Aimed at making it an informative, educative and inspiring experience, the photography department of Fergusson College had organised an exhibition of the BSc (Physics) students’ distinctive camera skills.

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The three-day event, Fotosync 2011, held from January 27-29, was an exhibition-cum competition. It was part of Fergusson’s annual student festival, Oorja.

“The vocational component of photography for BSc (Physics) students is a unique combination offered only at Fergusson College. After receiving approval from the University Grants Commission (UGC), we started the vocational still photography and audio-visual production course from 1993-94 as an optional subject for students pursuing BSc (Physics),” said head of department of photography, Fergusson College, Rajendra Mahamuni.

With a doctorate in physics from the University of Pune, Mahamuni started his career as a physics teacher at Fergusson. He also nurtured his interest in photography and started teaching the subject in 1994. He became head of the photography department in 2005.

“As digital cameras are popular now and processing has become more affordable with computerisation, it is easy for those who aspire to learn this skill. Anyone can start experimenting with a small digital camera and develop their way of looking at the world through a lens,” said Mahamuni.

Fergusson also has an autonomous certificate one-year course in still photography, which was started in 1983. In 1998, a separate course in colour photography was introduced. “From being a small unit in 1983, the photography department has become completely digitalised in the last three years, with a conventional darkroom, computer lab, two big studios and a colour lab,” said Mahamuni.

With a word of caution to those who use digital cameras, Mahamuni said, “Though you save time and get immediate results, don’t shoot indiscriminately. Pay attention to crystallising your ideas in the pictures you take. Apply the same techniques that you do while using a film camera. Technology may have changed, but the process of image formation through the lens is the same.” 

Siddharth Prabhune, who is in his third year of BSc (Physics) said, “I was always interested in photography. The course has provided me with an in-depth understanding of the physics of photography. I am applying it to illustrate social causes through my photos.”

Second-year student Rasika Purandare said that she pursued photography as a creative hobby and the course has given her an opportunity to convert her interest into a profession.

Insisting that hard work is a prerequisite for an amateur or professional photographer, Mahamuni said, “One can either start one’s own business with a studio or as a professional, shoot for functions or calendars. There are also options like industrial photography, advertising, press and other fields. One can also start by assisting senior photographers or freelancing for the press and corporate houses.”    

The topics covered in the three-year vocational still photography and audio-visual production course are introduction to media and mass media, acoustics (sounds related to media), communication electronics, advance photography, digital photography, video production, video basics (electronics involved in TV video), radio production and entrepreneurship development.