File picture of a photograph taken using a kite camera

Bhubaneswar, Oct. 20: A bunch of shutterbugs huddled around an old Frenchman as he flew kites near the Lingaraj Temple on a cloudy evening.

Conducting a workshop on kite aerial photography, Yves Guichard, a veteran archaeologist from Paris, showed the group of 30-odd amateur and professional photographers how to click pictures with a bird’s eye view.

The participants and their mentor waited patiently for the drizzle to cease and breeze to blow to start the workshop that was organised by Kanti Art Centre, an art residency on the city outskirts. Guichard had designed a special kite for the purpose.

“It does not require anything unusual. The kite has to be in delta shape and strong enough to carry a lightweight camera and stay stable once in air. The camera is put on self-timer mode and keeps clicking pictures every 10 seconds. The thread also has to be very strong,” said the 71-year-old photographer.

Although he had worked in the archaeological sector for decades, Guichard felt an increasing interest in aerial photography — which is often required to shoot monuments.

Today, he has an experience of over 20 years in this genre of photography.

He came to India for the first time 30 years ago on an archaeological project. Since then, he has been a regular visitor to the country. He has also been associated with Nalanda University for an archaeological survey.

“The technique was developed in France in the 1880s. The aerial views taken from airplanes and helicopters are awful with little or no clarity,” he added.

After the hour-long workshop, the enthusiasts got a chance to have a lengthy discussion with Guichard to clarifying their doubts.

Painter and founder of the Kanti Art Centre, Sovan Kumar, 40, bumped into the Frenchman last year and accompanied him to Sisupalgarh excavation site for aerial shots.

“I requested him to take some time out of his hectic schedule and demonstrate to the young shutterbugs here about aerial photography,” said Kumar.

Intrigued by the concept of kite aerial photography, the participants keenly observed every step.

“I have heard about this kind of photography, but to learn the art live from a veteran is a different experience altogether. For photographers, who wish to click pictures from a bird eye’s view, hiring a helicopter can be an expensive affair, but tying a camera to a kite is much cheaper,” said Sabyasachi Pattanayak, a budding lensman.