SHAAZ JUNG
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SHAAZ JUNG Naturalist, Big Cat Tracker, Wildlife Photographer, Cinematographer
Shaaz Jung Portafolio de Fotografía 2021 Portafolio de Fotografía Primera edición: Abril 2021 Elaboración y redacción Shaaz Jung Diseño editorial Osvaldo López Hernández
“As a wildlife photographer, fame is never our priority”.
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BIOGRAPHY
LEOPARDS
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PANTHER
HISTORY
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06 INDIA
LIGHT & SHADOWS
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LIFE IN BLACK & WHITE
ÁFRICA
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01 HISTORY
HISTORY La conexión de Shaaz Jung con las selvas de la India tiene siglos de antigüedad. Proviene de la familia real de Bhopal, Pataudi y los Paigahs de Hyderabad. A través de Bhopal, es el descendiente directo de los Begums de Bhopal. Hasta que el bolso privado fue abolido, los principales bosques de tigres de la India Central alrededor de Bhopal, durante más de tres siglos, pertenecían a su familia. El bisabuelo de Shaaz, Nawab Iftikhar Ali Khan de Pataudi jugó cricket para Inglaterra en la Bodyline Series, más tarde capitaneando la India. Se casó con Su Alteza Sajida Sultan, El Gobernante de Bhopal. Su hijo, Nawab Mansur Ali Khan de Pataudi (Jr) fue la persona más joven en capitanear la India. Shaaz también es un Paigah del linaje Vicario-ul Umra (Árbol Genealógico – Sección 7). Su bisabuelo construyó el Palacio Falaknuma como un lodge privado en Hyderabad, un lugar que Shaaz eligió para su boda. Los Paigah Nawabs de Hyderabad controlaban un tercio del antiguo estado de Hyderabad, India. Estas tierras tenían bosques de tigres y leopardos, incluyendo el gaur y el búfalo salvaje. El padre de Shaaz, Saad Bin Jung, fue durante mucho tiempo, el indio más joven en conseguir cien contra las Indias Occidentales de gira en la India. También es un famoso conservacionista y operador de ecoturismo, pero Shaaz, por otro lado, “no podía balancear un murciélago para salvar su vida”, como suele decir. Su padre dejó el juego para perseguir su amor por la vida silvestre y la conservación y Shaaz siguió sus pasos; un safari de toda la vida.
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BIOGRAPHY Shaaz estudió Economía en la Universidad de Utrecht en Europa. En lugar de asumir una carrera corporativa, regresó a los bosques de la India, donde pasó la mayor parte de su infancia. Decidió pasar su vida rastreando y estudiando leopardos en el sur de la India y ayudó a establecer el Bison Resort; un campamento de tiendas de campaña construido sobre directrices de ecoturismo. Hoy en día, en la India y África, la familia de Shaaz y sus campamentos utilizan el ecoturismo como herramienta para la conservación. En África oriental dirigen dos campamentos de safari en Ngorongoro y el Serengeti. También tienen un fideicomiso en la India conocido como The Buffer Conflict Resolution Trust of India (BCRTI) que ºmales y proporcionar capacitación profesional en la zona. Con el tiempo, su investigación y conocimiento en Kabini y sus animales le ganaron a Shaaz una gran reputación y su trabajo pronto fue publicado en todo el mundo. Ha pasado la última década guiando safaris en The Bison y se especializa en el seguimiento de gatos grandes. Ha dedicado los últimos cuatro años a estudiar y entender la escurridiza pantera negra. “Este bosque donde resido es un laberinto que siempre me ha fascinado. Tiene un conocimiento inmenso y detrás de cada árbol se esconde una historia incalculable. Mi objetivo es contar la historia de Kabini (Nagarhole) a través de mi fotografía, cinematografía, escritura y guía”.
LEOPARDS
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LEOPARDS
My first love
“I grew up in awe of the mighty tiger but it was the leopard that ignited my love affair with the woods. I have spent many days under many trees trying to understand a creature that didn’t want to be understood and hasn’t been understood since time memorial. The obsessive lure of the evanescent leopard has enticed me to continually tread unknown corridors in search of its ghostly existence. Today my
work with this amazing cat has thrown fresh light on unknown and undocumented leopard behavior.Treading the jungle paths and scanning Kabini’s tall and twisted trees has brought me face to face with some of the most majestic leopards this forest has to offer. Over time, I was allowed into the lives of certain individuals that have shaped me as a human being.
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LINK We call her Link, for she connects the dots very few understand. A true link to the history of Kabini, as she is the daughter of Tuka, our favorite leopardess who is no more and the grand daughter of a leopard who started it all. Link is one of the boldest leopardesses in Kabini today with the longest whiskers i have ever seen on a big cat.
TORN EARS Torn Ears swept into our lives on an eerie December evening like a cold winters breeze. Like many wondering males, we didn’t expect much and we couldnt have been more wrong. Unlike most young males, Torn Ears was far from good-looking due to his aggressive nature and eagerness to fight, which eventually left him short of a full ear. On his arrival, he lost half his right ear and a quarter of his left in a nasty battle with the ‘Bisalawadi’ male. His warrior ways made him one of the most most dominant and successful males the region has seen. Today he holds fort in an area with the highest density of tigers. A true legend in the making.
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03 LEOPARDS
MIST Mist, easily distinguished by her torn right ear, is often seen on the mistiest of mornings. She has the ability to drift through the forest like a ghost and can remain unseen in open sight. You basically only see Mist if she allows herself to be seen. Today Mist is mothering two of the panthers cubs and the introduction of a recessive gene might make her grandchildren melanistic.
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PANTHER
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DAWN ON THE PANTHER The black panther has been the central focus of Shaaz’s work over the past four years. Many have photographed the panther but it is safe to say that no one has built such an extensive portfolio of this animal as Shaaz has. His recent exhibition ‘Dawn of the Panther’, showcased the life of an individual black panther through the changing seasons. It starts in an unusual setting where the panther can be seen thriving in a dry and deciduous forest before the habitat slowly changes due to the seasonal rains, giving it a lush finale. “Ever since our eyes first met, my passion became an obsession and it was my ultimate goal to shed more light on the master of darkness. Today I am extremely fortunate to be making a film on him for Nat Geo WILD as well as writing an extensive research paper.”
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ÁFRICA
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ÁFRICA Shaaz often travels to many corners of Africa in search of endless treasures but he spends most of his time in Tanzania where he has helped establish wildlife camps. “There’s a certain mystique about entering the dark continent. A sense of belonging that makes you feel like you’re going home. It truly is an indescribable feeling and I pity the man who hasn’t seen the sun set over these lands, for he is yet to come alive. From the endless savannas and short-grass plains to to the rocky Kjopies, Tanzania offers a variety of eco-biospheres where the sheer density of wildlife is just breathtaking. The freedom a photographer has to explore is second to none.
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INDIA
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INDIA Shaaz resides on the banks of the Kabini reservoir, on the fringes of Nagarhole National Park where the backwaters merge into dense jungle, famous for its fabulous density in both predator and prey. Shaaz has spent the last decade in Nagarhole as a photographer and guide. His extensive portfolio of India is predominantly from the South Indian forests. The portfolio above is a concise collection of his work to portray the wide variety of wildlife present in the southern forests of India.
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LIGHT & SHADOWS
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LIFE IN BLACK & WHITE
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