Photography is an important part of our work as scientists. We use photographs for documenting our research and field work, for teaching purposes and to enhance our presentations at conferences. Photographs allow us to easily make a point when advocating for a good cause. We like to share interesting images of our work with our research groups and partners in other countries as well as network with people interested in photography. We also take photos when we travel to different countries, and maybe do some artwork that we print and display on walls.

However, it is difficult to receive feedback on photos and to learn and grow as photographers. Getting a constructive feedback from experienced photographers is often necessary for developing photography skills among people with less experience. This is because experienced photographers can easily point out the flaws in any given photograph and provide suggestions on how to take better photographs in future.

This session is aimed at presenting photos of members who want to show their shots and receive feedback. In a friendly open photo slam, we will show the photos in a room during lunch break and talk about what the picture communicates, the good things about the photo, and tips on how to improve the displayed image. The aim is to be respectful and to learn all together from the (anonymous) photos we see (the names need not to be displayed).

The idea is to help improve your photography, so that you are aware of some simple things like composition, lighting, how to make strong photographs and how to improve your skills as a science communicator. This workshop also aims to create network of people interested in photography within ATBC.

I have a keen interest in photography, and I will be leading the session with Mr. Upamanyu Chakraborty, Project Officer, Turtle Survival Alliance, India, who is an experienced photographer. His photos have been displayed in highly recognised magazines such as ‘Sanctuary Asia’, and ‘Niche’ by British Ecological Society. He has been a photographer for the past eight years and has the capacity to advise colleagues about taking high quality photos in order to communicate strong conservation messages.