He was born on 11 April 1935, in Gaibandha, Bangladesh, the son of Gouranath Sarkar. Bijon Sarkar left home for Dhaka after his parents died and his ancestral land was lost in river erosion. Bijon had his first lessons in photography from his elder brother Tarapodo Sarkar, who was a self-taught sculptor but pursued photography at leisure. His first professional training in photography was while he participated in the workshop conducted by photographer Manzoor Alam Beg in 1961. Sarkar's career in photography took off after his appointment at the Pakistan's Geological Survey in 1962. Seven years later, he joined Pakistan Television as a cameraman. The television authority sacked him after the War of Independence began in 1971, forcing Sarkar to take refuge in India. He later joined Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation as its Chief Photographer in 1972 and retired from there in 1995. A founding member of the Bangladesh Photographic Society (BPS), he became its president in the 1990s. He was also one of the founding members of the Bangladesh Film Society. Bijon believed photography had every potential to become a form of art like painting. And his first photography exhibition exhibited his belief very well. Bijon Sarker died on 29 December 2012. He sustained head injuries in a road accident on the night of 21 November 2012. He was in a coma and never regained consciousness.