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Nikon India unveils debut ‘Wonders of the Wild’ contest with WWF-India
Mumbai: Nikon India Pvt Ltd is thrilled to announce the launch of the first season of its ‘Wonders of the Wild’ photography and videography contest in collaboration with the Worldwide Fund for Nature -India (WWF-India). The contest aims to recognise and reward the acumen of Wildlife photographers and videographers in India who are passionate about capturing some of the breathtaking moments of flora & fauna through their lenses. The ongoing one-and-a-half-month-long contest is open to wildlife photographers and videographers across India till 3 March 2024.
The contest has been introduced with the primary objective of inspiring both videographers and photographers dedicated to wildlife and nature to unleash their creativity and visual storytelling prowess and capture the vibrance of Indian Wildlife.
Speaking at the commencement of the contest, Nikon India Pvt Ltd MD Sajjan Kumar said, “India is recognized as a natural sanctuary for an array of wildlife, offering photographers and videographers an ideal canvas to showcase their talent on a global scale. Our newest endeavour, the ‘Wonders of the Wild’, exemplifies our steadfast dedication, bolstered by our extensive array of top-tier lenses and Mirrorless cameras designed for wildlife photographers & videographers. We are confident that this contest will not only serve as a platform for budding shutterbugs to exhibit their expertise and enthusiasm in capturing the splendor of India’s wildlife but at the same time will serve as a reminder for the conservation of this planet’s exquisite flora and fauna.”
Commenting on the association, WWF-India director marketing and communications Kaveri Jain said, “Capturing moments in the wild is an art that requires unparalleled passion, discipline and talent. It also plays a significant role in raising public awareness about India’s rich biodiversity and inspiring its conservation. We applaud Nikon India’s initiative of rewarding wildlife photographers and videographers who have perfected this art. We are proud to partner with their ‘Wonders of the Wild’ contest and award the winners some of our best conservation products from the WWF-India Nature Store. We look forward to seeing some fantastic photos and videos, which is always an inspiration.”
The top entries of this contest will be evaluated by a distinguished panel of renowned wildlife videographers and photographers such as “Mr Shaaz Jung – aka big cat specialist, Nikon Z ambassador, director of photography for the National Geographic feature film titled “The Real Black Panther”.
Second on the Jury panel is the ‘The Tiger Princess of India’ – a title bestowed to a renowned wildlife photographer, wildlife conservationist, and Nikon creator, Latika Nath.
We are excited to announce the third jury member of the contest, Kallol Mukherjee, a distinguished Nikon creator and acclaimed wildlife photographer with multiple awards to his credit.
Submission of entries:
The contest shall remain open for entries until 3 March, 2024. Participants regardless of age or gender, are encouraged to participate in the contest.
Participants can enter the contest through the Nikon India website at https://capturewithnikon.in/wonders-of-the-wild. The participants need to fill out a form, upload a link to their photo and/or video, and specify the Nikon camera and lens model used to capture the entry. Additionally, all participants need to provide a 100-word caption describing why their entry should be shortlisted. For the video entries, the total duration should not exceed one minute.
Alternatively, participants can also participate via Instagram by uploading their photo and/or video via their personal Instagram handle. The accompanying caption must highlight the Nikon camera and lens used, include a 100-word description about why their entry should be selected, and add following hashtag #wowseason1, and tag @NikonIndiaOfficial to validate their entry.
Exciting prizes:
Winners not only stand a chance to win exciting prizes worth Rs 8 lakhs but they also have the opportunity to receive nationwide recognition and fame within the Wildlife community. The winner will receive a powerful and versatile mirrorless camera, Nikon Z 8 worth Rs 3,43,995 as a grand prize. The first runner-up will receive the NIKKOR Z 400mm f/4.5 VR S lens worth INR 2,93,995. and the second runner-up will take home the NIKKOR Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VR lens worth INR 1,69, 995.00.
The top 10 entries will also receive WWF-India Nature Store Merchandise,
Nikon India highly encourages India’s wildlife photographers and videographers to come forth and participate in this exhilarating contest and showcase their skills and be recognised for their untapped talent but also get a chan. Nikon India is excited to see how these talented individuals will bring their unique perspectives and exceptional stories through their submissions.
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IICT partners with Gativedhi to bring studio production tools to students
New MoU lets students explore AI-driven production pipelines for AVGC-XR
MUMBAI: The Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) has teamed up with Gativedhi Technologies to give students a front-row seat to modern studio production. The collaboration will integrate Gativedhi’s AI-powered production intelligence platform, Shotrack, into academic programmes, letting students experience the workflow systems used by animation, VFX and gaming studios.
Under the MoU, faculty, students and researchers will get hands-on access to Shotrack through beta programmes, pilot deployments and academic evaluations. This will allow them to explore simulated production pipelines, understand asset management, track tasks and monitor schedules, essentially seeing how complex projects come together behind the scenes.
Shotrack is designed to tackle a key industry challenge: when multiple studios work on the same project, differing internal systems often create bottlenecks, slow approvals and complicate version control. The platform provides a unified production environment, enabling smoother collaboration across distributed teams while generating operational insights and predictive analytics to optimise crew allocation, forecast schedule risks and manage costs.
The collaboration also opens doors to Gativedhi’s wider ecosystem. Upcoming tools include StudioTrack, for studio operations management covering budgeting, recruitment and IT infrastructure, and WorkTrack, which measures workflow efficiency and team productivity across industries.
IICT plans to embed these tools into programmes covering animation pipelines, VFX workflows, gaming production and media project management. Students will also benefit from guest lectures, masterclasses, workshops, internships and research projects that connect academic learning with real-world studio practices.
IICT CEO Vishwas Deoskar, said the partnership provides “An environment where production pipeline tools can be explored, tested and refined while students gain insight into how large-scale productions are organised.”
Gativedhi Technologies founder & CEO Senthil Kumar added, “This collaboration introduces students to real-world studio management tools and helps us improve our platform with academic feedback.”
With Shotrack in classrooms, India’s future animators, VFX artists and gaming producers will get a taste of studio life long before they step into one.
