Krishnan Kalpat is a photographer of culture and creation; he is a photographer—of stories. His attention to light, composition and how the image tells its own story is spot on for this versatile master photographer from India.
Article by Mina Thevenin
Photography by Krishnan Kalpat
Krishnan Kalpat, Indian Photographer and conservationist, enjoys nature photography and all lifeforms. “I strongly feel that every living being from a tiny insect to a big mammal have equal right(s) as we humans on this earth. That’s the reason I am drawn towards nature and its great biodiversity.”
A career electrical engineer for 33 years, now retired, Kalpat has worked in the fields of telecommunications and aviation. His love of nature and respect for his uncle whom he admires as a “great naturalist and bird photographer” instilled in him the art of photography at a young age, particularly his interest in nature photography. Krishnan Kalpat’s animal images reveals his sweat
equity of patience and persistence. Take for example, Kalpat’s Photography World’s YOUR FOCUS ON THE WORLD 2015 winning image, Mealtime. A backyard afternoon hike patiently following around a large black jumping spider became the eventual circle of life capture in photography. “I was in my garden chasing a small spider for quite sometime. I was waiting patiently with my camera with the macro attachments anticipating some action. After few hours of chase, this big cannibalistic spider caught the smaller one and it was a matter of time before it devoured it completely. I was quick to capture this awesome scene. The circular ring patterns seen on the eyes are the result of the ring LED light on my camera.” (EXIF: Camera: Canon Rebel T5i, Lens: Canon EF-S 18-55 mm | f3.5-5.6 IS STM, 1/100 sec at f/16, ISO400, F.L.: 55mm, Exp Bias OEV Exp, Prog: Manual, Flash: Nil. Vivitar close-up lens +2 and +4 used in tandem.)
” ‘When man moves away from nature, his heart becomes hard.’ An apt Native American proverb,” quotes Photographer Kalpat. He finds that photography is a natural adjunct of expression for his affinity with nature. Even so, Kalpat extends his skills into fine tuned photographic precepts by utilizing light, shadows, contrast and color—or black and white—to let the image tell the story he hopes the audience may understand, or at the very least, “will cause them to think.” His intention for his photography is that it carry “an emotion, a feeling, and a sense of involvement in the viewer.”
BEYOND NATURE
Photographer Kalpat recognizes two iconic photographers, Raghu Rai and Harry Miller, as having a profound impact upon his own photography. He recalls childhood journeys and dreams that he imagined he might one day explore. These dreams were born from the images of Rai and Miller, whose iconic photography spoke to him as a child who yearned to photograph and travel, capturing story-like moments in which the image freezes that moment in time. Kalpat remembers sitting in his room as a boy and teenager, looking at travel pictures and imaging that one day…maybe he would travel there and photograph his dreams.
With his uncles tutelage for photography, Kalpat learned to develop and print his own film. ” I used to work late hours in the darkroom to see the magical appearance of my pictures on photographic paper. That was an unforgettable moment in my life.” Growing up with photography as a hobby, Kalpat’s career path and resulting financial freedom allowed Kalpat’s dreams to become a reality, “into real travels of far away places.” His photographic images have amassed travels to Yosemite, Mariposa and its great trees, the rocks of Grand Canyon, Lake Tahoe, the Niagara, wildlife of Masai Mara and Kilimanjaro, temples in Cambodia, United States, and his home in India. Kalpat’s photography also includes world street photography of today.
“Places that I visited have always given me a great opportunity for capturing some beautiful moments in my life.”
—Photographer Krishnan Kalpat, the photographer of stories.
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Photographer Krishnan Kalpat is honored as a Photography World™ Portfolio of featured photographers. He is most recently the winner of the January 2021 Photography World™ contest LET THERE BE LIGHT. Past distinctions include category winner of the 2015 YOUR FOCUS ON THE WORLD International Photography Contest for his image © Mealtime and was published in the mag-book print edition of Photography World Journal, April 2016.
Follow his work here at Photography World and through Facebook @ https://www.facebook.com/krishnan.kalpat
Photographer Krishnan Kalpat
