Canopy Capture: Essay of a Photographer

Abstract

A monkey’s-eye view of the top of a tree is not nearly as good as a bird’s-eye view, but to an Indian child out of school for the summer holidays, a mango tree laden with its golden fruit is akin to American ice cream on a hot day. It is also an invitation to plunder and risk grandmother’s wrath. I remember running into the mango grove, clambering up the tree to pluck a “forbidden” fruit and gorge on it while feasting my eyes on the wondrous view of the world below through the foliage, perched on the fork of two obliging branches.