Tag: Photography

On the peacock trail from Mayilapuram to Mylapore

Posted on by sudhagee

I gaped at the Roman merchant as he passed me by in a parrot green silk toga with a  golden border. And then gaped some more as two more Roman merchants, in bright blue silk togas with flowery motifs, strolled past me in the marketplace. Romans in Mylapore? And that too in colourful silk togas?

“Sudha…Hey, Sudha? Are you listening? Where have you gone off?” a voice broke into my rambling, and rather colourful, imagination.

“Sorry, Akila,” I replied a little bit sheepishly. “Your mention of Mylapore’s Roman connection triggered off some time travel. The idea of Romans in colourful silk togas was too delicious to resist.”

It is a quarter to eight in the morning and I am standing outside the Kapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore, Chennai. I am there to explore and experience the many layers of Mylapore through the Peacock Trail, a walk conducted by Storytrails, an organisation that promises to give “a glimpse into the local way of life, using… stories as the medium”.

Akila is my storyteller and guide for this trail, and her narration of Mylapore’s rich past is so vivid and detailed that my journey of exploration through this ancient place is an unforgettable experience. And one that I hope you will also be able to undertake with me as I relive that experience through this post. 🙂

The main gopuram of the Kapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore, Chennai, can be seen rising up in the background

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A morning at Marina Beach

Posted on by sudhagee

The Guest Post Series on “My Favourite Things” has contributions by those sharing my interests in travel, books, music, and on issues that I am passionate about. Though the guest posts are not always by fellow bloggers, the guest authors are always those who have interesting experiences to share.

Today’s guest post is by a fellow blogger, Puru of Shadows Galore, who writes about his travels, photographs, memories and more. I eagerly wait for Puru’s travel posts as he is always visiting and writing about places that I have wanted to visit. My favourites are his posts on Sri Lanka and Angkor Wat. His series on Learning Photography is simple, easy and with instructions that actually work. In this post, Puru presents a photo essay on a morning spent at the Marina Beach in Chennai.

My last few days in Chennai saw me exploring the city and going to places where I had always thought of going but never actually did. So today I went to Marina Beach, the third longest beach in the world and the largest in Asia. Of all the beaches in Chennai, it happens to be the most dynamic and hence the most well known.

So early at 4:30 AM, I woke up and started for the beach with my camera. It was quite dark yet and the horizon had just started turning a few shades lighter. As the sun rose, I took a lot of photographs and I am sharing some of them here for you:

A crow signals the day break

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Travel Shot: The wandering pianist

Posted on by sudhagee

The candidness of street photography is something that I admire and appreciate. But it is also something that I feel inhibited to try it out myself as I feel very self-conscious about taking such candid shots. That is perhaps one of the reasons why you will rarely find people in my photographs.

But sometimes, people photo-ops are so compelling that my camera is out and the picture taken in no time. Like this wandering pianist I came across in London.

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Travel Shot: The Chinese fishing nets of Cochin

Posted on by sudhagee

Cochin or Kochi is a beautiful city and a photographer’s delight. I was in the city for 2 days in November in 1998 as part of a larger and a very memorable trip along the West coast of India (you can see a couple of pictures from that trip here and here). Even today, I can vividly recall the sights and smell of Jew town, the spice markets, Cherai beach and of course the strange-looking, but extremely photogenic Chinese fishing nets.

Chinese fishing nets at Cochin

It was late afternoon when we reached the area where the Chinese fishing nets were (I can’t really remember the area now). And what a sight it was. The cozy winter sunlight made everything look soft and dreamy. And the Chinese fishing nets looked delicate as if they were spun out of air and sunlight and sea-foam. The gentle wind made the nets mirror the rippling sea waves. It was a magical sight.

So magical, that I had no recollection of taking this photograph. It is only when I developed the film roll (yes, it was that far back) and saw the photographs that I found out. I discovered this yesterday among some other photographs and decided to share it with you here.

The Chinese fishing nets in Cochin are probably one of the most photographed “sights” in India and that too from all angles and all possible moods. Just type these words in any search engine and you’ll know what I mean. And yet, each photograph is special as it captures the mood through the photographer’s lens. Just like mine. 😀

So tell me, have you photographed the Chinese fishing nets of Cochin? Do share the link in the comments section. I would love to see your images and the mood that you have captured.

Steps and stairs

Posted on by sudhagee

I have to admit that when I held a camera in my hands for the first time in the summer of 1992, it wasn’t an earth-shattering moment. In fact, it felt very awkward to hold one. At that time, if I didn’t need one for my dissertation, I would probably never have picked up a camera. It was only later, in 2008, when I got a digital camera, that I really got interested in photography. A digital camera gave me the chance to experiment.

Within a month of sharing the first results of my experiments with a digital camera with friends and family, the feedback started rolling in. Predictably, some of it had to do with the quality of my photographs and suggestions for improving the same. But most of the feedback was on the choice of the subject of my photographs. Till the feedback came in, I did not even realise that the subject of most of my photographs were that inanimate objects like doors, cars, stations, public transport, etc.

I periodically try to make sense of the vast collection of photographs that I have by ordering them into collections. Not only does this help in streamlining my photo library, it is also a great stress buster. This time around, I was able to identify and tag a trend of photographing steps, stairs and escalators. Presenting some of the interesting ones from my collection 😀

Chepstow Castle

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From B&W to 3D colour

Posted on by sudhagee

This post won an IndiSurprize at the HP Take Flight with Colour Contest

Source: Microsoft Cliparts

Imagination is such a wonderful thing isn’t it? We all use it in our own unique ways. I use most of mine to give colour, form and shape to characters, places, and scenes described in books.

I was very fortunate to be smothered surrounded by all sorts of books growing up (and I still am—that is, both growing up and surrounded by books ;-)), which gave ample scope for my imagination. Even today, whenever I read something—even something as dry as a research paper that I am copy-editing—the B&W words on the paper immediately transform into an image matching the description, but shaped my imagination. This whole process is so instinctive and automatic that all I have to do is to pick up something and start reading for the B&W words to coalesce in my mind to form 3D images in full colour. This image could be static or moving; as I continue reading, the images flicker, change, or transform keeping pace with the narrative.

I find it easier to conjure up images of some words and narratives than others. Predictably, familiar contexts and settings, particularly those that I have experienced, are easy to imagine and visualise, but unfamiliar ones present a challenge. But, hey, that’s what a colourful imagination is for, right?

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