Featured Wildlife Stories and Nature Photography
A curated selection from my field journals, capturing the drama of the Indian wilds, from the quiet patience of a jungle stakeout to the vibrant chaos of the monsoon.
A tiger moving through a glade in the soft glow of a wintry evening. This is the perfect Kipling country setup in the heart of Central India. The calm of the dull golden grass and the varying greens of the gnarled forest, with the great striped beast on the move, reminds me of the sheer drama of the Indian wilds.
Fleeting sunsets often make me leave whatever I am doing. To watch one with a bird, its snake-like form silhouetted in the heart of the fading sun, is a profound experience. It feels as though God alone is the painter of such sublime beauty.
When the Blue Oakleaf butterfly opens its wings, it transforms from a perfect imitation of a dry leaf into a flamboyant beauty. This sudden flash of vivid blue in the Mumbai wilds is a moment of pure delirium, a testament to nature's love for disguise and revelation.
This is one of our most endangered primates, the Lion-tailed Macaque. The thick, silvery mane framing its face, sparkling with raindrops, gives it a uniquely "genius" look. Staring into those eyes, I feel a deep connection to the stories held within the ancient evergreen forests of the Western Ghats.
The speculum, a brightly colored patch on the secondary flight feathers, is a marvel of evolution. Here, a Spot-billed Duck reveals its iridescent green and blue speculum as it comes in for a landing. Capturing this flash of color is a study in the physics and artistry of bird flight.
For two years, I searched for this exact frame: a powerful beam of morning sun slicing through the jungle to illuminate a spider's web. In October 1996, I finally found it. This image, with its shadows and gleams, represents the soul of Mumbai’s peerless wilderness.
On a wintry day near Jaipur, I witnessed this grim chase. A pack of feral dogs had cornered a Nilgai, India’s largest antelope. This is a difficult but necessary story to tell, highlighting the rising threat that free-ranging dogs pose to our native wildlife, a conflict often overlooked.
About this collection
This gallery is a curated selection from my field journals, focused on moments where behaviour meets environment. My approach goes beyond the simple shutter click; it is about finding the drama—whether it is the iridescent flash of a duck in flight or the camouflage of an oakleaf butterfly—and ensuring that the final visual tells a complete story for print or digital media.
My work is rooted in the belief that nature photography is a form of journalism. In these featured selections, you will find stories from the SGNP forests of Mumbai to the wet tropics of the Western Ghats. I prioritize documenting the drama of the wild over purely aesthetic portraits. For instance, when I capture the Lion-tailed Macaque, I am not just looking for a clear gaze; I am documenting its precarious existence in fragmented evergreen forests. Similarly, my focus on the speculum in waterfowl is an attempt to turn a scientific observation into accessible visual art.
If you are looking for content that bridges the gap between raw nature and human understanding, my process is collaborative and deeply informed by my background as a naturalist. I do not just supply images; I build narratives. Whether you need editorial features for a publication, educational content for a campaign, or a series that highlights the conflict between urban sprawl and wilderness, my approach remains the same: honest, unvarnished, and deeply researched. We will work together to define the scope, ensuring the tone of the writing and the quality of the visuals align with your project goals.
Sunjoy Monga
I do not just photograph wildlife; I tell the stories that the forest wants to share. Whether I am deep in the Western Ghats or watching the monsoon transform a Mumbai park, my aim is to connect you with the wild, honest reality of nature.
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