In an interview with Bored Panda, Soumyadeep shared more about himself.
“I'm Soumyadeep Mukherjee, an astrophotographer, writer, and photography educator based in Kolkata, India. I began my journey with astrophotography in 2020 while I was still pursuing my career in academics. I completed my Ph.D in Linguistics in 2023 and have been doing full-time photography since then."
Soumyadeep wrote what initially drew him to the world of photography.
“I always have had a keen interest towards photography. It was the mix of science and arts that always intrigued me. As a child, I used a Yashica point-and-shoot film camera, which helped me understand compositions and field of view. I bought my first DSLR in 2019. During lockdown, while I was trying to cope with the situation, I picked up my camera. And while there was no way of going out of home, the sky was the only canvas I had. My astrophotography journey began since.”
Furthermore, Soumyadeep shared about his creative process: “As an astrophotographer, I live documenting the night sky. While our naked eyes can't see almost anything beyond stars, the camera goes beyond that. The large nebulae, tiny galaxies, all can be recorded through a camera. Of course, I began by simply taking pictures of the night sky—the sun, the moon, deep-sky objects, wide-field nightscapes, and optical phenomena.
Gradually, however, I wanted to focus on the representation of scientific facts in an artistic way. I have been focusing on some long-term projects that tell science - for everyone. Since astrophotography is a happy marriage of science and art, I try to take advantage of both and try to create something to represent the best of both the worlds.”
Soumyadeep shared that it doesn’t take much to become an astrophotographer, and he hopes to inspire others to explore.
“I use simple equipment - camera, lens, and a few accessories. And with that, I try to tell people that with a little bit of patience and practice, anybody (with any level of equipment) can become an astrophotographer and enjoy the night sky.”
Lastly, Soumyadeep added, “Due to growing light pollution, we are slowly moving away from the world above. Slowly but surely, and from an individual level, we can work towards getting dark skies. This will not only help our generation enjoy the beauty of the grand canvas that lies above us, but our coming generations will be able to see what has been existing for billions of years.”
