WallMag: Tell us about Sumer Verma
Sumer is a veteran scuba diving instructor and underwater photographer. He is passionate about the oceans and extremely concerned about their plight at the moment. He hopes to foster a love for the ocean amongst everybody and encourage its care and conservation through his photography. A passionate nature and wildlife lover.He is based between Mumbai and the Andaman Islands and has been the Managing Partner of Lacadives (India’s oldest dive school) for the last 2 decades. He also does commercial underwater photography & videography through the medium of films, advertisements and magazine editorials.
WallMag: Tell us where it all began, how did you become a photographer?
It started when I first went to Lakshadweep in 1997 and fell in love with the ocean and scuba diving. There was so much beauty around that I felt the need to capture it and share this beauty with others who were not as fortunate to see it for themselves. From that drive, the photography began.
WallMag: One of your favourite shots.
The swimming elephant. I was very privileged to be asked to shoot Rajan – the iconic gentle giant of the Andaman Islands – for the Incredible India campaign. That half an hour I got to spend swimming with an elephant in the clear blue sea will remain etched in my mind forever. The picture from that remains one of my favourites and even hangs on the wall of my bedroom.
WallMag: What camera do you use the majority of the time?
For the longest time I used the Canon 5D Mark II but I have recently upgraded to the Canon 1DX Mark II.
WallMag: How did you become interested in underwater photography?
Having become a diving instructor and spending a majority of my days underwater for over a decade and a half, I became extremely drawn to the beauty of the underwater world and wanted to capture its essence to share with everybody. This got me interested in underwater photography.
WallMag: Exactly what is it that you want to say with your photographs and how do you actually get your photographs to do that?
Simply said, I want to share how beautiful the ocean is and there are so many incredible creatures that live there beyond one’s wildest imaginations. I want to share the beauty, share the love and inspire people to love nature, love the ocean and hopefully act to protect our planet and sea.
I do this by taking 2 kinds of pictures – wide-angle images – vast ocean and reef scapes, to capture the essence of the sea and close up macro images – fish faces, scale patterns – to communicate expressions and mood. Together these two types of pictures create a personal connection between viewers and the ocean which I hope leads to love and awareness of the same.
I also use my images in a way that helps the cause of conservation – from allowing conservation organisations and scientists to use my imagery, to actively working with ReefWatch Marine Conservation – an Indian not for profit dedicated towards protection of our ocean and marine biodiversity, to being vocal on my social media about the marine issues in our country.
WallMag: What do you enjoy doing when not taking photographs?
I enjoy riding my bike and spending time in the great outdoors.
Stay tuned with the amazing work of Sumer on Instagram. You can even check out his work on Luminiousdeep and SumerVerma
