The Falling Light

I really haven't been shooting anything lately - I've been really busy with studies and that least very little time for anything else. Hopefully it'll change during my summer vacations.

In the mean time here is one of the images from on my favourite shoots this year.
I shared the final image a while back and this was when I was trying different things.

Warm and Cozy

Remember those eggs I found? Well I decided to use a few props to take a few more pictures.

The basket if from my sister's wedding and so is the net I put below that.
All this was taken in a single shot. It was tricky and took quite a few tries to get it right and not have anything burnt out. Except for the lights under the net everything else was just simple light painting.

The Light Shines On

If you're following me on Instagram you would have seen my BTS (Behind The Scenes) shot I posted yesterday. I also promised to upload the final version and so here it is.

It was fun doing this. I started off with just the fairy lights and then added the blue lights and finally the fire. I just couldn't stop once I'd started trying new stuff because it was so much fun. I had to stop when my mom smelt the smoke in my room.

Anyway this is a single image with minor adjustments in Lightroom.

Candle Horns

Recently I wanted to do something different because sunsets were getting a little monotonous so I grabbed some candles and LEDs and a camera (obviously) and started shooting.

I'd done it once before with the SX30 IS but never with the SX50 HS. Turns out that not being able to control the ISO for slow shutter speeds was a problem but not a very big one.

It was a little difficult and took hours to get one shot but it was definitely worth it.

Two Eyes

I went out to shoot a dragonfly and on the way back I noticed this gigantic moth. It is probably the largest moth I've see in real life.

It was beautiful. I'm still trying to ID it but I'll update this post as soon as I find out.

The design on the wings was just beautiful and just goes to prove that God indeed is the best artist!

The design looked like four eyes (two on each wing) looking and staring at me. It was in a weird position so it was difficult to line up the shot perfectly but this is what I was able to get out of it.

I've also attached a picture of the entire moth just in case you are interested :)

UPDATE: Thanks to +Andrew Hardacre I now know that this is a Tussore Silkmoth Antheraea mylitta.
Thanks Andrew :)

On Strings

I posted a similar picture a while back and quite a few people said that it looked "musical".
Honestly, I hadn't looked at it like that so I have to thank them for a new perspective.

Here is another picture that I'd taken on the same day but a little while apart. No, it isn't the same picture...it is different. Trust me.

We could actually play a "find the difference" game :D

I haven't done tutorials for a while now and I'm thinking of getting back into the game. Any topics you want me to make a video and/or blog post on? Just let me know.

Like A Mural

I'll be sharing landscape pictures for a few days now so stay tuned for some spectacular sunsets.

I processed this image in two different ways. I particularly liked this version because it looks like a mural.

It's probably just me who thinks that way but it is still beautiful so I just thought I'd share it with you all.

Hope you've had a nice weekend.

Also Happy Father's Day! :)

Bearing Fruit

Yes, yeah. I know that's another cheesy title/caption for today's picture but I don't really bother about that too much.

Remember the "Bony Fingers" post? Well this is a picture of another branch of the same tree, taken on the same day. The "bony fingers" didn't have fruits but this one did.

The fruits aren't really popular here and most people don't even know that they are edible but once they get hooked onto these fruits they just go and finish them all :D

Through The Trees

I see this tower everyday and it never seemed special in any way. On this particular day I went up to the terrace to shoot the sunset and I did get a few good pictures but I noticed the clouds right behind me were pretty interesting so I wanted to take pictures of them as well.

Placing the tower in the frame just made the picture look better for some reason but then I walked towards the right and I saw this particular scene. The tower through the trees. Although I go to the terrace a lot I've never really seen this before so to me it was interesting and I wouldn't let it go.

It turned out pretty well, IMO.

Hope you all had a great weekend :)

Reaching Out

This is a shot of another branch from the same tree that I shared yesterday.

To me it looks like this is trying to reach out to the sky or is calling out to some insects or creatures to come and rest. Or maybe it's just my hyperactive imagination.

Well at least a lowly fly heard and responded to the call and is now resting on the branch.

Bony Fingers

Sometimes the most mundane things can stand out because of something else.

Case in point - today's picture. There are these plants in our garden that have leaves like palm trees and have these tiny fruit that is 90% seed, 8% outer covering and only 2% sweet nectar. The branches on which these fruits grow only appear just before the buds come. Honestly, I hadn't given these branches a second glance because I was more interested in photographing the bees and insects that were attracted to the flowers and fruits so I got a new perspective one day when the sun was setting behind an overcast sky thus giving it a warm glow.

To me the branches looked that the fingers of a skeleton reaching out and beckoning to something on the ground. So the sky enabled me to see this in a new way.

Make Hay In The Moonlight

I hope the quote "Make hay while the sun shines" isn't copyright or something because then I'd be in big trouble for today's title.Yeah! Yeah! It might sound cheesy but that's what I came up with.

The first proper Daily Post on this blog was when I shared a picture of a spider in its web. Some found it creepy and some loved the picture. Either way thanks for your feedback because today I'm sharing another spider picture which I don't think I've shared before.

This spider disappears during the day and magically reappears in the night. It's as if it goes into a magic portal to another dimension and then returns after it has rested because when I do see it, it is always as busy as a bee. This is cool but it also makes it difficult to capture because of the continuous movement.

Thankfully the moon was pretty bright that night and I was able to get a good silhouette of the spider. Yes, that is the moon - not a street lamp of light from a torch. Many get confused and some don't even believe me.

I hope you've had a good weekend and had loads of fun.

A Piece From Nowhere

I admit that is another cheesy title but honestly I can't seem to come up with better ones so if you folks out there can think of something better I might even use it. I'll give you credit obviously!

I took this picture because this fungus or mushroom or whatever it is surprised me. Why? This bamboo has been in this very place and position for the past year or so and nothing has grown on it. All of a sudden when I was out shooting ants (with a camera) I noticed these red outgrowths from this bamboo. It is surprising because it happened all of a sudden after a very long time. Maybe there is a scientific explanation and maybe there isn't....either way I like the colours.

I'm going to keep today's post short because there is a power cut here and the battery on the UPS is draining...fast. Plus I think my blood is extra sweet today because the mosquitoes are having a feast!

Dancing In The Sun

I know children and quite a few adults absolutely love playing in the rain...I know I do :D
But how many enjoy the sun? I do prefer the sun to the rain because then I can actually go out and roam around taking pictures. Actually there are great pictures to be had even when it is raining so don't ever let the rain stop you - just protect yourself and your gear. Ok now I have really gone off topic and I'll stop here.

Is this a dandelion? I don't know! Why? Well simply because it grows among the grass and has way smaller leaves that what I would assume a dandelion has. So, my best guess is that this is part of a Hawkweed plant but I'm not sure.

Anyway although these aren't necessarily rare in this area they aren't very common either. So I always get really excited when I see one of these because let's admit that these really are beautiful and fun too! Blowing on them indeed is fun. I placed it against the sun and I noticed that the refracted light actually looked like arches which I thought was pretty cool.

Hope you've had a great day or are going to have a great day. Either way have fun and take care :)
Oh, and come everyday for more...obviously.

I'm also planning to write a few more tutorials so let me know what you would like and I'll see what I can do. Meanwhile you can read the tutorials that are on this blog and also watch the tutorials on my Youtube channel.

Bloody Rivers

I don't mean for the title of today's picture and post to be offensive so please don't take offence.

There is a particular plant in my mom's garden that grows wild but we never really get rid of it because it looks nice. It has no flowers but the leaves have these red vein-like things running through then. When I was younger I asked my mom what the name of the plant was and she said that they called it "bleeding heart". I thought that name was pretty cool. Of course I now know that that is NOT the correct ID but I haven't been able to ID this correctly.

Anyway today's picture is a macro (close-up) of one of the leaves on said plant. To me it looks like rivers of blood flowing across a plain. Ok maybe I have a horrible imagination so if I looks like anything else to you do let me know :D

Hope you had a great weekend :)

Twirls of Smoke

A while back I decided to experiment with photographing smoke. I had just seen some pictures online and I didn't know how to go about it. I didn't have a external flash or some other source of light so I decided to use the built-in flash from an old camera as the "external flash".

I tried various angles and was finally successful in getting in right. I have a few tips for you if you are planning to photograph smoke but before we go into that here is a picture from that shoot.

Remember this is NOT a tutorial. These are a few basic tips. I may work on a tutorial when I am able to purchase an external flash.

1. The external flash should be at a 90 degree angle to your camera.

2. Use a black background.

3. Your shutter speed doesn't really matter when you are using a flash. I use a shutter speed of 5 seconds to capture the above image so if you are looking for proof, this is it.

That's it. It's very easy but super cool.

I must go now as my battery is about to die.

Take care and have a great weekend :)

Clear View

So I was cycling down this path and I came across these tiny little man made ponds. These ponds are bone dry during the winters but fill up during the monsoons. Fortunately we had heavy rains the previous day and the ponds were half-full.

I noticed this little branch that jutted above the surface of the water. I just loved the reflection too because it was so clear. I just couldn't help myself and I stopped right in the middle of the road to take this picture.

I think I've mentioned this before that people in this area act really weird specially when someone has a camera. So needless to say when I lifted the camera to my eye a lot of people stared staring at me as if I was doing some recon work or something or taking pictures that would later be used to hatch a sinister plot against them.

I got of there as fast as I could.

You may have noticed that most of my work is in colour. I don't usually convert pictures to black and white but there is something about reflections that really pop in black and white pictures.

That's it for today. Have a good one and thanks for taking the time to read my blog. I really appreciate that :)