The National Geographic has hosted ONGC, Rajamahendravaram Asset’s Reservoir Executive Engineer M.A. Jayaraj’s leopard photo on its website under the Daily Dozen Category recently.
The Leopard figuring in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List was clicked in the Nagarhole Tiger Reserve in Kodagu District in South Karnataka during a forest expedition in May, 2016.
Mr. Jayaraj’s picture was the only one from India in the Daily Dozen list on the day of hosting. Innumerable pictures are posted by the global community everyday and the wildlife photo editors pick only 12 a day from the images for hosting. These pictures may have a chance of getting published in the 128-year-old institution’s publication NatGeo magazine.
Speaking to The Hindu , Mr. Jayaraj said an hour before the close of the forest visiting hours, while on the guided tour jeep, “I spotted the leopard from 50 metres. The animal was agile and athletic adding beauty to the environs and I observed its behaviour and body movements thoroughly. I requested the driver to slow down the vehicle and gradually proceeded towards the animal as close as 15 metres to frame it within the natural environs. I positioned myself firmly to capture its sharp looks, ready for action, body posture and clicked a few snaps while the forest authorities blew the hooter and the day was transforming into twilight. It all happened in a few seconds and the beautiful ‘frame’ was the result.” He owes his honour to his better half A. Sribavani also employed with the ONGC.
The photo was given only minimal touch-ups and loaded on to the NatGeo’s Your Shot digital community of 737,158 members spanning 195 countries with an archive of 6,388,788 photos and counting. Your Shot is an e-initiative of NatGeo to tell the stories collaboratively through big, bold photography and expert curation.
