Why should I watch documentaries, in what way does it inspire me to take pictures. How does it change my art, vision and thought process. These documentaries here portray life as it, be it on the banks of Ganges or inside the deep pacific ocean or a dark brothel. The Hierarchy ranging from Human beings to Micro organisms, their daily lifestyle and struggles for mere existence in this vast planet.

Take few minutes to go through these scintillating documentary videos, and am confident that it would show you numerous dimensions and endless possibilities to get inspired from. This will inspire you and open you up to try out something which you haven’t committed to do before, a path less traveled and to understand the meaning of life as it is.

Welcome to India 2012 – Documentary by BBC

If you think what you do is tiring and difficult, then take a look at his documentary. Learning how to survive on an increasingly crowded planet is probably our ultimate challenge. But there is one place, home to over a sixth of the world’s population, which is already making a good shot at adapting: welcome to India. This extraordinary observational series casts aside the usual preconceptions about the sub-continent, and lets a few of India’s 1.2 billion show how their world really works.

 

Social Documentary and Pictorial Manipulation

This is an interesting documentary about people photography. A deep insight into the manipulation of images before Photoshop even existed. Miles D. Orvell, Professor of English and American Studies, Temple University, discusses parallels between H. P. Robinson, a pictorial photographer, and W. Eugene Smith, a social documentary photographer. Both photographers, despite working in different genres of photography, manipulated the images while photographing them, sometimes asking participants to pose or repeat activities over and over again. This lecture is presented as part of the Truth, Lies, and Photographs symposium in conjunction with the exhibition Faking It: Manipulated Photography before Photoshop.

 

Beyond documentary: Varanasi India by Joey L

Known for his wonderful series on Holymen India and People of Omo Valley, Joey features in this short describing the way it was made, his working style and some memorable moments all of it put together. The documentary by filmmaker Cale Glendening follows Joey and his assistant Ryan as they complete their latest photo series — Holy Men. Almost every major religion breeds ascetics; wandering monks who have renounced all earthly possessions, dedicating their lives to the pursuit of spiritual liberation. Their reality is dictated only by the mind, not material objects. Even death is not a fearsome concept, but a passing from the world of illusion.
Set in the breathtaking backdrop of India, this documentary proves that capturing an amazing portrait isn’t just about the latest gear or technique, but truly the subject.

 

A lion called Christian – The whole Documentary

A Pet story about a wild animal. I bet there will be tears once you finish seeing this brilliant documentary. This is more than a statement about the spirit of animals and their relation with mankind. A heartbreaking story about a lion who was raised by humans, by the friends John Rendall and Ace Bourke. This lion got too big for them, so they put him in the wilderness. One year later they decided to visit him in Africa where he was put. Scientists said that lions would never remember their human parents after such time separated. Something that this film contradicts. It was a reunion that you will never forget.

 

The Gun Markets of Pakistan

A Strange place in Pakistan where guns are made and sold just like any other vegetable. In 2006, Suroosh Alvi was one of a handful of journalists who was able to get into the massive guns market in Pakistan’s tribal areas — home base for the Taliban since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. He returned to Pakistan this month and found the entire country was a “powder keg ready to explode.”

 

National Geographic: Wild Japan | Nature Documentary

The Beauty of Animal Kingdom in Japan opened up for us. They were not critical until mankind started posing some serious questions into their system. This Documentary shows the survival instincts and basic necessities these animals have acquired over the period of time.

 

Britain’s Child Beggars – Documentary by BBC

A Raw and Daring Documentary on the condition of child beggars in Britain. This is one of the worst scenarios happening elsewhere in this strange world.Meet ‘Alice’. She is a four-year-old child out on the streets of London begging hours on end, day in, day out. ‘Alice’ is just one of Britain’s Gypsy child beggars, and she can earn hundreds of pounds a day. A special Panorama investigation uncovers the truth about these children. Reporter John Sweeney tracks down the begging gangs to luxury homes in Romania, where he confronts the adults forcing the children to beg.

 

Leonardo DaVinci – The Man Who Wanted To Know Everything – Documentary

Secrets and Myths about DaVinci, the life he has lived and the mission he always wanted to accomplish. An Interesting Documentary taking every leaf out of DaVinci’s life.

 

“Choropampa: The Price of Gold”, Documentary

A Heart touching documentary on the lives of people who has everything to do for gold mining, the story of labors and the struggles. A devastating mercury spill by the world’s richest gold mining corporation transforms a quiet peasant village in Peru’s Andean mountains into a hotbed of civil resistance. A courageous young mayor emerges to lead his people on a quest for health care and justice. But powerful interests conspire to thwart the villagers at every turn in this 2-year epic chronicle of the real price of gold.

 

Sex for Sale American Escort by National Geographic

Type the words “the girlfriend experience” into your favorite search engine. Within seconds, you’ll find ads promising companionship by the hour. Much of the sex industry has moved online. Today, an entire workforce of women is just an internet connection and a phone call away. National Geographic’s Mariana van Zeller journeys to the heart of the American escort industry and uncovers the gritty reality behind the supply and demand of high end sex work. Mariana heads to Las Vegas, ground zero for the escort underworld. Here, high-end escorts like Sarah explain how they cultivate their illegal business online. As an independent escort, Sarah calls the shots and commands big money from clients. Yet for many women, a much different reality awaits.

 

Please check our previous documentary photography stories here: