I have a dream

Life has taken its turn. I have had a rough ride along. So much so that I was self-deprived of all sorts of writing (or visualization for that matter) for nearly a year. However, dust always settles in due course. For better, or for worse. After all, isn’t the beauty not in never falling, but in getting up after every fall?

the Cathedral

For me, photography is not science; not an end that can be reached by any formulated path. Sure, there is the use of technology & how it is set up in accordance with the laws of Physics which is technique. But the significantly larger portion of the creation owes to the artistic style--how the photographer envisions the scene & the subsequent pursuit of the appropriate time, the point of view & indeed the technique to enact this vision.

less is more

I have got a fascination with simplicity, and I remain a seeker of it among the complexity (in visual elements as well as inside me).  In this southern part of Australia, the countryside --adorn with bright green pastures on undulating hills, often dotted by grazing livestocks--permeates simplicity & peace.

prehistoric

This is one part of the cross-promontory walk taken in Wilson's Prom. The 19-km-return hiking starts from Mt Oberon carpark in the West to Sealers Cove on the East coast, involving moderate climbing. As we approached Sealers Cove from the West, the slopes suddenly gave way to a long level path, defined by neatly-laid wooden steps. It wound among tall trees, a couple of little ponds & this spot of intrigue before eventually hitting the coastline.

bathe in gold

There is specific time of a day when the quality of the light is just pleasant. At early and late hours of the day time, the colour of the sun-rays is mellow, rich in warm hues--pink, orange, gold--void completely of any harshness that is associated with the mid-day light. Golden hours; thus do I think of them.

misty morning

Once in a while, most of us visit places for the first time to explore; to see what they are like. But at times, we stop for a moment in our life, get out of our daily routines & make it a point to get back to faraway places that we've once been to. Merely out of a desire to see it again.

let there be light

When I traveled in Victoria's High Country during one autumn, I was finally going to have a chance to capture 'mountain light'. In the mountains, the atmosphere is different. There is haze & mist, casting colours & softness in light rays. Peaks are illuminated by the setting & rising sun, while deep shadows are cast in valleys.

alpine autumn colours

Autumn is time of colours. Once autumn reaches the alpine forests in the highlands of Victoria, the tall glamorous trees receive it fashionably, dressed in exotic red, yellow & orange. When morning sun-rays hit the surface of the leaves, they add colour-tints to the surrounding light, thereby illuminating the various small paths beneath the trees with exquisite shadings.

overlooking

One of the scenes that always stays vivid in my memory is the misty view of Taunggyi City from a nearby hill. The capital of Shan State in Myanmar stands on top of a hill on Shan Plateau, being true to the literal meaning of its name--big mountain. For one traveling on road from the central plains of Myanmar, one has to first ascend Shan Plateau. A couple of hundred kms in on the Plateau, crossing undulating hills, one will get to the 'base' of Taunggyi, from where one follows a winding road to get atop, only to be ushered in at the windings' end by this enchanting little hill-top city.

simple

They say that Wilson's Promontory--or simply The Prom as the local people affectionately call--has a number of the most beautiful beaches in Victoria. This little promontory is the southernmost part of the main Australian Continent. Along the shoreline, mountains cut into the sea and create magnificent bays, such as Norman Bay above.

castaway

For me, the integral part of photo composition is arranging of subjects. No, I don't mean physically placing in order the subjects to be photographed. (Some are a little too heavy or strongly-footed to be moved, especially in a landscape.)

the rendezvous

Balance matters. Even in photos. It is as if the subjects (those that are not part of the background) in a photo weighed proportionally to their apparent sizes. When we look at a photo, we hold it up in our mind and hang from the middle of the upper edge to see if the picture would tilt to either side, depending on the 'weights' of the subjects in it. Our intuition as regards things placed on a see-saw, further dictates that the further a subject is from the centre of the frame, the heavier it affects on the frame. If different-sized subjects are placed at appropriate spots, it is possible that the picture would not tilt to either side. By then, we would find ourselves looking at a well-balanced photo.

formation

Sometimes, we want it slow. Especially with moving water. Water at unrest exposed to slow shutter speed, morphs into silky shroud spanning the defined space. Or so it seems. How slow is slow then? It depends on the speed of the water itself. But often, a couple of seconds minimum is required.