In love with the crashing blues

The Vice President of the Surfing Federation of India, Rammohan Paranjape is an avid surfer himself. With his love for marine life kindled right from his childhood, the Bengaluru-based photographer moved to Mangalore near his surfing school to spend more hours of his day with the waters. Rammohan started swimming and surfing in the waters in 2005 when he met a few of his school friends who were already surfers. Devoting equal time to surfing and surf photography, he has now gained 12 years of experience in both. “I also organise surfing competitions and many other official works, but documenting and capturing the surfers through my lens is my passion, a serious hobby that I’ll always work in,” he shares. 

Having travelled different countries like Australia, Fiji, Bali, Europe and more, his experience is wide and deep, but he loves Indian seas more than any other. He says, “Indian surfing scene has been growing well in the last few years. I want to focus more on the Indian scene than other countries. I love to travel but I want to work in India.”

Talking about the challenges involved, Rammohan reveals, “You can shoot from land or from the waters near the surfer. To get newer perspectives, you experiment a lot but it is quite risky. The love for adventure keeps me going, but the waves might drag you away and you will keep drifting and not be able to focus on your shot. Sometimes, in places like Andaman you have to watch out for reefs because they will hit hard and hurt your body. You have to watch all sides and also keep track of the shot that you planned.” 

Shooting with different kinds of cameras like GoPro (which is water-resistant), Sony and Canon with high end, water protective gears, Rammohan spends 3/4th of every year with his cameras. “Compared to other adventure sports, the equipment needed to shoot water sports is very costly,” he adds. 

Asked about his biggest goal, Rammohan says, “We are undergoing a constant learning process. I want to keep pushing my limits as a photographer and as a surfer and bring India’s surfing scene to a whole new level.”