Clouds - II

I usually put up my cloud pics in my Cloudland site, but a few special ones I felt like putting here too. Sun behind clouds almost always results in some spectacular lighting. I couldn't believe the abrupt transitions in the shades of blue in the sky because of the cloud.

Temple, Kota

A temple (whose name I have forgotten) right in front of our home at Kota. The white gopuram contrasted well with the murky skies.

Amer fort

The gateway inside Amer fort housing Sheesh Mahal and the Diwan-i-khas.

Amer and Jaigarh forts

What's Rajasthan without forts? The upper one is the Amer residential fort at Amber (pronounced Amer) about 11 km from Jaipur. The lower one is the Jaigarh fort used for defence. The largest cannon in the world is there, though I didn't see it myself.

Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

Not much scope to try out different angles. I could find only this position to get a picture of the complete wall without a tree or a lamppost coming in between. Hawa Mahal, Jaipur.

Jantar Mantar, Jaipur

A photographer's delight. Exotic shapes and constructions at the Jantar Mantar, Jaipur. Didn't quite understand the working of the different sundials but they looked impressive.

Gurdwara, Pushkar

Gurdwara at Pushkar.
It just so happened that on this trip we visited a dargah, a gurdwara, a Jain temple, and a number of Hindu temples too. And plenty of churches on the trip to Goa. So that's me, the secular Indian!

Pushkar lake

Pushkar lake with the ghats in the background. Peaceful place but for the overbearing "priests".

Brahma temple, Pushkar

A temple for Brahma is unique because he was cursed that in spite of being a god he wouldn't be worshipped. The temple isn't all that grand; its uniqueness lies in its being a temple of Brahma (in Pushkar).

Dhai din ka jhonpra, Ajmer

Dhai din ka jhonpra is a neglected monument close to the dargah. This was a Sanskrit college until it was converted to a mosque courtesy Muhammad Ghori. The complete span of the seven arches could be captured only from this angle.

Dargah of Moinuddin Chisti, Ajmer

Didn't remember to take shots inside the Dargah of Moinuddin Chisti, Ajmer. And I wasn't sure whether it was ok to do so, it being a holy place and all that. So just this one from the outside, with this the only viewpoint possible in the alley.

Ishwari Minar Swarga Tal, Ajmer

The Ishwari Minar at Ajmer. Good for getting a bird's eye view of the city. Very curious kind of steps inside the tower.

Sunset at Ana Sagar, Ajmer

Sunsets at lakes are getting to be a cliche. You really have to louse things up to make a sunset at lake photo come out bad. At Ana Sagar lake, Ajmer.

Nasiyan Jain temple, Ajmer

A gold-plated representation of Jain philosophy. Shown here is Mount Sumeru inside the Nasiyan Jain temple, Ajmer. The whole hall can only be seen through windows so this picture too is taken with the camera outside the window.

Pigeons

Pigeons roosting on lampposts or antenna elements. Had to use flash in the last two pics or the underside of the pigeons comes out too dark. Didn't have the luxury of using a stand for more exposure.

Peacocks

Proud peacocks at the JK guest house in Jaipur. I don't believe I fluffed most of the peacock pics by not focussing properly. Guess I was in too much of a hurry. These are the best ones of the lot.

Dushera at Kota

The victory of good over evil is about to commence. Ravan, Kumbhakarna and Meghnad at the Dushera grounds in Kota.

Squirrel

This defiant squirrel stands its ground. Well the only reason this picture is here is because I have never photographed a squirrel before.

Spider web

The trick was in focussing on the web and not the trees far away beyond it. So hit upon the idea of focussing on the railing next to the web, it being on the same plane, and using that focus to shoot the web. Will look out for a bigger web next time.

More wasps

My house sure looks like a wasp-y place! Same nest, different wasp (not a yellowjacket as seen in an earlier pic.) I am more pleased with the second photo: yet another wasp, this time on the tinted window of my car. I wasn't expecting the reflections to come out so clearly. Guess I got lucky.

Clouds - I

For some reason, I am getting fascinated by clouds these days. One subject here which looks good when backlit. I am not yet at the level where I can classify clouds as cumulus or nimbus, but hope to learn that soon. In the second pic, would have liked the cottony clouds on the left side to cover the full scene, but unfortunately they were obscured by the nimbus on the right (there, showing off my new learnt cloud knowledge ;-)

Update: Since I am so hooked on to clouds, have decided to have my cloud pics on a separate place. Visit Cloudland by Paritosh Uttam

Gardens at Ramoji Film City

Some of the exquisitely designed gardens and sculptures in Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad. Look forward to recognizing them in Bollywood movies, or more likely, in Telugu movie song sequences.

Sunset at Hussain Sagar

Another reason why I need to find out if there is a way to do selective exposure. In the first picture at normal exposure, the hues of the sun come out well, in dark-orange-ish sunset tones. But the details of the water surface towards the right side of the photograph are too dark to notice.

In the second photo with increased exposure, the right side comes out better with the actual light of the approaching twilight. But the sun now appears too bright for a nearing sunset. What I would like to combine is the sun of the first picture with the water of the second. Too much to ask for? Sunset at Hussain Sagar lake in Hyderabad.

Buddha statue, Hussain sagar

In the right place at the wrong time. With the sun squarely behind Buddha's statue, the first picture came out as an artistic silhouette. Perhaps if the sun was higher, it could have suggested a halo.

The next photo is with increased exposure, but then the details of the sky get whitened out. Is there some way of seeing the details of the statue as well as retaining the sky and the clouds? Other than the sun being in the correct direction, of course.

Buddha statue, Hussain Sagar, Hyderabad.

Charminar

Guess I could have photographed the Charminar from any of the four sides, but this one had the widest road. The place is bustling with traffic and you better take your snap and get out of the way of the oncoming vehicles.

Golconda Fort

The ruins at Golconda fort, Hyderabad. But the well manicured lawns and gardens surrounding it belie the enchanting story of the destructive ravages of time. Ruins for those interested in history and gardens for the tourists.

Chail Palace

Nothing like mist to add magic to a photograph. Locale is the palace at Chail, Himachal Pradesh. Chail also boasts of the highest cricket and polo ground in the world.

Christ Church, Shimla

Diagonal views of churches seem to work best. The face of the church is nicely lit up by the evening sun. Hindi cine-goers will probably recognize this as the church featuring in the movie Black. The Christ Church, Shimla.

A journey in Himachal

These photos were taken from my first digicam from an unheard of Japanese brand. So the colours are not as vibrant as expected. But it would take an exceptionally bad camera to mar the beauty of this dense growth of deodars in Himachal.

The receding outlines of the distant mountains in the second picture are an added plus.

Kitty close up

Trying out macro mode in the digicam. This is one sleepy kitty, the only time it was still enough to take the shot.