by Yvette Depaepe
Published the 7^th of April 2025

Souvik Banerjee wants to photograph the world surrounding him in its original form to show  the its beauty, to discover people & culture, to immerse himself in the vast splendor and heritage of this earth. He tries to express his beliefs, thoughts and emotions through his images. Life and nature are the two aspects that inspire him the most. Discover his very own vision and work through this interview.

 'Wings over Yamuna'

Dear Souvik, first of all I would like to thank you for taking the time to answer this questionnaire! To begin, please introduce yourself and tell us more about yourself, your hobbies or other projects you are involved in!
I am an engineer by profession and photography is my passion and serious hobby. I love capturing images of the places and people around me. I am basically an outdoor person and travel a lot due to my office & family needs. This is where I find my ingredient for photography that revolves around travel, people, streets, landscapes, monuments and culture.

'Winter mood'

I also love nature in its pristine form and devote much of my thought and energy to energy conservation and sustainability. For the past few years, I have been conserving the small area around my ancestral home in Berhampore, West Bengal, India by planting trees and plants. I have created a small garden around the place and developed a cosy homestay using the unused spaces of my ancestral home. My intention is to preserve the 175 year old house and attract people from the city for photography, nature and heritage walks and excursions around the area. It is listed on Airbnb and serves as an inspiration for relaxation and enjoyment. In fact, much of my aerial photography these days comes from the rural areas near my hometown of Berhampore.

'Contrast of civilization

When and how did you start your photographic journey?
Basically self-taught, I had done a course in photography from School of Fototechnik, New Delhi. I started photography with a manual Pentax K-1000 SLR camera, which was a gift from my father. During my photography course, I had learnt darkroom techniques and exposure control using manual SLR with negative and slide films. That was over 20 years ago when I graduated and started my career in engineering.
I then moved to Abu Dhabi to pursue my career as an oil and gas engineer. It was then that I picked up a digital SLR camera, a Canon 350D and started shooting with the new technology. I then bought a Canon 7D, then a Canon 5D Mark III and now a few months ago I started using a Canon R6 Mark II mirrorless. I'm also using the Ricoh GrIII for street photography, as it allows for easy snapshots and is easy to carry due to its pocket size. Recently, during my trip to Kyrgyzstan, I bought a DJI drone for aerial photography. Capturing life around me, editing my images and sharing them on social media provides immense opportunities for learning and interaction.

'Two friends'

For many of us, photography is either a hobby or a way of life. How would you define your relationship to photography?
Photography is a way of life for me. It has shaped my travels and my approach to life on a larger scale, outside the routine drill of office and engineering technicalities. It has also breathed life into my office work when the camera serves as an inspiration to explore new places and unknown corners that I visit during my office tours and meetings.

'The cat in morning mood'

When on holiday, the camera has given me the motivation to get up early to capture a stunning sunrise or a majestic sunset. Photography has brought me closer to nature and taught me to appreciate the way of life of the people around me, acting as a medium of interaction with the world I travel through.

'Winter Morning by Yamuna'

'Morning meditation along Ganges'

What would you say is the most important experience that has influenced your steps in photography?
Experience is a path and I follow the path that makes me learn. Many times when I am asked what is the best photo you have taken, my answer remains that maybe it will be in my next shoot. So it is a path that I follow in my search for beauty and life, which is the constant guiding light of experience.
A very recent development is my tryst with aerial photography using my drone. It was during my photo tour of Kyrgyzstan that I was introduced to the drone by the accomplished photographer, Mr Subodh Shetty. When he first told me that this tour would be a great experience with aerial photography, I was not sure. I did not own a drone and was not sure if I would buy one and use it. I am more comfortable with still photography and do not have the passion for films and reels that normally leads one to the drones.
But Subodh pushed me and convinced me to buy a drone. I learnt how to operate it from him during the tour to Kyrgyzstan. Now aerial photography is my niche where I enjoy photographing nature from above through it's greenery, nature and graphics. It has added another dimension to my photography as I love discovering beauty from a different perspective and developing my skills.

'Patterns of trees'

'Row of canyons at sunset'

You have your own style, but your work is very diverse.  I see street photography, but also great aerial shots. Can you explain why?
Basically, it comes from my love for nature and the existence around me. I like to immerse myself in it. That's why I'm attracted to the street and the life around me. I love to walk and see the world of existence around me. The camera keeps clicking as I look around. Again, the inspiration to see nature has led me to unique points of view. I'm fascinated by aerial photography and have begun to explore the patterns and shapes of our Mother Earth from above. The lush greenery around my home town, with its houses and rivers, provides variety and interest to explore along the aerial path as well as looking deep into life from the road.

'Old jewellery shop'

What is more important to you, the mood/story behind your images or technical perfection?
The mood of the moment and the place has always followed me on my photographic journey. I don't want to get too caught up in the technical, it's the emotion and the instant spark that always motivates me and drives me through my shots.

'sleep time'

What is your relationship to your subjects in general, beyond that of an observer?
I always immerse myself in my subjects. Be it nature or the street scenes and the stories behind them. I get into the life of the emotions around me. Emotions of the living and emotions of nature make me think and indulge in them through the language of my images.

'Green Earth'

'Age and colour'

Do you prepare carefully the places you want to photograph?
Yes, I do prepare. Usually it is more intuition during the first shot. But then I study the first shots and analyse what went wrong and how I can improve. Then there are repeat visits and planned explorations of a place with my camera. But the emotion and romance with the subject and the image I am capturing remains. Be it my first visit or repeat visits with some prior planning.

'Cricket stumps in fog'

Describe your overall photographic vision.
The vision of my photography is to see the world around me in its original form, to explore the beauty within, to appreciate the people & culture, to explore the stories behind the life on the streets, to learn history and to immerse myself in the vast beauty and heritage of this earth. I try to realise all of this myself and capture it through my lenses so that my thoughts, beliefs and emotions come to life through my images.

'Making the broom'

Where do you find inspiration and what inspires you most?
I am inspired by life and nature. These are the two aspects that inspire me the most. I am driven by emotions. I try to express and convey these emotions through my photographic stories. Be it the patterns of nature or the stories of the streets and the life around.

'The meandering river'

'Co-existence'

Many people think that the equipment is not very important when the passion for photography is strong. But could you please tell us what equipment you use (camera, lenses, lighting, tripod, etc.)?
I currently use a Canon mirrorless R6 Mark II with Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f/1.2, RF100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L IS USM, Sigma Art 14mm f/1.8 lenses and a Gitzo tripod. I also use Ricoh Gr.III for street photography. For aerial photography I use DJI Air drone. As I shoot life with available light, I do not use flash in my photography.

What is your favourite photo? Please tell us the story behind it.
One of my favourite photos for a long time is a portrait of my father, which I took in a tram in Kolkata in November 2014. I used to urge my father, now deceased, to go out with me in the mornings on the streets of Kolkata. I had the dual purpose of photographing and spending quality time with my father during my holidays from my work in Abu Dhabi when I used to visit Kolkata. Returning from our morning tour that particular morning, we decided to take a tram back to our home at Shyambazar in North Kolkata. The trams of Kolkata are quite old and a heritage in themselves. After boarding the tram, which was quite empty that day, I got a trigger to shoot inside the tram. It was then that I took some portraits of my father, relaxed after our morning outing, sitting at his window seat enjoying the smooth but slow tram ride through the busy streets of Kolkata. This photograph and the images in my mind will remain with me for the rest of my life!

'Looking back'

Who are your favourite photographers or mentors whose work has influenced you and your photography?
In my early days, I was most influenced by the legendary Mr Raghu Rai from India. I used to look for his work on photojournalism as well as his documentation of life. I also admire Steve McCurry for his documentation of life and his stunning portraits and photojournalism across the Indian sub-continent, including Afghanistan. Other legends of photography that I admire and have been inspired by include Ansel Adams who is known for his awe-inspiring landscapes, Henri Cartier Bresson who is often hailed as the pioneer of photojournalism, Yousuf Karsh who is known as a portrait photographer and many more.

More recently, I have admired the work of Daniel Cheong for his stunning cityscapes and nightscapes, especially those shot in Dubai, and Bobby Joshi for his mystical images of nature and moments with light, colour and nature.

Now that we have almost reached the end of this interview, I would like to ask you to tell us about your plans or photographic projects that you would like to be involved in.
A dream project I have in mind at the moment is photography workshops around my hometown of Berhampore in West Bengal, India. I intend to use my homestay in Berhampore, which is already listed on Airbnb, for the stay and take photographers around the place during the day to photograph villages, nature, people, monuments and history that are spread over vast areas near my hometown. Berhampore is very close to Murshidabad, which was the capital of the Nawabs of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa before the British took over India. It is also close to the ruins of Karnasubarna, the capital of Shashanka, the first important king of ancient Bengal who ruled in the 7th century AD and where Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese Buddhist monk and scholar, had visited in the 7th century AD. My intention is to show people the immense potential of my place through photography and to invite photographers from all over the world to have a taste of this wonderful place.

'Glowing Hazarduari'

Is there anything else you would like to add and what do you think of 1X as a home base for your work?
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to 1x for providing me with a platform to showcase my work and also gain invaluable learning opportunities. It has been a great forum to interact with the masters of photography, to engage deeply with images and to constantly learn. 1x has given me the motivation to move forward with my photography and I am very honoured to have the opportunity to showcase my work through this esteemed interview. Thank you dear Yvette for this wonderful platform and your support.

'The idol Artist'

'Morning with fishing net'

'The traditional sweety seller'

https://www.facebook.com/souvik.banerjee.9237