by Editor Michel Romaggi 
in collaboration with the author Shyjith Kannur
Published the 1st of October 2020

Beyond the sports performance of this flying man on his fly-board, this picture looks quite spectacular with these water spirals in front of the straight lines of the buildings in the background. Nice contrast too between the red man, shot in the light which makes drops glitter, and the dark grey background which enhances the perception of action.

'Power of water' by Shyjith Kannur

More than enough reasons to ask the author Shyjith Kannur to reveal a little bit more about the making of this fabulous image and about himself. 

Could you first tell me where and in which circumstances this shot was taken?
The man really seems to fly among buildings.
This shot was taken during FAI World Air Games Dubai at Skydive Dubai. The FAI World Air Games are the biggest air sports event in the world. This multi-disciplinary event is the only worldwide competition that brings the various different air sports and their very best athletes together.

When taking this picture, did you only want to take a spectacular sport picture, or was the aesthetic result already in your mind?
Well, there was a photography competition held by HIPA (Hamdan International Photography Award). So, I went to this location for two days to participate in this prestigious competition. Skydive Dubai is a beautiful location with at one side the sea and on the other the Dubai Marina skyscrapers. During the fly-board competition, I was watching all actions of the participants and I really wanted to place them in front of the beautiful background of skyscrapers as to show the Dubai identity, knowing that it would be a standout in this dark background. The afternoon light was also beautiful. Luckily, some guys passed through this background and I got some really good shots. This was one of them. Three of my photos reached the final stage of the competition including this one.

Which camera and lens did you use and which settings?
I used a Canon 5D Mk II, with 100-400 Canon f 5.6, 170 mm, 400 ISO, 1/5000sec.
It was a handheld shot and I used continuous Shutter to capture the right action.

 
How did you use post-processing to improve your picture?
I am a travel photography lover and I always apply a minimal post-procession to my pictures. I don't want to lose the originality of my picture. I use Lightroom and Photoshop to post-process my pictures. For this particular shot, I adjusted contrast, shadow, highlight and clarity.

 
Looking at your portfolio, I notice most of your shots are graphic ones. Could you explain to me what attracts you to this kind of photography?
Actually, I created my 1x.com account in 2016 and started regular uploading recently (almost 3 months).
I like to shoot anything that catches my eyes, but I am more interested in travel photography. My profession is art direction, maybe that's why I choose more graphic shots like my first uploads.

 
Can you tell me some more about yourself, your life and passion for photography?
I am Shyjith hailing from Kannur, a place in the Southern state Kerala, in India.
I reside in Dubai and I work as an Art Director with a Dubai based advertising company.
Being a creative professional, I have been always enthusiastic about translating ideas through visual languages. I picked up the camera to add another dimension to my creative works.
But then I realized, that my passion entirely lies in this marvellous field of photography.
My venture on photography dates back to 2011, when immediately I found an incredible vibe to the majesty of vibrant landscapes. After learning the art further and travelling extensively, I am right now indulging in environmental and story-based photo series.

My journey with my camera has been an ever-evolving one.  Not only professionally but personally too. Exploring photography has unveiled a beauty that attracts me to different global cultures, people, and their daily lives.
During the brief years of my photography journey, I achieved some national and international recognition as well, which has added such a boost to my passion. Toshiba Photography Awards, Al Ain Zoo Photography Award, Swaihaan Photography Award, Timothy Allen Travel Photography Scholarship, Al Dhafra Photography Award and Conde Nast Traveler.  It's a pride to say that my travel photographs have been published in National Geographic editions as well.