The coordinator of the Photography Club, Arpit Panda beams as we sit to discuss his club’s APOGEE work. He’s clearly excited, and his enthusiasm for his club’s work is evident, infectious even.

‘Our work generally involves covering events on campus, such as Audi concerts, but we also organize intra-department photo-walks, and galleries during fests.’ This APOGEE, in addition to Photog’s regular gallery, the club will also organize a treasure hunt open to all BITSians, with a unique variation on the idea. Photog’s treasure hunt consists a series of pictures of BITSian haunts, with the location not immediately evident. The challenge to participants would be to then correctly identify the location, before recreating the shot and submitting it. The event will begin from the first day of APOGEE, with the first clue released post the inauguration ceremony, and subsequent clues revealed every 6-8 hours from then onwards.

Photog’s work has changed over the years – following the split from the Department of Photography in the early 2000s, the club initially just consisted of hobbyists who would organize galleries for fests. This APOGEE with the Treasure Hunt, Photog for the first time has directly engaged with their audience, and Arpit is understandably nervous about the endeavour.

Arpit’s work as coordinator is hectic, he concedes – from mentoring juniors to producing gallery-quality photography, to haggling with vendors over fused bulbs and shabby carpets, the stress of the job is undeniable but in his own words, ‘it’s rewarding helping my juniors transition to expert photographers, just as my seniors helped me through’.

On behalf of the APOGEE English Press, we wish Arpit and his club good luck for their events and their exhibition in APOGEE.