Gurinder Osan

Ph: +91 98102 08464

website: www.gurinderosan.com

Date of Birth: Feb. 13, 1968

Bachelor of Fine Art Graduate from Delhi College of Art, New Delhi.

Higher Secondary from Springdales School, New Delhi.

Photo-journalist based in Delhi.

I currently works as photographer with the Associated Press where I have been a staffer for about 10 years. I am part of the main team for any breaking news or sporting event My role extends beyond my photographer duties too, coordinating and photo-editing content from AP photographers from across South Asia as and when the situation demands.

Amongst the major news assignments I have covered as photographer for the AP are:

• Cricket World Cup 2011 in India (including quarter, semis and final)
• Asian Ganes (Guangzhou, China)
• Commonwealth Games (New Delhi and Melbourne, Australia)
• Corronation ceremony of Bhutan King (2008)
• Mumbai Terror Attack (2008)
• Delhi bomb blasts (2011 and 2008)
• Mumbai Train Blasts (2006)
• Lankan internal strife including covering war torn east coast. (2006)
• SAF Fames, Colombo (2006)
• Kashmir Earthquake (2005)
• Tsunami (2004)
• Indian elections (2004 and 2009)
• Afro-Asian Games (Hyderabad 2003)
• Only news photographer at Everest Base Camp, for 9 days, to exclusively cover the 50^th Anniversary of the climb to Mt. Everest from (2003)
• Covered many other major news events in India, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan.

Prior to the AP, I worked as a freelance photographer (1998-2002), shooting editorial assignments for magazines like Far Eastern Economic Review, Indian Design And Interiors, besides working for development organizations including UNICEF.

During the same period, I was equally adept at commercial photography, working with advertising agencies and direct clients on people, product and conceptual photography. The advertising agencies included FCB-Ulka, Ogylvy and Mather, Leo Burnet for Airtel, Coke, LML, 32^nd Milestone, Rexona etc.

Earlier, I worked for the BusinessWorld magazine (1994-1998) and the Indian Express newspaper (1991-1994).

Amongst the prominent assignments handled for the BusinessWorld were:

• Photo feature on the capping operation of the ONGC oil rig blow-out at Parsalapudi in the Godavari Basin. (1995)
• Toured across India for a feature on the Indian Railways(1995)
• Photo feature on the Rajasthan Canal (1995)
• Photo feature on the Auto Expo – 96
• Besides these, traveled to several cities in India for business news/feature related stories

For the Indian Express I covered current affairs, feature stories, sports, culture, development page etc.

I have regularly synergized my mainline work with various parallel projects.

Amongst the prominent ones are:

• Ongoing project on photographing the Himalayan Landscape.
• Extensive photo-documentation of the Rebari nomads of Indian Rajasthan state, who herd cattle and are presently leading a marginalized existence. (1992- 93)
• Close association with prominent theatre director late Habib Tanvir, photo-documenting his life and groups’ performances. (1992-96)
• Commissioned to photograph for interactive CD ROM projects on the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation, the Indian Railways and on the Taj Mahal, shooting virtual reality projects when they were still a new technology.
• Photo documented artisans working in their natural environment for “Status Report on India’s Artisans”, published by CAPART, Delhi. (1988)
• Worked for various NGO’s on project basis photo-documenting issues related to development. Worked as photographer for UNICEF, New Delhi (Nov. 1998) on a month long project documenting stock based images and later for commissioned assignments.

I have traveled extensively in the Himalayas since 1987, passionately photo-documenting the poetry of these beautiful mountains. To reach higher into the remote Himalayas, I acquired mountaineering training from US based NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School and have traversed many a high altitude regions in pursuit of my work and self realization.

I have also traveled with friends on an Enfield Bullet 350cc motorcycle across the worlds highest Khardung la pass in Ladakh twice besides many other parts of the Indian Himalayas, camping outdoors for extended periods of time and carrying all the gear necessary to do so.

Workshops Attended:

2011: Attended a 5-day Video and Multimedia workshop organized internally by the Associated Press in Delhi in New Delhi. Also attended a 3-day photo-editing workshop organized internally by the Associated Press in Delhi in Sept, 2009.

2001-2011:  For the spirituality seeker in Gurinder, he attended Basic Pranic Healing, Advanced Pranic Healing, Psychotherapy conducted by India Chapter of World Pranic Healing Foundation. Also attended Lord’s Prayer course and Kriyashakti course by the same.

2005: Attended a 40-day diploma course in Mountaineering from USA based NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School that was conducted in the Uttarakhand Himalayas

2003: Attended a diploma course in HEFAT (Hazardous Environment First Aid Training) conducted by Centurion.

2001- 2003: Was amongst 15 photographers chosen from across India for the 2001- 2003 World Press Photo Seminar series.

1995: Member of first National Workshop on Photography organized by Lalit Kala Akademi, Delhi, in the tribal district of Koraput in Orissa

Photo – Workshops conducted by me:

• June 2011 to present: I conduct regular photo-workshops for amateurs under PixelTree Workshops.
• April 2011:  Conducted 3-day basic photography workshop with students of Shriram School, Gurgaon
• 2005 Conducted 7-day workshop with a group of 15 serious amateurs on landscape photography in Ladakh, for Better Photography magazine.
• 2001 Conducted 8-day workshop with a group of 11 serious amateurs on a trek to Harkidoon valley in the remote and scenic Garhwal Himalayas, camping in the great outdoors
• 2000 Conducted Five-day workshop with 10 children for Pitara.com in Delhi
• 1996 Conducted 2-day workshop with a large group of senior students of Mira Model School, Delhi
• 1995 Conducted 2-day photography workshop for the students of Scindia School – Gwalior
• 1993 Conducted 2-day photography workshop for the students of IIT Kanpur

Exhibitions :

• 4th -30th Jan 2000: Group exhibition titled “Endless Horizons” by three photographers and friends (Pradeep Bhatia and Dinesh Krishnan) who had travelled extensively in the Northern Himalayas, collectively and individually, photo documenting the awe inspiring beauty of these ranges and their people. The resultant images related to landscape and people were exhibited at the IGNCA, Delhi (Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts), between 4th Jan. 2000 to 30th Jan2000, inaugurated by the acknowledged photographer S. Paul, who described it as the best exhibition on landscape photography ever held in Delhi. All the 131 large format prints in color and B&W for the exhibition were printed at my personal darkroom. The large number of hours clocked in my fairly advanced personal darkroom has given the foundation for an enhanced understanding of color as well as B&W printing that still holds good in this present age of the digital darkroom.
• Dec 1995: Photographs selected for exhibition titled -Echoes from Panchpatmali, organized by Lalit Kala Akademi in Delhi and Bhubaneshwar
• Sep 1992: Photographs selected for traveling exhibition of photographs from SAARC nations.