Gorgeous Gulma

If you're reading this I hope you've watched our short film The Drive
If you have watched it you'll recognise today's picture from the end credits.

This is where we shot the station scene towards the end of the film. This has got to be the most beautiful and well maintained station I've visited in India. It's really small and there are very few people but it's beautiful.

This is a long exposure shot taken just as the blue hour was ending. We were waiting for a train to take us back home. We were exhausted after the shoot but were really happy since this is the place we got the best shots. A lot of the scenes were shot not far from the station.

In fact you can see two of my friends sitting on the bench on the right of the photograph.

If Hope Dies

Earlier this month I wrote about a fest we went to where we met with the members of "If Hope Dies". Turns out the lead singer used to teach one of my friends when she was in school.

They were really good and ended up winning the competition.
This was taken just after the sun had dipped below the horizon. The crowd went wild and almost everyone was on their feet and dancing while they were performing.

Although there were a few major disappointments and problems the fest itself was fun but only because of my friends.

I Am Here

At a fest earlier this month there was a rock band competition. Everyone seemed to be so into it and dancing along to the music while I just sat in the corner and watched. I didn't want to be noticed and have an awkward conversation about why I was just sitting so taking photographs of the bands performing seemed like a good option.

There were lots of bands and good music with lots of interesting poses and compositions to be had. This is one of the photographs I submitted for the photography competition. One of the themes of the competition was "I Am Here" which is where this fit in.

The Lookout

Today started off in an interesting way. Just as I was getting ready to leave for classes I got a phone call saying that out results for the previous semester were out. That made me really nervous. Unfortunately the university server was down and that just added to the tension. I got to class and everyone was sombre and quiet. We were all anxious.

Anyway, God has been really merciful and graceful again (as He always is) and enabled me to get through with fairly good grades.

Now for today's picture. As with most self-portraits this has a very personal message. I have a little over a year to finish the course I'm currently studying and then I'll have to look for something else. I still don't know what that's going to be or how God is going to lead me into the future but I have to always be on the lookout for His guidance and help.

This is a composite (obviously) of two pictures. The base image of the flower and flora is light painted. If you follow me on Instagram you would have seen a BTS (Behind The Scenes) photograph of this that I shared recently.

In The Spotlight

We went to an inter-college fest earlier this month. We participated in the short film competition and I participated in the photography competition as well.

One of the themes was "Framing A Shot". I thought I had a few good shots until my friend, Upashana showed me this rose and this turned into the best shot I'd taken all day. I'm really happy with this photograph. It took a few weird positions, dirt on my clothes and some nasty stares from people watching me but it was worth it.

The rose itself was pretty but when I decided to use the shrub in front of it to frame the flower it turned out really beautiful. The green you see around the rose are leaves from the shrub that was growing a couple of feet away from the rose.

Two Are Better Than One

Since it's Valentine's Day this picture seems like a good one to share today.

It reminds me of the words in Ecclesiastes 4:9
"Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labour."

These are my friends Lakpa and Anisha. We went out to shoot together and it was a really nice experience. We spent more time just sitting and talking than actually shooting.

Today is the day when people around the world celebrate love and try and spend it with someone special but let me draw your attention to the greatest love story ever - the one where God himself gave up everything to save us because He loved us so much! That's the most touching love story you'll ever know or hear of. God prepared a way for us to once again enjoy a close, personal and intimate relationship with Him and all we have to do is believe on the name of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Repent, ask for forgiveness and surrender our lives to God. That's pretty much everything we have to do since Christ has already finished the work on the cross.

Hope you all have a great day ahead!
Happy Valentine's Day everyone! :)

The Drive

I am pleased to be able to finally share our latest short film with you all. I worked on the videography/cinematography, editing and mixing. It was a really fun experience and we all learnt a lot.

Today's picture is one of the frames from the film. This is probably my favourite shot in the entire film. This was the first time I was visiting a lot of these locations and it's really made me want to just go out and explore new places.

The theme we were given was "Hidden Scenic Beauty of North Bengal" A pretty good theme because we were able to show places that people usually overlook on their way to more poplar and clichéd destinations. I believe God's creation really is amazing and sometimes you just have to look closer to be able to find something absolutely stunning in something you might have otherwise considered mundane. So this was a really great project for me because I was able to combine my photographic knowledge and love for nature as a whole into creating something new.

It's titled The Drive (click through to watch it). Drive in this case doesn't refer to actually driving around. Rather it refers to passion and commitment. We wanted a story that people could relate to but at the same time not be distracted from our main focus - scenic beauty. Hope you enjoy it. We would really appreciate honest feedback and creative criticism.