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Ah, amour ! as they say in Paris ! Love makes the world go round, and I have
the greatest respect for this highest of all emotions that we humans are capable of
(the word love is used sixteen times more than hate in communication).
I spotted this old man (he claimed to be 82) begging outside a Metro station. It is
tragic that a country that can spend billions of dollars on arms, and where
multibillion dollar scams are a routine occurrence, cannot look after its aged
derelictsnor can anyone explain why they are there, in the first place:
Theres nothing todays youth craves more than a smartphone loaded with
features, even if hes a Nepali teenager working at an open air fast food outlet
MOBILE ENVY
EXIF: 10mm, F.2.2, 1/20th sec, ISO 1600
Its not so much the need for communication than the need to be with it, to be
on par with peers, and the inclusion it entails. A youth without a mobile is as
good as a social pariah, such is the mobile acquisition syndrome that has come to
grip todays Gen-Y. So what if you dont have enough balance on your SIM card:
at least you can seen flaunting your snazzy new handset, playing games on it or
even watching movies, downloaded onto the memory card for about Rs. 250. The
hunger for the latest gadgets, the need to be accepted that spawns it, is typical of
a neo-materialistic society that weighs men by their bank balance.
Here is another facet of the phenomenoninexpensive transport and a girl
riding pillion, clutching her new Samsung Galaxy. Overindulgent parents, early
menarche and a more permissive society have fostered a youth revolution
first million (no matter what it costs), hurry to marry the girl of ones dreams,
hurry to reach the El Dorado in the mind. A mindless, copycat, lost generation
Summer is in full blast, and thirst is explicit everywhere. People gravitate to juice
There is a long list of pending orders and, despite mechanization, it takes time to
crush a glass or two of juice. Patience is called for in such situations. Fortunately
for me, the RX100s lightning reflexes bag me a photo in a split second, with a
barely discernible delay to write to card despite shooting RAW + jpeg.
Yes, its going to take time. The beautiful lady with the classic features and dusky
complexion characteristic of south India, wearing a rather alluring combination
of striped pants and pink T-shirt, settles down with her son, their attention fixed
on the point from where liquid sustenance will emanate
EXIF: 25mm, F.4, 1/30th sec, ISO 1600, 65 % crop from original
This has been a May to remember. The mercury touched 47.7 C in the shade
the highest recorded in a decade. Delhites ensured plenty of liquid intake, and
this miserable twosome is no exception, obviously parched and nearing the point
of dehydration (note that her water-bottle is now empty).
That juice guy had better hurry up he is their only hope of succour, as of now !
I kept going, past shop fronts, temples, sundry hawkers and people trying to
keep their cool in the furnace-like heat despite the fact that it was nearing 8 PM
Still, with inflation increasing by leaps and bounds (a familiar refrain whenever
the Congress is in power) in the Capital, every little bit helps to pay the bills.
I spotted this interesting face through a moving screen of hurrying late evening
shoppers, and fired off a shot with little hope of success ...
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some, using the brush / pencil tool and even giving her an alluring little mole on
her left upper lip that added just the right amount of smouldering sensuality to
the rather hard and serious features.
But all said and done, it was the blue headband that captivated and enthralled
me !
On an earthier note: a man studies his shopping list while viewing the items on
offer at a kirana store, as Delhites refer to delicatessens. All the spices that lured
the Portuguese to open up a sea route to India are on view here, some of them
commanding really fancy prices shades of Vasco da Gama !
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Since the original image was a bit jarring in terms of contrast, I took advantage of
the tone curves tool in Photoshop to spread the DR around a bit, managing to
somewhat reduce the effects of the harsh lighting and add some visual
smoothness to the tonality of the image, before giving it finishing touches with
the brightness/contrast option, adjusting the sliders till everything fell into place.
I had just ordered a plate of cheese momos when Superman arrived with a
couple of his friends. Though he was only four feet away from me, across the
momo-maker, right opposite me, he did not spot me draw my camera and record
this lone image
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SUPERMAN
EXIF: 12MM, f.2.2, 1/20th sec, ISO 1600, 50% crop
Despite the awful mixed lighting, the RX100 managed a decent jpeg (I didnt
have to touch the RAWs at all). I did have to brush some blue into Supermans Tshirt, though; many visits to the laundry had faded the shoulders a bit. I also had
to burn out a brilliant sodium vapour street light right above his head that was
distracting the eye. All said and done, I was happy with my snapshot of the Man
of Steel !
I insist that Indians as a group are quite receptive to being photographed (one
notable exception being a hoity-toity woman whose kid I was once trying to
photograph). She was obviously a noveau riche, first-generation-English-speaking
class, foreign traveled person, enamoured of foreign ways but unable to translate
them into an Indian context. She objected to my efforts and gave me a lecture, to
which I listened patiently, all the while stifling a few yawns. People with adopted
mindsets bore the heck out of me
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Marching on, one hand encumbered by a 5-kilo shopping bag of groceries and
hence forced to operate the little big compact with only my right hand, I came
across this man hawking flowers, oil, and other such materials supposedly much
sought after by the presiding deities on the opposite side of the road
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Here is the full colour version, which you may or may not prefer. I liked it, but
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This one shot singles out the RX100 as a sterling performer in contre-jour
situations, throttling flare and showing no sign of the light orb effect that
plagued the Fuji X-series of cameras in the recent past.
Ahead, a biker braked to a stop. Daddys little darling wanted an ice-cream !
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Having had enough, I decided to head for home. There was a couple on the
sidewalk ahead of me, striding along in companionable silence
SHARING THE BURDENS AND JOYS ON THE ROAD OF LIFE