressions and the composition of this image, this image was taken at Ganga Snaan Parv in my district this little boy was selling Earthen Piggy Bank, at that moment i was watching this boy he was looking very sad as he was unable to sell his piggy banks. In these type of fairs many little children were selling different type of things you cant imagine, due to the poverty in rural areas of India any one can see little children working in different place to earn money, the poverty ratio in villages is very high and because of this little children are bound to earn despite of going to school, i have seen many children working in local hotels giving tea to the customers washing dishes and sweeping. In rural India the condition is worse the main reason for engaging child labor is to increase the income of poor family, reduce the labor cost in farming, and there are many other reasons for engaging child