Chiiz Volume 11 : Macro Photography

THOSE WHO MADE IT POSSIBLE 

DISCLAIMER: ALL PHOTOGRAPHS PUBLISHED BY CHIIZ MAGAZINE HAVE BEEN AUTHORIZED BY THE RESPECTIVE ARTISTS AND ARE PROTECTED UNDER THE COPYRIGHT 

LAWS. IT IS FORBIDDEN TO COPY THE MATERIAL OR RESELL IN ANY FORM WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION FROM THE ARTIST. ALL PRODUCT NAMES, TRADEMARKS, LOGOS, 

BRANDS AND OTHER DATA PUBLISHED IN THE MAGAZINE ARE THE PROPERTY OF THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS. EDITORS ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONTENT IN 

THE ADVERTISEMENTS. CHIIZ BELIEVES IN PROMOTING THE BEAUTY OF HUMAN FORM AND BODY. WE, UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES, PROMOTE VULGARITY OR OBSCENITY 

IN ANY FORM. READER'S DISCRETION IS ADVISED. FOR ANY FURTHER DETAILS VISIT US CHIIZ.COM OR WRITE TO MAGAZINE@CHIIZ.COM. PUBLISHED BY MANSA INC. 

CONTENT PROVIDED BY CHIIZ.COM.

Editorial 

Yuwaraj Gurjar 

Prakhar Garg 

Priyashi Negi 

Ankit Tyagi 

Chief Visualizer 

Sheetal Mann 

Design 

Yasmeen Sheikh 

Analysis 

Prateek Kashyap 

Writer 

Aditi Puranik 

Dipanwita Nath 

Karishma Rana 

Sana Singh 

Technology 

Sachin Arora 

Rishabh Jain 

Bharat Bhushan 

Aditya Baghel 

Business Development 

Rajesh Basu 

Amit Ghosh 

Dimas Fajar 

Sales 

Krishna Srinivas 

Amit Gupta 

Marketing 

Kanika Maurya 

Anurag Khaneja 

Public Relations 

Barkha Chandra 

Staff Photographer 

Surbhi Sharma 

Susana Gomez 

Tarundeep Singh 

Urshita Saini 

Finance 

Neelu Singh 

Consultant 

Apratim Saha 

Mansa Inc. 

Macro is the genre of photography, which 

when perfectly captured, can take you to a 

different world. Be it flowers, birds, insects 

or any such regular subject present in 

our surroundings, appears completely 

different in the zoom lens. Macro 

Photography is all about pictures that are 

larger than the life size of the subjects, 

thereby giving them a stupendous look. 

EDITORIAL 

For most of the macro photographers including me, nature is the 

main source of inspiration. The more you explore, the more you 

notice objects minutely, the more you get ideas of perfect macro 

clicks. The knowledge of various zoom lenses with patience as 

the key, makes the picture of a normal object look like a work of 

excellence. Here, in this issue, each and every macro picture holds 

the power to cause your heart to skip a beat. 

Talking about macro, it requires both skills and patience. This 

volume is obliged to deliver you with fascinating content. The work 

of Nicky Bay will leave you amazed. The beauty of underwater world 

is wonderfully captured by Rudo Hvizdos. Exit Hamster will take 

you on a trip to Oktoberfest through his pictures. Michael Doe’s 

Project Maratus will introduce you to the prettiest spiders in the 

world. Pictures by Abd Al-rhman Nafez Hammad are simply a work 

of excellence. Huub De Waard provides you with the tips to capture 

macro life. The pictures of fine art nude photography workshop, 

the Muses, will leave you in awe and admiration of the marvellous 

photography. 

Photographer Alexey Kljatov has captured snowflakes in their very 

absolute form, which can never be visualized by naked eyes. The 

wild world transforms completely in a dramatically pleasing way 

through the lense of Kurit Afsheen. The dance of water droplets is 

well created by Sonja Bohman. The wildlife is presented perfectly 

through the lenses of Robyn Preston, Augustin Herrera C, Dmitry 

Petlin and Peter Bartlett. The work of Nikhil Paul and Alessandro 

Zocchi beautifully depicts the colors of nature, birds and bees. 

Elisabetta La Rosas, as the model of the month has shared beautiful 

collection of her pictures. Artist Irina Nikitina has brought the 

makeup art to a different level. 

Macro Photography can take the photographer to new and rarely 

seen vantage points. However it is a genre that requires a lot 

of technical skill. Although macro photography might seem like 

a challenging task, but the results make it all worthwhile. As a 

compiled piece of masterworks, the magazine is here to provide 

you with the content that will amaze you for sure. It will make you to 

visualize things minutely like a skilled photographer, thereby leaving 

a positive impact. So take your camera, try and find something 

amazing in the simplest of objects and keep clicking. 

CEO 

Mukesh Kumar 

Cover Photo 

"Nawab"-Nicky Bay 

Regards, 

Yuwaraj Gurjar

CONTENTS 

Inspiring with Photography 

Chiiz Gallery 

Project Maratus 

Tips and Tricks 

Old is Gold 

The Close-Up World 

Oktoberfest:World's Largest Folk 

Festival 

Movie Review 

Leaf Cutter Bees 

App of the Month 

Muses Workshops 

Undefined Body Art 

12 

20 

24 

28 

36 

46 

38 

60 

62 

66 

90 

94 

Nikhil Paul 

Macro Photography 

Michael Doe 

Huub de Waard 

Rapatronic Photography 

Nicky Bay 

Exit Hamster 

Samasara 

Santhosh Krishnamoorthy 

Cameringo + 

Jeet Mukerji 

Cecelia Webber

Robyn Preston 

Her earliest recollections of 

“Things Africa” are from 

when she was around 10 

years old when she was 

always drawing African 

animals. It wasn’t until 

much later, in 2009, when 

she actually set foot on the 

African soil. 

She did a two month overland 

trip taking in ten different countries on the 

continent. 

This was to become the start of her 

photographic interest in the wildlife, and it has 

only grown since then. Her background was 

predominantly in portrait photography, so taking 

photos of animals seemed easier. She has no 

formal training and had to learn as she went. 

Since then she has done more safaris than 

she can count, interspersed with two wildlife 

conservation courses which taught her much 

about animal behaviour and habitats. She has 

travelled through twelve African countries, 

several of them more than once, but now her 

base is in Kenya for seven months per year. She 

has formed her own safari company, Robyn E 

Preston Kenya Safaris, in 2015 and, when she 

is not out guiding with guests, she is doing 

her personal photographic safaris around the 

country. She owes a lot to her driver of five 

years, Dedan Ndungu, who she works with as a 

team on all her safaris. 

Leopard in tree 

104mm F/4.5 1/1250s ISO100 

Giraffes 

40mm F/10 1/250s ISO100

Zebra 

400mm F/5.6 1/1600s ISO200

Cheetahs 

400mm F/5.6 1/500s ISO320 

Sykes monkey 

400mm F/5.6 1/500s ISO1250 

Leopard’s kill 

105mm F/5.6 1/160s ISO100 

Mating Lions 

312mm F/5.6 1/400s ISO320

Lion 

227mm F/5.6 1/400s ISO160 

Geladas 

164mm F/7.1 1/250s ISO1000

Heron 

Nikon D5500 300mm F/6.3 1/400s ISO500 

Kingfisher 


Inspiring with Photogrphy 

Nikhil Paul 

Graphic designer and photographer, 

Nikhil Paul is one inspirational man who 

has achieved a huge name with his photos 

and more with the obstacles he had to face. 

Living in Kolkata, he went through a lot 

of hurdles owing to Rheumatoid Arthritis. 

He is a hero with his achievements and 

the way he has successfully overcome the 

complications of his life. 

He had an immense passion towards 

photography since he was a little boy. 

His father used to take photographs in 

his studios with a huge box camera with 

big size cut film(AGFA, KODAK etc). 

For more than 20 years, Nikhil has been 

experimenting with point and shoot 

cameras like Fuji Finepix S9500, Panasonic 

DMC-FZ 35 and Panasonic Lumix FZ 

70. He also used a DSLR film camera 

MINOLTA 7000 for a few of his projects. 

He switched to Digital Cameras in the year 

2007. Now, he is using Nikon D5500 and 

Panasonic Lumix DMC G5 (mirrorless 

camera) and has been focusing on Nature 

and wildlife photography especially birds 

and their prey and some reptiles around his 

backyard. This is one big challenge he took 

because due to his disorder, he cannot do 

any outdoor photography. He takes all his 

photographs from his backyard through 

his bed-side window. Seeing his work, one 

cannot tell that he has done all this work 

from his bed-side window. 

He has gone through both positive and 

negative experiences as nature and wildlife 

photography includes tremendous amount 

of field work. He has continued to follow 

his passion for photography from his home, 

however, having a pond right beside his 

backyard has helped him a lot in capturing 

the prey and predators of wildlife and their 

struggle for existence from dawn to dusk. 

Nikhil comes across a number of 

difficulties but his biggest limitation is the 

bedside window. He, however, believes that 

all these limitations have only made him 

better and he has evolved as an artist over 

the years. There were times when he missed 

many great shots as something or the other 

came in the way of his lens. He has been 

disappointed many times because he is a 

nature photographer who has to work from 

home. He started his career as a graphic 

designer but currently he is spending 

most of his time in photography. Due to 

his physical suffering he can’t take a lot of 

stress but his efforts are very commendable 

worthy. 

For Nikhil, his ray of hope in life is 

photography and he feels that he has just 

taken the first step of a long ladder and 

he is yet to climb the rest of it. He gets 

his strength from his family and friends' 

support and love. 

12 Vol 11

Asian Koel 

Nikon D5500 260mm F/6.3 1/60s ISO500

Green Bee-Eater in Flight 


Common Tailor-Bird 


Common Hawk-Cuckoo 


Barbet 

Nikon D5500 300mm F/6.3 1/160s ISO800

Oriental Venice, floating fishing village, Xiapu, Fujian , China 

Sony ILCE-7M2FE70 200mm F/4.0 1/160s ISO100 

Single foot fishing, Inle Lake, Burma 

Sony A7II FE70 200mm F/4.0 1/160s ISO125 

Borderline between North and South Korea 

Sony NEX-5R E18 200mm F/16.0 1/100s ISO100

Beach, Xiapu, Fujian , China 

Sony ILCE-7M2 200mm F/4.5 1/80s ISO100

Borderline between North and South Korea 

Sony ILCE-7M2 200mm F/16.0 1/100s ISO100 

Capturing moments is Lina Fann's hobby. It has never been a problem for her to combine her enthusiasm for 

travel and immense love for photography. Lina travels mostly between Europe and Asia. Her favourite places 

to shoot includes Old Bagan(Myanmar), active volcano Bromo Surabaya(Indonesia) and Li River(Mainland of 

China) among others. 

You are welcome to visit her home page for more photos in full frame linastravelphotography.com and her 

Instagram account: @linas_travelphotography. 

Miao Ethnic Women, Longji Rice Terraces, Guangxi 

Sony A7ii FE24-70mm Zeiss F/4.5 1/60s ISO 100 

Fisherman at Beach, Xiapu, Fujian, China 

Sony ILCE-7M2 116mm F/4 1/125s ISO250

CHIIZ 

GALLERY 

TO GET PUBLISHED, UPLOAD YOUR PICTURES ON CHIIZ.COM 

Dibakar Roy 

Kolkata, India 

Lunch 

Canon EOS 1200D 250mm F/5.6 1/640s ISO500

Chinmoy Biswas 


Struggle 

NIKON D7200 105mm F/8 1/50s ISO400 



Green within Red 

NIKON D3100 55mm F/5.6 1/250s ISO100 



Waves of Colors 




Motherhood 

NIKON D7200 105mm F/32 1/60s ISO640

Agnsiwar Ghosal 

West Bengal, India 

Watching from the Colorful Balcony 

NIKON D3300 50mm F/11 1/200s ISO400 

Partha Chakraborty 


Lunch 

Canon EOS 5D 250mm F/14 1/332s ISO320

Erik Svec 

Nove Zamky, Slovakia 

Weaver Beetle 


Azim Khan 

Bogra, Bangladesh 

Jumping Spider 

Canon EOS 70D 100mm F/4.5 1/13s ISO100 

Jaspreet Singh 

Bellevue, Usa 

At times, the essence of euphoria is the only fuel to drive you through 


Kurit Afsheen 

DKI Jakarta 

Making Space 

Canon EOS 550D 100mm F/13 1/200s ISO100 

Taiyab Jamal 


Crab Spider Sitting on his Throne 

NIKON D5300 40mm F/10 1/200s ISO250

Maratus hortorum - Perth Western Australia 

Canon EOS-1D X Mark II 65mm F/13 1/200s ISO100 

Discovery of a New Species 

Project Maratus Michael Doe 

Michael Doe is a 44-year-old living in Sydney, 

Australia. In his spare time, he photographs 

peacock spiders and belongs to a non-profit 

group called Project Maratus, where they 

are researching the ecology and distribution 

of these unique Australian arachnids. Their 

project has taken them all around the country 

and in the course of their travels, they have 

discovered seven new species. Here is the 

conversation between Aditi Puranik from 

chiiz and Michael Doe. 

When was the first time you felt an 

inclination towards macro photography 

and why? 

I have always been interested in animals but it 

was not until I bought my first digital camera, 

a Canon powershot 1, several years ago 

and started photographing the invertebrates 

around my home that I truly fell in love 

with photography and particularly macro 

photography. Being able to see the details 

that the eye cannot see is amazing , even a 

common fly looks great when viewed up 

close. 

Maratus volans or The peacock spiders are 

new and unknown species for the people. 

What makes them different from the 

others, thereby increasing the importance 

of the project? 

Peacock spiders are the jumping spiders found 

only in Australia. Male’s bold colours and 

their courtship display set them apart from 

other species. Their courtship interactions are 

truly unique and this interesting behaviour is 

the key of unlocking many future scientific 

discoveries in communication and signalling 

in species. Even people who are afraid 

of spiders find peacock spiders cute and 

endearing. 

What kind of gears do you use for capturing 

spiders? 

My camera gear consists of a Canon 5D mark 

III and a Canon 1D mark II, the lenses are 

a Canon MP-E 65mm and a Canon 100mm 

f/2.8L macro lens. I have kept with Canon 

because of the MP-E and its ability to go 5x, 

which is invaluable in photographing these 

spiders which are 4mm on average. 

I use a Canon MT-24EX flash unit with a 

homemade diffuser, made from 4mm foam 

covered with satin fabric. 

What is the motive behind Project Maratus 

and how does it works? 

Project Maratus is a non-profit group 

undertaking and promoting research of the 

iconic australian peacock spiders. These 

spiders are Australia’s “mini birds of paradise“ 

with their intricate and often flashy courtship 

rituals. We are the first coordinated approach 

into investigating their distributions 

throughout Australia and the habitats they 

depend upon. This information plays a vital 

role in understanding their evolution and 

ecology in our environment. 

Maratus is indeed a rare species, what is the 

best and the worst part of picking them as 

a subject? 

Some Maratus species are common but we 

have found through our studies that some 

are only found in unique habitats and are 

harder to find. Australia, being such a large 

country, means that we have had to travel 

great distances sometimes up to 700 kms a 

day to find suitable habitats. 

The best and most rewarding part is 

discovering a new species that has never been 

seen before. Till date, our small group has 

discovered seven new species. 

Any tips for those who share an interest for 

the same? 

According to me, for any macro photographer 

the most important thing is to get to know 

your subject, its habitat, behaviour etc. The 

more you understand the subject, the easier 

it becomes to photograph them and above all, 

practise all the time and never stop learning. 

Aditi Puranik 

aditi@chiiz.com 

A budding journalist, Aditi watches the 

world with wonder in her eyes. Talented 

but lazy, introvert but sarcastic, she is a 

nature lover, continuously trying to work on 

her photography and writing skills. She is a 

wanderer at heart and dreams of travelling 

the world. 


Maratus volans with prey - Central Coast NSW Australia 

Canon EOS-1D X Mark II 65mm F/9 1/160s ISO100 

Maratus chrysomelas - Western NSW Australia 

Canon EOS-5D X Mark III 65mm F/11 1/160s ISO100 

Maratus pardus - Western Australia 

Canon EOS 5D Mark III 65mm F/9 1/160s ISO100 

Maratus nigromaculatus - Brisbane, Queensland, Australia 

Canon EOS-5D Mark III 65mm F/9 1/160s ISO100

Maratus volans - Central Coast NSW Australia 

Canon EOS-5D Mark III 65mm F/9 1/160s ISO100 

Maratus ottoi - Southern Queensland Australia 

Canon EOS-5D Mark III 65mm F/9 1/160s ISO100

Drone Fly 


Tips and Tricks 

Macro Photography 

Huub 

de Waard 

The compound eyes of insects, consisting of 

a large number of ommatidia, have always 

fascinated me. To uncover as much detail as 

possible I photograph insects so extremely 

close that they seem to have a gigantic size. 

At that scale insects of the same species look 

very different and each insect seems to have 

its own character. 

Magnification describes the relationship 

between the actual size of the subject and 

the size of its image on the sensor of the 

camera. Dividing the size of the subject’s 

image on the sensor by the actual size 

determines the magnification. At 1:1 lifesize, 

the size of the subject on the sensor is 

as big as it is in real life. Macro Photography 

is restricted to magnifications in the order of 

1:10 to 1:1 life-size. When this magnification 

is reached, shooting from life-size to 

modest magnifications of up to 20 is called 

microphotography. 

Larger than life-size 

Most macro lenses are maximally able to 

capture a 1:1 life-size image of a subject on the 

camera’s sensor. Microphotography can be 

undertaken by normal macro lenses equipped 

with modestly specialized equipment. A lens’ 

minimum focusing distance is the closest 

distance your macro lens will allow you to get 

to your subject while still maintaining sharp 

focus. A low-budget method to decrease the 

minimum focusing distance is to extend the 

distance between the lens and the sensor by 

inserting extension tubes or a continuously 

adjustable bellows. Both the extension 

tubes and the bellows do not contain optical 

elements. The further the lens is from the 

sensor, the closer the minimum focusing 

distance, the greater the magnification, and 

the darker the image given the same aperture. 

By adding a teleconverter, an even greater 

magnification can be achieved. Application 

of a 2x teleconverter produces a maximum 

magnification of 2 and 2 stops loss in light 

intensity. Placing an auxiliary close-up lens 

(or close-up “filter”) in front of a macro lens 

is another option. Inexpensive screw-in or 

slip-on attachments provide close-focusing at 

a very low cost. 

Approaching Insects 

Although most insects do not have orifices in 

their body for picking up sound vibrations, 

many use parts of their body, such as 

their wings, antennae, or special hairs, 

like TV antennae to detect vibrations in 

the environment or in the air. Any errant 

movement on your part could cause you to 

lose a shot, so be sure to tread carefully when 

approaching your subjects. The first thing 

you want to do is to move very slowly. Look 

before you move, look at where you place 

your feet, look at where your equipment is, 

and most of all plan where you are going to 

put the front of your lens. Many potentially 

good shots have been ruined by the front of a 

lens bumping a branch or leaf where an insect 

was resting, causing it to flee. 

Most insects have a view of the world that is 

very different from ours. These eyes are made 


Common Flesh Fly 


up of many separate units called ommatidia. 

Each ommatidium samples a small part of 

the visual field. Having multiple ommatidia 

allows the animal to easily detect motion. 

With a compound eye the insect sees a mosaic 

image. Because the lenses in the insect’s eyes 

have a fixed focus, and can’t be adjusted for 

distance, insects see shapes poorly. 

As an object moves across the visual field, 

ommatidia are progressively turned on and 

off. Because of the resulting “flicker effect”, 

insects respond far better to moving objects 

than stationary ones. Most insects can 

see some color. While our eyes see a full 

spectrum of wave lengths from red to violet, 

many insects see a limited range of colors. 

The colors they detect are the ones most 

useful for finding food and shelter. 

Composition 

Composition is more difficult for macro 

photography than for other types of nature 

photography. 

In microphotography, you want to simplify 

your image as much as you possibly can. Fill 

up as much of your frame as possible with 

the subject. Focus as sharp as possible and 

don’t be afraid to experiment with different 

angles to find the one with the most aesthetic 

appeal. Photos at high magnification have 

a corresponding shallow depth of field, so 

precise control over the location of focus 

is critical. This requires not only artistic 

decisions about what part of the subject 

should be tack sharp, but also technical 

decisions about how to make the most of this 

sharpness. It’s almost a universal rule that 

the subject’s eye(s) should be the location 

of sharpest focus and should have a wellchosen 

position within your composition. 

For maximal sharpness throughout, adjust 

the angle of your camera so that the plane of 

sharpest focus aligns with the head/plane of 

your subject. 

Ladybird 


Jewel Bug 

Canon EOS 7D 65mm F/9 1/250s ISO100

Theloderma corticale 


Dendrobates tinctorius azureus 


Litoria caerulea 


Furcifer pardalis 


30 Vol 11 

Dendrobates leucomelas 


Tribolonotus gracilis 

Nikon D700 105mm F/2.8 1/200s ISO200

Trimeresurus insularis blue 


Morelia viridis 


Ceratophrys cornuta 


Chamaeleo calyptratus 


Calumma oshaughnessyi 


Dmitry Petlin has been doing photography 

since 2010 and for the last 3 years he 

has been into macro photography. 

While doing subject photography 

and dealing with exotic animals, he 

combines two of his hobbies. In his 

opinion, such pictures are complete 

and detailed which convey the beauty 

and perfection of these animals. 

Vol 11 

31

Phelsuma grandis 


Mantella aurantiaca 


Elaphe obsoleta lindheimeri leucistic 


Lampropeltis triangulum hondurensis HYPOMELANISTIC 


Phelsuma laticauda 



Gekko gecko 


Chlamydosaurus kingii 

Nikon D700 105mm F/2.8 1/200s ISO200

Mates 

Nikon D700 180mm F/8 1/250s ISO400 

Bee-ing on the Flower 


Flower and the Future 


Alessandro Zocchi works for eleven 

photographic agencies that sell his 

pictures all over the world. His 

specialization is nature, science, 

commercial and industrial macro 

photography. He works for private 

clients who like to hang artistic 

macros on their houses’ walls. He has 

been a crew member and book editor 

for 1x.com. He regularly organizes courses 

and workshops in photography and is the author of the, 

“Handbook of Nature Macro Photography”. He also takes 

pictures for himself, spending as much time as possible in 

nature with the people he loves the most. 

Nature's Elegance 

Nikon D800 200mm F/8 1/200s ISO100

Dreaming 


Clad in Purple 

Nikon D700 200mm F/16 1/400s ISO1250

Old is Gold 

Rapatronic Camera 

by Harold Eugene Edgerton 

It’s often said that time doesn’t stop for anyone, but Harold Eugene 

Edgerton took the phrase as a challenge and made time stop for him. 

In the modern era, flash on smartphones and cameras have become 

so common that nobody questions how it came to be. It was in 1952, 

an era in which vacuum tubes and radios were the sizes of your 

couches, when Harold invented the Rapatronic Camera. The name 

‘rapatronic’ comes from rapid action electronic (camera). The flashes 

on our smartphones and cameras are a tribute to and the legacy of 

Edgerton. After the completion of his master’s degree from MIT in 

electrical engineering, Edgerton began his experiments with flash 

tubes. He developed the xenon flash which emitted light at regular 

intervals, thus proving itself to be the perfect stroboscope. It helped in 

capturing milk drops falling on a plate, a bullet passing an apple, etc. 

The xenon flash or Edgerton’s flash was capable of firing a burst of light 

at every 10th millisecond. Before this invention, photographic flash 

meant flash powder which was helpful only to produce a controlled 

blazing explosion. There was nothing to shoot high-speed phenomena 

as the speed of the shutter was very slow and worked well only when 

the subject was stock still. 

The invention of the rapatronic camera was the combination of the 

xenon flash and the traditional camera. It had two polarizing filters. 

The shutters were placed adjacent to each other at a 90 degree angle, so 

that no light can enter it. In the middle of the filters, a Kerr cell is placed 

as a replacement of a shutter. The reason behind the replacement was 

that the shutter was too slow to do the job of capturing movements. 

The Kerr cell was chosen to replace it as its polarization changes 

according to the applied voltage. It acted as a high speed shutter. The 

creation of the camera and the flash suddenly captured awe-worthy 

complex geometries which were previously incomprehensible to the 

human eye. 

At a time when even still photography was not overly popular, where 

did Edgerton get the inspiration to think of such complex designs? It 

was in MIT’s computer laboratory that Edgerton was performing an 

experiment using a computer. He saw the warning lights indicating 

overheating (which blinked 60 times in a second). The blinking 

light gave Edgerton the idea that the high-speed world can only be 

illuminated and captured by bursts of light by nanoseconds. Once the 

invention and tests were done, the struggle of selling his device began. 

Kodak was hesitant about this device and it believed that it would be 

hard to even sell 50 samples. But, the belief was proved wrong once 

Edgerton took a photograph of a night boxing match, which presented 

the fighters clearly and in clear light. From then on, the electronic flash 

hit emerged into the market and made millions. 

The rapatronic camera has helped engineers to solve various technical 

problems in the movements of machines and has also allowed them 

to examine the operation of machines. Harold Edgerton, through his 

photographic innovation, has made photography a diagnostic tool. 

Furthermore, during World War II, Edgerton successfully developed 

a bigger version of the stroboscope which was used to illuminate and 

take photos of drop zones in Normandy. It helped in the identification 

of areas free from Germans. After the WWII, Harold captured the 

initial phases of an atomic explosion. This was possible as Harold and 

his technical team were able to cut the shutter’s time to 1/4000000th 

of a second. 

Harold Edgerton died at the age of 86 in 1990. He is still applauded 

for his inventions which are a huge feat of technical excellence. His 

legacy continues in the usage of his inventions in various photography 

related fields. US President Harding himself has appreciated Harold’s 

photographs for their detail, color, composition and “unusual subject 

matter”. He comments how Harold’s inventions and photography 

helps in the recognition of the power of photography and its ability 

to “create a sense of wonder from ordinary, everyday events such as a 

falling drop of milk.” 

Harshika Kapoor 

harshika@chiiz.com 

Harshika is a 19 year old book nerd who, when not in pursuit of food, studies 

journalism. She's adept in the language of art, politics and all things in between. 

She's in possession of a selectively Type A personality and confidently takes it 

in her stride.

Hawk Moth 


Rhino Beetle 

Nikon D800 90mm F/25 1/20s ISO200

The Close-Up World 

Nicky Bay 

Stick Insect 


Nicky Bay is a world-renowned macro-photographer based in Singapore. His works have been 

featured on National Geographic, BBC, WIRED, and numerous other publications worldwide, 

topped with solo exhibitions in Europe including Senckenberg Museum in Germany and Galerie 

du Lion in France. Nicky conducts macro photography workshops in exotic locations like Borneo, 

Africa and Central America, attracting participants from all over the world, 

many of whom are advanced photographers themselves. A judge in the 

inaugural Singapore Nature Photographer of the Year competition, Nicky 

has put together one of the largest arthropod photo databases in the 

world with about 25,000 high-quality macro photos, many of which will 

be featured in his next book "Borneo Spiders". An engineer by training, 

Nicky is also the CTO of the QCD Group of Companies and publishes his 

photographs with natural history articles at www.nickybay.com. Read 

the conversation between Ankit Tyagi of Chiiz and Nicky Bae below. 

From being a software development consultant to a macro 

photographer and instructor, what gave you the inspiration for 

macro photography? 

The main inspiration comes from discovering new species or behavior 

and documenting them. Many lab-bound scientists collect and 

photograph dead specimens, so a lot of information on the insect's 

biology is not recorded and macro photographers in the field have the 

unique opportunity to document sightings new to science. 

Macro photography is an interesting genre to work on but at 

the same time it is challenging too. What are the challenges you 

face and how do you overcome them? 

Being from the software development industry, I spend of a lot of time 

in systematically and creatively solving problems. The same can be 

applied in macro photography. A lot of DIY work can be involved, 

so each macro photographer's solution can be vastly different while 

achieving the same effect. A lot of people ask me how I manage to 

shoot up close without scaring the subjects away. All I can say is that 

I chase after many subjects and take many photos, and only a few 

would stay still while the rest would run/jump/fly away. 

photography which can be explored? 

There are no best locations as much would depend on what each macro 

photographer is particularly interested in. The way to see more is to visit 

more places, as each new location would have a much higher potential 

for species new to the photographer. 

What tips would you like to share for the amateur macro 

photographers, which can help them? 

Do your homework on what you want to photograph. Study their 

behavior and biology so as to figure out the best way to find and 

approach them. That way, you would enjoy photographing them more 

and learn a great deal in the process. 

Ankit Tyagi 

ankit@chiiz.com 

Ankit has intense love towards photography and is now working as an Asst. Editor 

with Chiiz. He has been writing for us for a long time now and believes in the power of 

words. The dream is to explore and find different perceptions in life. He likes watching 

classic movies and is inspired by Alfred Hitchcock as a director. 

There are lots of insects and small creatures which are used as 

subjects for macro photography, what are your favourite subjects 

you like to work on? 

I spend a lot of time in photographing spiders. They are incredibly 

diverse morphologically when compared to other groups of insects. 

The most fascinating ones are those that do not look like spiders at all. 

In documenting all the spiders that I've come across, the collection has 

become so extensive that I've been co-authoring books on Southeast 

Asian Spiders and Borneo Spiders. 

According to you, what are the best locations for macro 

Papilio 

Nikon D800 90mm F/25 1/250s ISO400

Cyclosa 


Poltys 

Nikon D800 90mm F/25 1/160s ISO200

Acacesia 

Nikon D800 90mm F/20 1/250s ISO400

Lyssomanes 


Davidbowie 

Nikon D800 90mm F/25 1/250s ISO250

Plant-hopper 


Caterpillar 


Pit Viper 

Nikon D800 90mm F/25 1/250s ISO640

Ricaniidae 


Encyosaccus 

NIKON D800 90mm F/25 1/120s ISO400

Travel and festival photographer Exit Hamster has been capturing moments for more than a decade in various locations around the 

world. His goal is to sell stories about emotions, positivity and variety plus providing the awareness of the opportunity to change 

lifestyle and focus.“Incentives for your escape from the wheel” is Exithamster’s quote, which shall encourage people to start 

living their dreams. His visits to remote and rural areas in Myanmar, Cuba or North Korea reflect the fact that bad media is not a 

criteria to stop you from visiting rapidly changing territories with political instability. “In our today’s fast-paced world photography 

is very important as images visualize the process of change and provide a record of history to future generations.” he says. 

Exithamster’s work reaches thousands of travellers, explorers and festival goers from all around the world. Some of the visuals 

are featured in international newspapers like the Guardian, the New York Post, the Daily Mail and certainly in online media. 

You can follow his feeds on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Oktoberfest 

World's Largest Folk Festival 

Fiesta 

Canon EOS 5D Mark III 24mm F/2.8 1/125s ISO2000

Prost! 


As the name suggests, Oktoberfest is the 

world’s largest fun fair. Also known as 

the beer festival, it is held annually 

in Munich, Germany, and is usually a 16-18 

day festival running from late September to 

early October. It is an important part of the 

Bavarian culture which was first celebrated in 

the year 1810. Traditionally, it was called the 

‘Wiesn’ but with time this private celebration 

turned into a public festival and was named 

Oktoberfest. Being a national folk festival, it 

looks forward for fun attractions like parades, 

food counters with loads and loads of beer 

and music. 

The festival holds a great history which 

slightly resembles almost every festival’s 

history. Every festival has a motive and some 

history behind it. Oktoberfest, which dates 

back in the history, comes from the happy 

Celebration 


royal event when King Ludwig I, was married 

to Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen 

on 12th October 1810. This festival was held 

on the fields of city gates and thus the fields 

were named Theresienwiese (Theresa’s fields) 

in honor of the Crown Princess. All the locals 

of Munich were invited to the marriage who 

later abbreviated to be called the “Wiesn”. 

One of the most eagerly awaited activities of 

the fest after the beer consumption were the 

horse races. Horse races were the reason to 

celebrate the fest but the later years gave rise 

to the fest that we see now and is organised 

in the honor of the royal family. At present, 

horse races aren’t held but the added feature 

in the year 1810 that showcased the Munich 

Agriculture is witnessed in the fest even today. 

This show was known as the Agriculture 

Show. It is mostly seen in the southern part of 

the festival grounds. 

Talking about Oktoberfest and not talking 

about beer is really absurd. A lot of beer is 

consumed every year which is the best way 

to celebrate the fest. “Liquid gold” is probably 

the most important thing among the many 

attractions. The beer brewed within the city 

limits to the city itself and the beer tallying 

the criteria are designated as Oktoberfest 

beer and this is why one will always hear 

that Bavaria has the best beer in the world. 

There have been strong regulations regarding 

brewing beer and keeping up to the quality

of the final product since 16th century. 

Bavarian Purity Requirements, decreed by 

Duke Williams IV concerning food and 

drink allows only water, hops and barley to 

brew. 

Oktoberfest is also characterised by music 

which includes the German folks portraying 

their culture and traditions. Most of the 

bands perform in the tents so as to allow the 

visitors and guests to enjoy their food and 

beer while listening to their favourite songs. 

Music and loads of food and beer makes the 

fest look lively and exciting. People get more 

entertained when the music gradually rises 

up to the dance-able level. Night witnesses 

most of the charismatic loud music while 

during the day light soft hearted quiet music 

can be heard. 

Another spice in the recipe of Oktoberfest 

is the variety of food and costumes. Where 

there is food, you feel like you are at home. 

Most of the Bavarian delicacies are found 

in the fest and some common foods like 

grilled chicken, sausages and grilled fish 

are presented to accompany the beer 

celebration. Also, to make the fest look 

completely dedicated to Bavaria, a Bavarian 

hat is seen almost everywhere during the 

celebration. Men and women roam in the 

Bavarian attire to completely bring the 

essence of culture. 

Facilities like transportation is well 

maintained and the security, trained. This 

is the reason that there have been notably 

no accidents in the fest till date. For 

decades now, the Bavarian Red Cross has 

been responsible for the medical service 

at the Oktoberfest. Each Oktoberfest is 

visited by almost 4 million visitors who are 

transported to and from the fest. Special 

parking is provided outside the city, which 

can be reached by public transportation. 

This year, the 185th Oktoberfest will 

commence most probably by 22nd 

September, witnessing parades of officials 

and breweries, continuing for the next 17 

days. A 7-kilometer-long procession is 

taken out through the streets of the city 

center. Ribbon trees, harvest garlands, 

craftsmen's tools from the bygone days, 

harvest produced, dancers adorned with 

flowers, stars and crowns and trumpeters 

on horseback are the main attractions for 

the first day of this year’s fest. Altogether 

a beer and music lover will surely love the 

atmosphere of the festival. It is one of the 

most entertaining and amusing festival of 

all times. 

Roller-Coaster Ride 


Liquid Gold 


Shimran Epari 

shimran@chiiz.com 

Shimran is an exceptional thinker and 

an excessively expressive person. She 

is passionate towards literature and 

enjoys writing as a medium of expressing 

thoughts. Shimran is also a good orator 

with an excellent grip over language and is 

skillful while handling an audience. 

Roller-Coaster Ride 

Canon EOS 6D 11mm F/4 1/30s ISO500

Abd Al-rhman Nafez Hammad 

is a 20 years old, Palestinian 

macro-photographer, 

living in Gaza. He 

especially likes Eye 

photography. In addition, 

he is extremely fond of 

Characters photography. 

He has also established his own 

studio “Top shot” within one year of exploring 

photography as a medium. His series "Lens" 

feature lenses. You can find his work on 

instagram.com/topshot.studio 

Metal wasp 


Beetle 

Canon EOS-700D 35mm F/4 1/100s ISO100

Spider 


Rhynchophorus ferrugineus 

Canon EOS 700D 11mm F/4 1/100s ISO100

Haney eye 

Canon EOS 6D 1/200s ISO100 

Blue eye 


Solar eye 


Desert eye 


Beach eye 


Ocean eye 

Canon EOS 6D 1/200s ISO100

Kurit Afsheen is a 37-year-old freelance graphic designer and 

photographer, based in Jakarta, Indonesia. He is a macro 

photographer who mainly loves documenting reptiles. 

Crocodile, damselfly and ant 

Canon 7D 100mm F/7.1 1/250s ISO400 

Leopard gecko in reflection 

Canon 7D 100mm F/6.3 1/200s ISO320 

Deroplatys lobata / Dead leaf mantis 

Canon 7D 100mm F/8 1/200s ISO200 

Flying frog/ Rhacophorus reinwadrtii 

Canon 7D 100mm F/6.3 1/250s ISO320

Chameleon catching prey 

Canon 7D 100mm F/8 1/1000s ISO1250 

Young flamingo in frame 

Canon 7D 160mm F/8 1/200s ISO6400

Rudo Hvizdos was 

born a traveler. 

His passion for 

exploring the 

unknown has 

led him to scuba 

diving and eventually, 

through many beautiful 

places around the globe. Originally from 

Slovakia, he has found a second home 

in Padangbai, Bali, where he moved 

with his beautiful wife Elenka in 2009. 

Together with their business partner 

and friend, Radka from Czech republic, 

they own and run, ‘OK Divers Resort & 

Spa’, a cozy resort on the east coast of 

Bali. 

Padangbai, Bali 

Olympus OMD E-M1 60mm F/10 1/125s ISO100

Black Beauty 

Olympus OMD E-M 60mm F/14 1/125s ISO100 

Pouting Fish 

Olympus OMD E-M 60mm F/16 1/125s ISO100

Lemon-like 

Olympus OMD E-M1 60mm F/13 1/125s ISO100 

Planktons 

Olympus OMD E-M1 60mm F/2.8 1/125s ISO3500 

Look at me now 


Innocence 

Olympus OMD E-M1 60mm F/7.1 1/125s ISO100 

Yell out Loud 

Olympus OMD E-M1 60mm F/13 1/125s ISO100

Snowy 


To catch a Glimpse 

Olympus OMD E-M1 60mm F/6.3 1/125s ISO100

Movie Review: Samsara (2012) 

Duration: 99 minutes 

IMDB Rating: 8.5/10 

Released: 2012 

Cinematography and Directed by: Ron 

Fricke 

Genre: Non- Narrative Documentary 

Filmed in Panavision Super 70 

Entirely shot on 65mm camera film, 

“SAMSARA” is a manifestation of 

the wonders of this planet and is a 

continuation to the 1992 released wonder: 

“BARAKA”. While “Baraka” means “the 

blessing of God”, the etymology of the word 

“Samsara” lies in Sanskrit, meaning “the 

wheel of life” which deals with the cycle of 

birth, death and rebirth a belief in religions 

like Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism. 

Filmed by Fricke and Magidson, “Baraka” 

(1992) invested in mesmerizing snapshots 

from across the world. Following the 

same idea, “Samsara” is another of their 

masterpiece that deals with the concepts 

of life and draws a sharp contrast between 

man and nature, technology and ancient 

civilization, life in the metropolis and 

that in the jungles. Rated 8.5 by IMDB, 

“Samsara” is a visual masterpiece that 

beautifully presents the wonders of life 

and death. Devastation is contrasted with 

growth and development, nature to nurture 

and civilization to the wilderness. 

The movie opens with the delicate beauty 

of Balinese dancers. Other parts of the 

movie feature beautiful locations covering 

five continents and their diverse cultures 

and traditions. From Thiksey Monastery 

in India to the Hajj ritual in Saudi Arabia, 

the movie does not differentiate between 

religions and, in fact, invests in diverse 

religious backgrounds. On one hand, we 

have laborers working hard in the sulfur 


mines of Indonesia and on the other hand, 

we have factory workers working in unison 

using technology, robots imitating and at 

the same time, replacing manpower. We 

have huge food processing factories where 

pigs and hens are being slaughtered. These 

factories not only represent processing 

of food but death as well. The process of 

generating something out of a dead animal 

(food) can be compared to the process of 

rebirth. 

Apart from this, the Thousand Hand 

Goddess Dance representing China 

and Geisha, representing Japanese 

tradition does not fail to catch the eye 

of the spectators. The Thousand Hand 

Goddess dance represents that each one 

of us have a particular role to perform. 

Coordination and teamwork is eminent in 

the performance of these graceful ladies. 

Dancing inmates in the CEBU Detention 

Center, Philippines have two different 

interpretations. One might be that they 

are using dance as a means of resistance. 

The other might point to the attempt of 

the superiors to control, rather tame or 

civilized those prisoners. 

Discipline, as a theme, is prominent in 

the entire movie. Be it the wild nature 

or the human civilization, discipline is 

an inevitable part of our lives. The kids 

enrolled in the practice session of martial 

arts too represent discipline at its peak. Not 

just nature and human civilization, but, 

religion too teaches us the importance of 

the same in our lives. The rhythmic raising 

and bending of heads of thousands of 

Muslims in unison in front of Allah refer to 

the discipline religion has taught us. While 

Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam are there 

in the form of rituals, Christianity is also 

there, flaunting its beauty in the form of the 

beautiful Church of The Redeemer situated 

in Israel. 

The Tibetan monks working on a circular 

sand mandala with utmost dedication and 

precision too, points to the circle of life 

whose end has to meet someday. The piece 

of art is destroyed at the end mixing it all 

and resulting in the formation of the colors 

of a beautiful rainbow. The movie, overall, 

has a mesmerizing effect on our way of 

seeing life as a circle. A cycle of events 

where balance and discipline is necessary. 

It is, hence, a movie worth investing our 

time into; probably not just a movie, but 

“a guided meditation on life and death” as 

Mary Ann Brussat puts it. 

Meenal Singh 

meenal@chiiz.com 

Meenal is an undergraduate student of Miranda 

House, University of Delhi. She aspires to be a 

lecturer in English Literature. Meenal wishes 

to fight for the equality of women worldwide 

through the power of her words.

Siphoning 


Leaf Cutter Bees 


Mention of the word ‘bees’ brings 

to mind those huge swarms of 

buzzing insects living in a very 

well established social setup, building 

huge colonies consisting of thousands of 

individuals. 

However, very recently did I learn that 

not all bees live in colonies, i.e., in a social 

group of many individuals. There are bees 

that live a very solitary life. One such are 

the bees belonging to the Megachilidae 

family, more commonly known as the leaf 

cutter bees. They are called so, based on 

the kind of material they use to prepare 

their nest cells, namely, small pieces of 

leaves. There are others in this family, like 

the mason bees, which collect soil as the 

material for their nest cells. 

Leaf cutter bees are very important as 

pollinators. They are not aggressive and 

have a mild sting that is used only when they 

Leaf Cutters 



are handled. They cut the leaves of plants and use the cut leaf 

fragments to form nest cells. They nest in soft, rotted wood or 

in the stems of large, pithy plants, such as roses.[From Leaf 

cutter Bees – Quick Facts] 

One leaf cutter bee had made its home inside a small crevice, 

in an old rusted gate of an empty site near my house. It was 

constantly flying to and from its new found home, each time 

returning with a small piece of something that looked like a 

fragment of a leaf. Curious about what it was up to, I sat there 

observing it for a while, over one of the weekends and did a 

bit of reading on them as well. 

The crevice was more like an entrance to, what I felt, was a 

long tunnel inside the frame of the gate. Before flying out to 

fetch a leaf, the bee, very diligently, would clear the place of 

small stones, sand and other debris. Then, it would fly out, 

returning after a while, with a small piece of a leaf. 

It would enter its home with the leaf and get into the tunnel 

that it had cleared just before leaving. Since it was holding 

on to the leaf with its mandibles, it seemed that it wasn’t very 

easy for the bee to turn the leaf around to align it properly 

with the entrance to its tunnel home. So, for the initial few 

times, it used to fly out of the crevice and fly back in at the 

right angle to be able enter properly. 

Prep Work 


It flies out only to come back in, at an appropriate angle. 

Slowly, it seemed to have learnt and thereafter was getting 

inside very smoothly, with one flight, straight in. 

This bee wasn’t really going too far to look for its leaf 

requirements. It had picked a tree close by, to cut out the 

pieces of leaf from. It was very skillfully cutting out the leaf 

using its mandibles and it seemed to be flying around the tree 

looking for the right leaf and upon finding one, was making a 

very precise cut each time. 

An interesting fact about the bee’s leaf cutting exercise is that 

they cut the leaves with their scissor-like mandibles, making 

smooth, circular or oval cuts from the edges of leaves that are 

about 1/2" in diameter. According to The Xerces Society, it only 

takes two or three seconds for the female to cut a piece of leaf. 

Just before she finishes cutting it, the female starts to beat her 

wings, so she is already flying by the time the leaf fragment is 

severed. The cut out designer leaves, thus remain, on the tree 

but don’t in any way harm it.(Source: Our Native Bees) 

Also, the pieces of the leaf that are carried into the bee’s home 

are used to embellish its nest cells and also to separate the 

individual cells. These cells would then contain one egg each, 

along with a little bit of nectar and pollen to provide for the 

larvae that would hatch out of the egg. The females of these 

bees are the ones that do all the work. 

It takes an average of 15 leaf pieces or flower petals to line one 

brood cell, and a total of 20 to 30 trips may be required to 

gather the necessary pollen and nectar to provision just one 

cell. Under favorable conditions a female bee may finish an 

average of 30 cells in her lifetime. [Source: Our Native Bees] 

Really hard working mothers these leaf cutter bees are 

indeed! 


Santhosh is a passionate naturalist and an award winning nature 

photographer. He likes to observe and document the interesting aspects 

of nature and its inhabitants using photography as a medium. He runs 

Birdwing Travel & Photography where he mentors budding and amateur 

nature photographers. He also posts as @santhosh.kris on Instagram 

and blogs at framesofnature.com 

Nesting Leaves 

Nikon D90 105mm F/10 1/160s ISO400

Dot Lines White Moth 

Nikon D7000 85mm F/11 1/160s ISO200 

Robber Fly 


Pure Green Augochlora Bee 


Growing up with a camera in his hands, Peter 

Bartlett explores nature, wildlife and the 

macro world through his photography. 

A graduate of the college of Design, 

Architecture, Art and Planning at 

the University of Cincinnati. Peter is 

an award winning designer and an 

exceptional photographer. Whether 

out in the elements or in the studio, 

Peter explores the unseen details 

and beauty in everyday life. Peter 

currently lives in Dayton, Ohio with his 

wife and three daughters. 

Paperwasp 

Nikon D500 90mm F/29 1/200s ISO200

Micro-filament from an incandescent light-bulb 

FEI Quanta 600F at magnification of 500μm 

Hoverfly on Blackeyed Susan 

Nikon D7000 50mm F/22 1/500s ISO200

App of the Month 

Cameringo+ 

In this era of millennialism, where 

photographs speak a thousand words and 

tell different stories, we have an avid love 

for tools that make our photos look even 

better. There are artists and designers who 

are constantly hustling to make their work 

more aesthetically prominent and better than 

before. There is an undeniable competition 

between the technologies launched everyday 

in the market and some of them will fade 

away soon. 

In this month’s app review, we might just 

have found the app you are looking for. An 

app which gives you a stylish, yet powerful 

interface and also the joy of shooting beautiful 

photos. Cameringo+ is an app for Android as 

well as Apple users which gives its users the 

freedom to click their own photos and edit 

them accordingly on the app itself. The app 

offers upto 300 variety of live customizable 

filters and over 20 frames.Till date the app has 

125 photo effects including several lomo and 

Lo-fi, it also includes many styles like artistic 

painting, cartoon and paper style. 

Cameringo+ isn’t a mere clone of instagram or 

snapchat, but has distinctive features that sets 

it apart from the features that are provided 

on social media sites. The most give away 

feature of this app is the photo review mode 

in which you can keep shooting from a small 

screen while the large screen shows the last 

photo taken, which could be very helpful for 

the photographers out there who like clicking 

on their cell phones. Well, this app has that 

sorted out for its users with advanced features 

which include to edit the photos in real-time, 

the image exposure, brightness, contrast and 

more so that you get the desired results as per 

your convenience. 

Cameringo+ can also be used by people 

who just want to have fun, you can explore 

the world of filters, effects, video mode with 

live filters and can create your own GIFs. Yes, 

that’s right the app comes with a GIF recorder 

which can be used with the filter options and 

you can also record videos in reverse mode. 

You can adjust and edit the GIFs according 

to your own liking; customizing it as per your 

own creativity and the user can also quicken 

or slow down the animation of the GIF. If you 

can’t stay still while taking the picture; the 

app comes with a stabilizing camera feature 

for better captures. 

You are given multiple options when you take 

a photo like a preview along with the discard 

option and also to share it or move it back 

to the capture mode. A very unique feature 

which makes it different from other apps 

is the preview of the image on the interface 

itself. The maintenance updates comes with 

improved quality and bug fixes. It’s sharing 

option also goes well with all the social media 

platforms. 

It covers most of the features and functions 

required by avid lovers of photography. It’s a 

handy camera which will give the professionals 

as well as the budding photographers the 

aesthetic pleasure of photography and editing. 

Therefore, it is much advisable to explore, 

wide range of cool styles with Cameringo+. It 

is an upgraded interface with which you can 

do anything your way in just a few clicks. 

Nivedita Joshi 

nivedita@chiiz.com 

A content writer by profession and a student of M.A. 

in English, Nivedita is the girl next door who likes to 

refer to herself as a potboiler and has an avid love 

for the Korean culture. She enjoys her Netflix and 

Chill with a cup of chai.

Alexey Kljatov’s passion is taking close up snowflake pictures. Natural snow 

crystals are amazing objects for macro photography, owing to their beauty, 

uniqueness and unlimited diversity. Even after eight winters of regular photo 

sessions, seeing thousands of snowflakes in all their details, he does not 

get tired of admiring new crystals with amazing form or an incredible inner 

pattern. His photos have been published by reputed organisations like NASA, 

Wall Street Journal, and CNN among others.





Friend of the Flower 

Ross Hoddinott is one of the UK’s leading landscape 

and close-up photographers. He has worked as a full 

time professional since 1997, supplying photographs 

and undertaking commissions for a wide range of 

clients worldwide. He is a multiple award winner 

in Wildlife Photographer of the Year, British Wildlife 

Photography Awards – including overall winner in 

2009 – International Garden Photographer of the Year. 

Serpentine

Shedding Skin

Trunk of Bristle Cone Pine Tree 

Fuji S5Pro 90mm F/36 1.6s ISO100 

Shore bird feather 

Fuji S5Pro 180mm F/32 1/8s ISO100

Black-eyed Susan Flower 


Creeping Spurge Plant 

Nikon D7000 18-270mm F/36 1/8s ISO400 

Thin Ice Formation 

Fuji S5Pro 180mm F/27 0.7s ISO100

Large Sycamore Leaf 


Shadow of Small Sycamore Leaf 

Fuji S5Pro 180mm F/32 1/500s ISO1600 

Mike Moats is an 

award-winning, 

professional macro 

photographer from 

Sterling Heights, 

Michigan. Mike’s love of 

photography, which started 

out as a hobby in 2001, has since 

evolved into a full-time business. In addition to 

creating his own images, Mike added Macro 

Boot Camps into the mix in 2006, and he now 

also makes speaking appearances at photo 

conferences nationwide, and has an online 

Macro Photo Club to assist photographers 

with their macro goals. 

Recruited as a member of the Fuji Pro Talent 

Team in 2006, Mike is also honored to be a 

Tamron Image Master, and a Vanguard Pro. 

He has won numerous local, national, and 

international awards. Mike’s first book, Tiny 

Landscapes, was released in 2008, and 

his images and how-to articles have been 

published in various magazines, including 

Outdoor Photographer, Nature’s Best 

Photography, Shutterbug, PC Photo, Nature 

Photographer, Photo Life, Whisper in the 

Woods, and Michigan Fish and Game Finder; 

in photography collections such as the North 

American Nature Photography Association’s 

(NANPA’s) Expressions book and the Pure 

Michigan tourism companion; and in various 

corporate collateral, including on the Tamron 

USA blog and in Fujifilm newsletters. 

Agave Plant 

Nikon D7000 18-270mm F/40 1/20s ISO3200

StrawberryPoisonFrog (Oophagapumilio) 


Drab Treefrog (Smiliscasordida) 


Eyelash Palm PitViper (Bothriechisschlegelii) 


yellow cricket (Chromacrispsittacus) 


Agustín Herrera is a nature photographer 

who captures the beauties of his 

country, Costa Rica. His profession 

is that of a business administrator 

and he works for the government 

and all his life he has been 

passionate about photography, but 

it wasn’t until four years ago that 

he obtained his first professional 

camera. Currently, his free time is 

dedicated to landscape, night, long 

exposure and macro photography. 

Within macro photography, he developed a great fondness for 

herpetology mainly, and he has a great facility to photograph 

many species due to the great diversity of herpeto-fauna that 

Costa Rica has. Apart from his commitment, respect and love for 

nature, he makes sure that his photographs are captured avoiding 

to hurt animals and wherever possible, their handling. Some of its 

main techniques range from camera configurations such as the 

increase of ISO and the use of external flash with the mínimum 

intensity of illumination and diffuser to dim the light. 

Red-eyedleaffrog (Agalychniscallidryas) 

Nikon D750 100mm F/14 1/160s ISO800

Red-eyedleaffrog (Agalychniscallidryas) 

Nikon D750 100mm F/11 1/200s ISO1000

Northern Cat-eyed Snake (Leptodeiraseptentrionalis) 


GhostGlassFrog (Sachatamiailex) 

Nikon D750 100mm F/9 1/200s ISO1000

Sonja Bohman, lives in 

Stockholm, Sweden with 

her husband, four sons 

and four dogs. She has 

been photographing 

since 2004, and from 

the very first moment 

she was fascinated by 

the tiny world that existed 

and could be caught by her 

camera with the Sigma Macro 

150mm lens. A year ago, she wanted to face new 

challenges in macro photography. She wasn’t 

sure what she was looking for until she saw some 

amazing pictures of liquid art on the internet. So her 

droplet journey began. In the beginning, the results 

were quite simple and boring, but the more hours 

she spent in her basement with her camera and 

her droplets the better the pictures became. A few 

month ago she bought a dripping machine with 

three solenoid valves from Cognisys. It triggers the 

4 flashes, the camera and the valves, which makes 

it a little bit easier to catch the droplets. The best 

thing with droplet photography is that there is no 

end of possibilities, and she intend to continue her 

journey until she catches the perfect drop image. 

Joy 

Canon Eos-1D X 150mm F/16 2/5s ISO250 

Carousel 


Captured 


Simplicity 

Canon Eos-1D X 150mm F/16 2/5s ISO250

Harmony 


Sweetness 


Darkness 


Consonance 


Reflection 


Eternity 

Canon Eos-1D X 150mm F/16 2/5s ISO250

Yuwaraj Gurjar works 

with Raymond Limited 

- a renowned textile 

manufacturing company, 

but his love for nature 

always drives him to go 

places into wild India – 

being hugely diversified 

habitats. He has travelled across the country 

& Sri Lanka for nature observations and 

photography. His photographs have won 

many national and international awards; have 

been exhibited across the world. Some photos 

were included in field guides, educational 

websites and magazines. He actively spreads 

the awareness & his knowledge about 

the nature, wildlife & photography. He has 

developed a free Mobile App on Butterflies of 

Mumbai as well. 

Cicada emergence 

Nikon D7000 90mm F/10 1/60s ISO200

Scorpion mother with Babies on back 


Ceropegia fantastica 

Nikon D7100 90mm F/10 1/60s ISO200

Model 

of the 

Month 

Elisabetta 

La Rosa 

Hailing from the city Rome, 

Elisabetta La Rosa is 

completing her master’s 

degree in art history and 

had started her adventure in 

the fashion world two years 

ago, parading for the Stella 

Mazzotta atelier where she 

was contacted by several 

photographers for filming. 

Later, she won the “social” 

band in the Miss Diva Italia 

competition of the patron 

Cristina Roncalli. Numerous 

collaborations with Atelier 

and Fashion Brand, of which 

she remember with pleasure 

that with “Vices and Virtues”. 

She recently returned to the 

200 most beautiful girls 

in Italy in the “Miss Italy” 

competition. 

Height: 175 cm 

Chest: 91 cm 

Waist: 67 cm 

Hips: 98 cm 

Shoe size: 40/41 

Body size: IT 42 

Hair Color: Brown 

Eye color : Brown 

Dress size: M/S 

Work Profile: 

- Winner of the band “Miss 

Diva Italia Social, 2016” 

- Model for Atelier “Stella 

Mazzotta” 

- top 200 beauty contest 

Miss Italia 2017 

- Brand Ambassador of “Vizi 

& Virtù” 

- Hair showby Simelì Concept 

- Ambassador of 

Skinnycoffeeclub and Cocoa 

Locks 

- Model for “Le spose di 

Valentina” 

Photographer: Giulio Irving 

Mua. Francesca Cimirro 

Fashionista 

Nikon D610 105mm F/3.5 1/160s ISO200


Make-up Artist: Ludovica Sechi 

Steampunk 




Carnal 




Dauntless 

Nikon D7000 85mm F/5 1/125s ISO100

Makeup artist 

Irina Nikitina (IG 

@irinanikimua) 

was creative 

and artsy 

right since 

her childhood, 

having a deep 

passion for the arts, and as she 

grew older she decided to turn 

her talents into a profession. 

Being a makeup artist is more 

than just a hobby for her, she 

has spent the last 13 years doing 

make up and has turned it into a 

satisfying and successful career. 

Irina is experimental with her 

work, mastering both beauty and 

glamour in addition to working 

with a variety of mediums 

and styles. She specializes in 

beauty, fashion, print, editorial, 

commercial and bridal make up. 

She never stops learning and 

evolving her skill set, always 

looking for new and exciting ways 

to bring a look to life. 

Photographer: Anastasiya Sofronova 

Model Arina Rodionova 

Queen 


Photographer Ylva Erevall 

Model Juliana Vagner 

Hair: Aferdita Ferati 

Stylist: Dash Armstrong 

Floral 

Canon EOS-1D X Mark II 100mm F/11 1/100s ISO100 

Photographer Ylva Erevall 

Model Bianca Labruja 

Hair Aferdita Ferati 

Rhythmic 

Canon EOS-1D X Mark II 100mm F/13 1/125s ISO100


Model Tatyana Glotova 

Outlandish 

NIKON D80 62mm F/4.5 1/180s ISO100


Model: Arianna 

Bejeweled 


Photographer: Ylva Erevall 

Model:Jeanine 

Hair: Leo Crews 

Designer: Veritee Hill 

Black and White 

Canon EOS-1D X Mark II 100mm F/11 1/160s ISO100 


Model Tatyana Glotova 

Dark 




Sassy 

NIKON D80 70mm F/4.5 1/180s ISO180

Swapnoleena Sen 

Delhi, India 

Dichotomy 

50mm F/1.8 1/160s ISO800 

A WORKSHOP BY JEET MUKERJI 

It’s dark. It’s forbidden. It’s frowned upon. 

But aren’t all the things worth doing are? 

Delve into the magical world of fine art 

figure study and learn the craft from the 

master himself. Join fine art photography 

expert Jeet Mukerji for a two-day immersion 

into everything you need to know to 

conceptualize, style and shoot photographs 

that double as works of art as he shows rather 

than tells the finer aspects of the marvel that 

is fine art figure study. 

MUSES, a one-of-its-kind photography 

workshop, is one big opportunity to explore 

your inner artist that often gets lost in the 

bland bedlam that we call our everyday lives. 

The second phase of Muses is scheduled to take 

place in Mumbai. If you are a photographer 

and have a love for fine art photography or 

want to explore the genre, then missing out 

on Muses photography workshop would be 

akin to a cardinal sin. 

The first phase of Muses, Muses En Delhi, 

has already transpired and has left all those in 

attendance in a trance. The workshop initially 

started with some apprehension from the 

side of the participants which soon dissipated 

as the workshop progressed, leaving the 

participants in awe and confidence that with 

the right control of light, the most decadent of 

shots can turn into sensual works of art. 

In this genre of photography, understanding 

the concept of light holds a lot of bearing. 

To this end, a few exercises were practised 

to make the participants perceive the source 

and the path of light as projection of light 

is something which needs to be felt and not 


setup. This concept aids in creating drama and 

enigma around the subject, hence creating 

an impression of implied nudity among the 

viewers. This is something that distinguishes 

vulgarity from fine art abstraction. 

For the first day of the workshop, a small talk 

on lighting adjustments for fine art figure 

study shoot followed by a live demo shoot 

with the model were on the agenda. From 

explaining how to choose your model to the 

type of conversations that a photographer has 

with the model and how to set up lights, every 

topic was discussed. It was an unlearning 

of predefined notions and unearthing new 

lessons, much to the edification of the 

participants. The participants were later 

asked to work independently based on what 

Jayant Sidana 

Delhi, India 

they learnt in the workshop. The photographs 

clicked by the participants were then 

processed the next day as they learnt the finer 

nuances of post-processing. The workshop 

was an overall enlightening experience and 

the results are now on display. 

As Erol Ozan wisely said, “Some beautiful 

paths can't be discovered without getting 

lost.” Lost we got in the heady passion of the 

photographers, lost we got in the dark atelier, 

illuminated only by the strobe lights, only 

to find within ourselves an artist, capable of 

creating wonders with just a click. 

By Priyashi Negi 

Jeet Mukerji-Behind the Scenes 

Canon EOS 80D 50mm F/1.8 1/400s ISO2500

Arun Gupta 

Delhi, India 

Dichotomy 

NIKON D500 50mm F/1.8 1/60s ISO2000 

Ashwamani Goswami 

Delhi, India 

Incomparable 

Canon 700D 18-55mm F/14 1/125s ISO400 

Vanita Vig 

Delhi, India 

Exquisite 

Canon 760D 27mm F/13 1/200s ISO100

Kaushal Sakaria 

Delhi, India 

Tantalising 


Dhanwant Seehra 

Delhi, India 

Thoughtful 

Canon EOS 5D Mark III 250mm F/13 1/200s ISO50

Dhanwant Seehra 

Delhi, India 

Reverie 


Siddhartha Choudhary 

Delhi, India 

Unrivalled 


Siddhartha Choudhary 

Delhi, India 

Radiant 


Priyanka Sachar 

Delhi, India 

Inimitable 

Canon EOS 5D Mark II 48mm F/22 1/10s ISO400

Sunflower 

Canon T2i

Night Owl 

Canon T2i 

Cecelia Webber was born in New Hampshire and received a BFA from University of Southern California in 2008. She 

works primarily in digital photography and acrylic painting. Her aim is to explore how people understand themselves 

in relation to their perceived realities, creating art as a means of heightening emotional experience through 

manipulation of imagery and form. Webber works to make people aware of their link to nature and to inspire a 

sense of responsibility to make environmentally friendly choices. Additionally, she hopes to help people realize a 

positive self-image of their bodies and to have the ability to look at nudity and nakedness as comforting, vulnerable, 

and beautiful. Her work has been published in numerous international publications and exhibited worldwide. 

What brought a neuroscience graduate into 

photography? And from where did the idea 

of this beautiful style of composition arise? 

I have been doing artwork since I was a very 

young child, and I have always been curious 

about nature. My curiosity about nature led 

me to study science and philosophy, which 

ended for me in the study of neuroscience. 

The photos themselves came from a happy 

accident: I took a photo of a woman’s back 

against a black background and it looked like 

a petal. Everything began with that one photo. 

You regularly use yourself as the subject, 

setting the camera on timer and then 

orienting yourself for the desired 

picture. What inspires you to create such 

compositions? 

To create such art that way I reach a state of 

flow. The artwork comes fully from me. It also 

gives me the greatest level of precision and 

control. 

Accurate composition of the picture 

sometimes take a complete month or 

two for the composition and approx. 700 

layered variation, it is a time taking process 

but what is the best and the most difficult 

part of process following which you get the 

perfect image? 

The most difficult part is when for some 

reason, the piece does not come together 

the way I envision it and I have to start again 

from a new series of photos. The best is when 

I find a treasure in my photos that leads to the 

creation of an entire new piece, for example 

I’m trying to shoot a pose for a petal and 

instead I find it looks like a perfect feather. 

Your work is already published in numerous 

international publications and exhibited 

worldwide and of course, there is a long way 

to go. What are your future plans? 

I hope to work with models who are in their 

later years, to show the beauty of the human 

spirit both in young age and old age. 

Any tips or message for those who are 

inspired by your photography? 

Never worry whether people will think your 

art is good or not. So many brilliant people 

have told me that worrying about this is 

why they don’t get started making art. I only 

think about how happy it makes me when I 

am working on a new piece. The experience 

is expressive and beautiful, and that is why I 

pursue it. The feeling of flow. 

Surbhi Sharma 

surbhi@chiiz.com 

An adventurous girl who has a great love 

for street food. she is dedicated towards 

her work and a self-inspired lady.she has 

a dream to travel the world alone.

Bleeding Heart 

Canon T2i 

Pink Blossom 

Canon T2i

Reacht 

Canon T2i 

Chrysalis 

Canon T2i 

Fern and the Moth 

Canon T2i

Fish 

Canon T2i

Chiiz Volume 11 : Macro Photography

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?