New Delhi: A dirt path, carpeted with fallen leaves, stretches into the distance. On either side, trees adorned with brown and gold foliage form a canopy overhead.
A photograph of this scene, captured by wildlife photographer Brigadier Bikram Singh, hangs at the centre of a small art gallery located in the basement of the India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi.
“I titled it Hope because of what it represents to me,” said Singh, who was showcasing his finest work as part of Bioscope, a seven-day photography exhibition. “I want people to be inspired by the natural beauty around them and recognise how precarious that beauty is.”
This sentiment resonates throughout Singh’s work.
A Nilgiri Langur perched on a tree, dew drops on a bright red Amaryllis, and birds with bright blue feathers in flight—all reflect the abundant beauty of the natural world.
Singh, an active Indian Army officer, started exploring his photography skills during the pandemic, learning technical aspects primarily through YouTube videos.
“Photography makes you a national traveller,” said Singh, who has followed his passion across Leh, Kashmir, and the Northeast. “If you are holding a camera in your hand, you see more, explore more.”
Big cats, in particular, hold a special allure for Singh, who dedicated the first wall of the gallery to these majestic creatures.
A crouched leopard, its muscles contracted, is captured mid-motion, licking its nose. The gallery’s largest photograph is a close-up of a Bengal tiger staring directly into the camera lens, aptly titled Blink Game.
The Bengal tiger images were also a crowd favourite.
“I loved the photo of the large Bengal [tiger] with saliva drooling down its mouth,” said Meena Mani, one of the architects who designed the IIC alongside Joseph Stein.
Singh loves exploring tiger reserves, with Tadoba, Maharashtra’s oldest and largest national park, being his personal favourite.
But his photography extends beyond wildlife.
“Coexistence with nature is important to me,” Singh told ThePrint. “I want to photograph all the elements that contribute to this.”
An entire wall in the exhibit is dedicated to photographs of man-made objects interacting with nature.
These include light filtering through the iron bars of a jail complex in Port Blair, an old temple with stones eroded by time nestled in a verdant green forest, and light pink wine mid-pour into a tall glass at a Sula event in Nashik.
A game of patience and partnership
Wildlife photography is not for the faint-hearted.
“The pictures look very glamorous,” said Singh. “But the ground reality is that every type of shot has its own set of challenges.”
Birds are restless, constantly hopping between branches or jerking their heads in different directions. Flowers are seasonal, blooming only under specific conditions. Wild animals are unpredictable and dangerous, posing real threats during close encounters.
Even landscapes, ostensibly immovable objects, are influenced by weather conditions like haze, rain, and clouds.
“It requires patience,” said Singh, who acknowledges that photography is not a solo endeavour.
His wife, Sonia Singh, accompanies him on these wildlife expeditions. The couple publish their work under the name Bison, a combination of the first two letters of ‘Bikram’ and the first three of ‘Sonia’.
“I was the driver of the car,” Sonia told ThePrint, referring to the close-up tiger photographs. “Teamwork is required to achieve this.”
Leaving behind a legacy
Captions play a special role in Singh’s exhibit. He pairs his photographs with witty and concise descriptions that enhance their visual appeal.
A bee collecting pollen from a yellow dahlia is titled ‘Bee My Guest’. A baby monkey clinging to its mother’s back is called ‘Monkey Business’. Smoke curling from incense sticks at a Ganpati temple is labelled ‘Measuring Time.’
“Captions are like love at first sight,” said Singh, who doesn’t have a personal favourite caption or photograph. He believes it is up to the viewer to decide—because each picture speaks to people in different ways.
“If you look at the picture of the leopards, their eyes are asking you to save them,” Singh told ThePrint. He aims to contribute to biodiversity through his outreach programmes at schools and colleges, encouraging students to connect more deeply with the natural world.
This connection doesn’t have to involve photography.
“It could be as simple as taking a walk in a local park or spending time listening to birds in the morning,” Singh said.
For him, it’s all about fostering mutual coexistence with nature.
Beautiful pics Sir