Winning photos take you into the heart of India’s forests

15 August 2017 Forests in photos

Forests in India are a colorful canvas of the ecological conditions, rich biodiversity and lifestyles of the different communities in and around them.

“Our ‘Experience Forests, Experience Life’ photo contest opened a platform for photographers to reflect and give shape to these various dimensions of forests through their lenses,” said Mr. Sachin Raj Jain from the Network for Certification and Conservation of Forests (NCCF), our national member for India.

“We received more than 400 entries, and it took our judges a week of brainstorming to shortlist the top five,” Mr. Raj Jain continued.

In first place...

The judging panel, consisting of renowned conservationist and photographer, Dr. Asad R Rahmani and Mr. Dhritiman Mukherjee, declared ‘Tangled Trunks’ by Anuradha Marwah the winner of the contest.

Taken in the pristine forests of Corbett National Park, Uttrakhand, India, the photograph captures an elephant herd at sunrise. In a playful mood, with their trunks entwined in play fighting, they joust in preparation for real battles ahead, when they will fight for mates and territories.

A combination of majestic yet raw power, family bonding, animal-emotions, these extraordinary gentle giants are fascinating to observe and a remarkable sight.

Coming in second and third

In second, depicting a story of the forest as a source of livelihood, is Somenath Mukhopadhyay with ‘Woodsy Fancy’ taken in Birbhum District of West Bengal, India.

He captures a village girl fancifully looking at her reflection in a carpenter’s mirror, symbolizing a connection between someone’s dreams with the forest.

The third winner is ‘Morning Mist’ captured in the Neora Valley National Park, West Bengal, by Sirsendu Gayen.

Using monochrome, mist and a curious human figure to create a contained sense of narrative and tension, it stresses that forests and woodlands are full of possibilities.

Joining these three photographs are the entries by Pranab Basak, capturing a virgin green forest in high altitudes of Jorpokhri Wildlife Sanctuary, Darjeeling, and the ‘Flying Tiger’ by Anudeep Agrawal patiently captured in the Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh.

The top three winners won Nikon gift vouchers worth INR 25,000, INR 20,000 and INR 15,000 respectively.