Experiments with my new Canon Rebel T3i

The days of shallow DOF, high ISO settings, 1/500 sec shutter speeds and near zero noise are here! I am the proud owner of a Canon 600D (Rebel T3i).

Here are the first few experimental shots… comments are welcome!

The driveway outside our house

Tea time at Lansdowne (with a bit of HDR after exposure bracketting)

Tiramisu at Pizza Hut

Diorama with Hotwheels Colour Changer

The Himalayan Bulbul

Moonrise

Sunrise

The early bird

Diwali with a difference

Diwali was celebrated with a difference this year, for two reasons… firstly my wife decided that we make our own lamps to illuminate the portico and in a short while she had tiny glasses painted in elaborate ways.

Together with some water and floating candles they indeed made a pretty sight outside and inside our home.

The second difference this year was keeping away from the colossal waste of money in the form of firecrackers and spending time with the residents of Cheshire Home in Dehradun.

This is where diwali being the festival of light made so much sense to me. Not only was the place lit up to enliven a festive glow all around

…but seeing the people at the home with tiny sparklers and an even greater sparkle in their eyes will remain in my memory forever.

Happy Diwali to all of you!!!

Durga Puja – Bengali style

“Festivals are like a map charting our spiritual progress in God.”

This time the city was alight with celebrations of Dussera. On the day titled, Maha Ashtami, I was witness to the Durga Puja at the Bengali Library in the heart of Dehradun.

After confirming the directions from a few friends, we made it on time for the beginning of the puja. There were drums and cymbals and a general atmosphere of festivity! It made for some really vibrant pictures…

There were drums and cymbals and a general atmosphere of festivity! It made for some really vibrant pictures…

In the modern day, LED lights take the cake in adding that special touch of colour to the pandal.

There was a lot more to be witnessed that day, however, duty called and I had to be back home…

… but not after savouring some spicy bhel puri that made the shop owner do a brisk sale in bottle water too 🙂

Here’s wishing everyone, a Happy Dussera 2012!… Shubo Bijoya!!!

 

(Picture painting above done by Mr. Bapun Dutta – Art teacher at Kasiga School)

Ganesh Chaturthi Meal

The celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi in Goa has a charm of its own. But the beauty of the occasion celebration is enhanced when celebrated with friends and family!

I was one of the privileged few to be invited over to a friends’ place for lunch.

But one does not move hurriedly into lunch. First there are the multitude of sweets that have to be tasted!

What I enjoyed most were the modaks

(I hope the picture speaks for itself)

We then participated in the aarti, which are devotional prayers and hymns sung by the entire family, and then Amay Parrikar, our host, explained the various symbols and rituals of the celebration.

Two of these which I found very meaningful were the matoli (a canopy of fruits and flowers grown locally in Goa)

… and the tray which offered the first corn of the fields to the deity.

From the time we entered his house till the time we left I think I ate more than I did on in an entire day 😉

Festivals are indeed occasions that keep the flame of brotherhood alive in society

Carnival Time

It’s difficult to separate the word Goa from the concept of Carnival.  Any tourist brochure, travel package or billboard describing Goa will have at least one snapshot of the vibrance and joie de vivre seen at a Carnival parade in Goa.

This year may have not been a very colorful parade, but the spirit was there!

Spectators stamped on toes, broke barricade restraints and stretched their necks as hard as they could to watch the floats going by (at least that is what I had to do to get a few clear shots :))

Here is a snapshot of the many snapshots that I managed to take that day… which I call, the Faces of the Carnival.

Can’t wait for the carnival next year!!!

A Rose by any other name

‘Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What’s Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What’s in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call’d,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name which is no part of thee
Take all myself.

~ Juliet (Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2))

This is a quote from Shakespeare’s lyrical tale of “star-cross’d” lovers. Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet fall in love, but are doomed from the start as members of two warring families. Juliet tells Romeo that a name is an artificial and meaningless convention, and that she loves the person who is called “Montague”, not the Montague name and not the Montague family. Romeo, out of his passion for Juliet, rejects his family name and vows, as Juliet asks, to “deny his father” and instead be “new baptized” as Juliet’s lover. This one short line encapsulates the central struggle and tragedy of the play.

I on the other hand do not want to dwell on the vagaries of love in this post but on a feature I rarely use on my camera… Infra-red mode.

Here are a few sample pictures of The Rose 😉

This is IR under a focus lamp

The pictures are clicked in pitch darkness. I think cats can sense IR, and the more adventurous of the two, leaped onto the table to inspect the object of my affection 😉

And if you are wondering how the original was, then here it is:

UPDATE: Here is the same in fractal format….

Photowalk 2010

It’s that time of the year when I cast a quick glance at the months gone by. 12 months captured in 12 significant moments!

January

2010 began with a bang! This was the month I got engaged… and the celebrations flowed!

February

A rare moment captured while a little boy looked longingly at his mother. This picture titled “Hope” featured in a Photography Contest on World Photography Day.

March

Delving deeper into the realm of macro photography. This was a tiny flower picked up as “memorabilia” on a long road trip to Karwar

April

Attended a nuptial service at the beautiful church on an equally beautiful island.

May

While my niece sharpened her skills at playdough, I saw another opportunity at Photography. This is one of the pictures from her entire collection titled Farmville

June

From the engagement to the most important month for me this year… the day I got married!

July

A weekend getaway to Mumbai had this pleasant surprise for me. This is the first time I tried a bit of HDR in post processing.

August

A long drive with very good friends and fantastic scenery rolling out all along the Anmod Ghats.

September

A camping trip after years! This buffalo scene is created in the Dandeli wildlife sanctuary.  (Look closely, they are not real buffaloes!)

October

This picture was created for the assignment “Treasure” on DPS. (In this case, the pearls are real!)

November

Clicked this image for another DPS assignment submission, “breaking the rule of thirds”

December

Christmas preparations and while testing the lights, our pets had their own explorations!

Happy New Year 2011!!!

Consolation Prize

I like this concept… “Consolation Prize”… there are those who win First, Second and Third and there may be one or two others who have to be “consoled” 😉

I am not complaining… just overjoyed that my work was appreciated at a recent Photo Competition! Organised by the Salgaocar and titled “Saim Rang – Colors of Nature” this picture won the consolation prize in the Flora and Fauna category.

It’s time to brush up those photo skills!

It’s a Porsche!

When I think of Porsche I remember the funny incident from the series F.R.I.E.N.D.S…

___________

Joey finds keys to a Porsche and wants to leave them at the lost and found but nobody seems to miss their keys.

Joey: Hey, somebody left their keys. Oh, to a Porsche! Hey Gunther, these yours?
Gunther: Yeah, that’s what I drive. I make four bucks an hour. I saved up for… 350 years.

Joey gets great responses from people when he stands next to the car. He then goes on to wash the Porsche when the owner comes by and takes it away!

___________

I may not come as close to a Porsche as Joey, but how I wish this was my ride!

 

And as a comparison…

I shot the Chevy

For years now, I have harbored two dreams.
1. To have an entire collection of my favorite scale model cars
2. To photograph the intricate details of them and make them come alive!

The first may never be attainable… while I have realized the second with this 1941 Chevrolet Deluxe photoshoot

DETAILS:

1941 Chevrolet Special Deluxe Convertible.
Scale: 1:24
Diecast body
Opening doors
Opening Trunk
Detailed Interior
Rubber tires
Accurate Gauges and dash inside
Dimensions: 10.25″L x 3.25″W x 3.25″H
Manufacturer: Welly

A little more about scale model cars:
Fully built scale model cars made of die cast metal are very popular among collectors. These models are manufactured in various scales like 1:12,

1:18, 1:24, 1:43, and 1:64, among others.
Larger-scale premium models today are generally made with attention to details which replicate a real model, such as a working steering which steers the wheels in larger models, doors, trunk, and hood that open (the latter showing a detailed engine complete with things such as an exhaust system and/or other items contained in a typical car engine), and tyres mounted on a workable suspension system. In smaller scales some of the details are often eliminated.

Next stop… the Porsche Cayenne Turbo 😉