Photography is one of the most popular and accessible mediums today, and getting your photos published is no longer as wild a dream for the amateur as it might have been some decades ago. Still, getting your photo on the cover of a publication from the National Geographic group carries a prestige all its own. This is what 10 amateur photographers will vie for as they appear on National Geographic Channel’s “Nat Geo Covershot: Mission North East”, this Saturday onwards. The 10-episode programme features them contesting to click a photo which is to be used on the cover of National Geographic Traveller India magazine — an honour and a shot at immortality. The participants will be judged and mentored by award winning photographer Lana Slezic and actor-producer Rajiv Lakshman.
There are five men and an equal number of women in the fray. Asked if it is deliberate, Rajiv says, “The idea was to have the best. By coincidence we achieved a parity between the two sexes.”
This time, the format of the competition is different. Though photography is a solitary profession, the 10 are initially grouped in teams and asked to produce a single image pertaining to a new location or a new activity, or a place famous for something, or a celebration. This enabled an interaction between the members, forcing them to listen to and understand each other’s perspective. The face-off between two teams is judged by Lana and Rajiv with the winner getting an advantage. The members of the losing team are required to click individual photographs based on which the participant for the next round is decided.
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Says Rajiv, “It is not elimination but progression as participants are constantly mentored and nurtured. Losers do not lose face.”
Rajiv describes the format as an arrangement of the different elements that serve to throw up dramatic human stories — and that is what each episode promises to be.
The first season of “Covershot” was held in Sri Lanka. This time it is India’s Northeast, which is visually stunning and boasts a beautiful and rich culture.
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When asked about the discrimination meted out to the denizens of that region in the Capital, Rajiv says it saddens him emphasising that they too are Indians who have complete freedom to settle wherever they want.
He adds, “I wish they are integrated and not discriminated against.”
The basic criteria for judging the images is effective communication and aesthetics.
Lana brings in her technical skill, experience and artistic perception while Rajiv judges whether the pictures depict a human story and the psychology of the contestants. Rajiv candidly admits that there was a diversity of opinion between the two judges.
The programme was shot in 20-odd days in Assam and parts of Meghalaya. So, happy viewing of a unique part of our country and the stunning images the contestants have captured of it.
The programme airs on National Geographic Channel, April 26 onwards, 10 p.m.