Of birds, bees, and beasts

Lovedeep Sidhu

One early morning when Arshdeep and his father were at their usual hangout — the Kanjli wetland in Kapurthala — Arshdeep spotted pipe owls disappearing into an old waste-pipe. Even though his father was dubious about his son’s claims, they decided to wait and watch. About 30 minutes later, a spotted owlet emerged, prompting Arshdeep to position his camera on the half-open window and capture the otherwise nocturnal birds in an image that won him this year’s Comedy Wildlife Photography award.

Son of a wildlife photographer, Arshdeep had the privilege of handling expensive photography equipment early on, sparking an interest in capturing images. His first picture was of a bird at the Harikewetland on the border of Tarn Taran and Ferozepur districts in Punjab. “I was visiting the nearby forests with my father and loved the experience. I did think about venturing into landscape photography after I’d been gifted a camera of my own — a D7100 — by my father. But the mountains don’t hold my interest as much as the animals and birds do,” he says. 

A regular at shooting them with his camera for the last two years now, Arshdeep has a precious cache of more than 735 pictures of birds and 400 pictures of animals with him.  A student of Class V at APJ Public School, Jalandhar, he feels wildlife photography has given him a rare perspective into the need for conservation of animals and their habitats. “My message to children my age and society in general is to not cut down trees or throw plastic in water bodies. These are animals’ homes and we need to protect them. Let’s grow forests instead of creating concrete jungles,” he appeals.