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Just a sunbeam
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C. Rajgopal talks about how he came to shoot his signature picture.
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The most widely exhibited and awarded photograph by an Indian.
I SAW the possibilities of the casuarina grove on the Bannerghatta-Anekal Road on a Thursday, induced a man with a pair of bullocks to walk up and down the path, bracketed exposures and shot several frames. After processing the film, I decided on the best exposure and went back on Sunday. A flock of sheep happened to come along. I induced the shepherd to walk up and down, raising dust in the evening sun, and then shot a whole roll. It has been continuously exhibited since 1962 and the end is not in sight. If I am ever identified with a picture, it is this.
A young friend was so inspired by this photograph that he wished he could improve on it by substituting a group of tigers for the sheep. It has been more than 20 years and I still await his version with tigers!
Shot using an Asahiflex with an adapted Schat Travenar 135 mm lens, on a flimsy stand. Developed in Rodinal diluted 1:75, 15 minutes at 18 degree centigrade. It needs to be noted that if the lens were a modern one, with fewer internal reflections, the result would have been a flop.
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