Transcript

Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors.

John Yang: For many years, nature and wildlife photographers have been disproportionately male, but tonight, the story of a young girl in India who’s helping change that stereotype. Ali Rogin is back with her story.

Shreyorvi Mehta: I am Shreyorvi Mehta and I live in India, Faridabad and I’m 10 years old.

Ali Rogin: Shreyorvi Mehta is the eyes behind this photo, a highly commended image that’s part of the prestigious Natural History Museum of London’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards.

Shreyorvi Mehta: So I took it in November, 2023 Me and my dad went to Keoladeo National Park, which is in Bharatpur. And then in the morning, it was around six or seven, we were walking through the forest and my dad showed a path, with the mist and the golden light mixed together. It was creating shades of gold and yellow light with the two peahens in the fenter of the road, and a was telling me how to frame that shot.

Ali Rogin: She’s been capturing wildlife from a very young age.

Shreyorvi Mehta: I touched a camera and was really fascinated by them. I must be two around then. And since then, I got to know about camera. I learned more about cameras. And when I was six, I began to use my dad’s camera to capture. But I grew up with cameras surrounding me.

Ali Rogin: Photography runs through her veins, from her mom, kahini, small camera, to her dad, Shivang, professional long lenses. They run a wildlife photography tour company together, and Shreyorvi has traveled with them to encounter all kinds of animals in the wild.

Shreyorvi Mehta: Hi, friends. We are at Ranthambore National Park. We are searching tigers. This is not just Safari.

I’ve clicked lungs, deals, tigers.

Ali Rogin: She’s a dedicated student. Her days start early/

Shreyorvi Mehta: So I wake up at 4:45 for my photography lessons. And then five to six, is my photography lessons, and then six to seven, I get ready for school.

Ali Rogin: She set her sights on a career in photography in the long term and in the shorter term, she wants to go to the Himalayas with her dad and photograph a snow leopard. For PBS News Weekend, I’m Ali Rogin.