Trikansh Sharma Interview
Q. You started taking photography seriously after your 12th and began exploring the forests around Rishikesh. What was it about that first phase of photographing nature that made you think, “I want to take this seriously”?
Photography came before wildlife for me. I started with street photography around Rishikesh, until one winter morning when I saw a spotted deer in the first light. I was completely hooked. I kept returning to the same place every other morning, photographing whatever nature chose to offer. That one sighting slowly turned curiosity into a serious pursuit. Looking back, that was probably the morning when my love for nature truly began.
Q. You’ve photographed wildlife for years, but your work seems to have evolved from simply capturing animals to understanding their behaviour, habitat, and the stories around them. How has your way of looking through the camera changed over the years?
Initially, I was curiously looking for sharpness and out-of-focus backgrounds, which I saw on social media in photographs made by many professional photographers using flagship cameras and super-telephoto prime lenses. While I was using entry-level camera gear, I realized that if I have to do something, that has to be using whatever I have. Then I realized photography is a combination of the capability of the machine and the skill of the human. The limitations of my early gear pushed me towards creative photography techniques like motion blur, multiple exposures, and others. Over time, I stopped chasing sharpness and started chasing light, behaviour, habitat, and stories. Today, I believe a technically perfect photograph can show beauty, but observation and patience create the story.
Q. You’ve had some incredible moments behind the camera, including your National Geographic recognition. But is there a photograph you’ve taken that means more to you personally than any award ever could? What makes that image special?
I don’t really believe in becoming emotionally attached to a photograph, place, or species. There are images in my portfolio that I value because they helped my work stand out, but not because they are emotionally precious to me. What makes them special is the thought behind them, the light, habitat, behaviour, or creative technique. For me, the learning during the journey and the process itself matters more than one photograph.
Q. One thing that stood out to me is your idea of “Habitat Before Hero” showing the animal as part of its environment rather than simply making it the centre of the frame. Where did that philosophy come from?
I noticed that wildlife photography was mainly only about the animal, while the world around it was often reduced to a blurred background. I wanted to look at wildlife photography differently. The animal cannot be separated from the place it belongs to. That became my philosophy of “Habitat Before Hero.” If we appreciate and protect the habitat, the hero within it is automatically protected. For me, it is both a photographic philosophy and a way of looking at conservation.
Q. You’ve spent a lot of time teaching photography as well. What is one mistake you see beginners making when they become too focused on getting the “perfect shot” instead of actually observing what is happening around them?
The biggest mistake is becoming so focused on getting the perfect photograph that you stop observing. I often tell my participants, “Excitement kills a picture.” When you become too excited, you stop thinking about settings, composition, and what might happen next. With today’s cameras, sharpness is hardly the biggest challenge. The real skill is observing behaviour, anticipating movement, and creating a storytelling frame. Observe first. Photograph second.
Q. Wildlife photography requires an almost ridiculous amount of patience, you can spend hours waiting for something that might last only a few seconds. Has photography changed the way you approach patience and uncertainty in your life outside the forest too?
Absolutely. Wildlife has taught me to accept things as they unfold. I often say, “Be it in life, photography, or the jungle, whatever happens, happens for a good reason.” You can wait for hours and see nothing, or wait just as long and experience something extraordinary in a few seconds. After thousands of such encounters, you realise uncertainty is not something to fight. It is something to accept. Wildlife photography, for me, is observation, patience, adaptability, and learning to accept things as they unfold.
Q. Wildlife photography can show people the beauty of nature, but it can also reveal things that aren't particularly beautiful, habitat loss, human interference, animals struggling to survive. After seeing both sides up close, has it changed the way you think about our relationship with nature?
I have always believed that humans and nature cannot exist as completely separate worlds. There must be protected spaces where wildlife can thrive, but there must also be responsible coexistence. The question is not whether humans should exist, but how responsibly we choose to exist. Population pressure is one of the major challenges behind habitat loss, because as our needs grow, natural spaces come under greater pressure.
Q. After spending so much time patiently waiting for animals to do something unexpected, what’s the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever waited hours for in the wild that turned out to be absolutely worth it, or completely pointless?
Honestly, I don’t think any wait in the wild has ever been pointless. I have waited eight or ten hours and seen nothing, while sometimes something extraordinary has happened in just a few seconds. Even when the animal never appeared, the wait taught me something about behaviour, habitat, or myself as a photographer. In wildlife, the lesson is often more valuable than the photograph.
BIO:
Trikansh Sharma is a wildlife and travel photographer recognized by National Geographic. Transitioning from street photography in Rishikesh to documenting deep wilderness, he advocates for the "Habitat Before Hero" philosophy, emphasizing environmental storytelling over technical perfection. Alongside capturing nature, he conducts immersive workshops to teach conservation-focused observation and creative camera techniques.
Interviewed By Lavish Singh Rajawat
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