All posts filed under: INDIA

Organized Chaos – Driving and Riding in India

Organized chaos is the best term I could come up with for what happens on Indian roads. Millions of vehicles, people and animals, all using the streets at the same time. There is a hierarchy of importance loosely based on size, with the exception of cows. People move out of the way of bicycles, bicycles move out of the way of scooters. This continues upwards through auto-rickshaw, compact car, full-size car, SUV, light-truck and bus, to dump truck. Cows are the anomaly, as even dump trucks stop if these sacred animals are crossing the street. Very few vehicles have side mirrors, so you are expected (and in some areas obliged) to beep your horn while overtaking. As everyone is in a rush, the beeping is incessant. Accidents are very common, but not as often as I you’d expect (possibly due to the slow speed of traffic). You certainly learn to never make any assumptions. When driving on a 6-lane highway with a central divider, don’t assume that the vehicle in the inside lane is the …

Back in the Boat with Baba Jee

Having got some great shots at dusk the night before, I still wanted to take the boat with Baba Jee the following morning. The light at dawn is both a different color and from a different direction to the warm evening rays. You’d miss many great opportunities if you only shot at one time of day. The rowing boat allowed me to get the photos of pilgrims bathing in the river, and another nice portrait of Baba Jee the boatman.

F.A.Q.s – What camera bag did you use in India?

I usually use a Lowepro DryZone 200 bag for hiking, and a Pelican 1510 for studio shoots. However, while in India I used a Lowepro S&F belt and harness system. Attached was a Lowepro Toploader Zoom 55 bag for my 645D, a utility pouch for the other lens, batteries, etc, and a water bottle holder. The above pic clearly shows the system although it’s much less conspicuous if you wear a black t-shirt. Even better is to then put on a loose fitting shirt which covers all the straps. You now have easy access to the equipment, but are not drawing attention to all your expensive gear. Both bags have zippers so your gear isn’t going to bounce out. The shoulder straps make carrying the 645D far more comfortable than using a single strap. They also prevent your gear from crashing to the floor if the waist buckle pops open, or from disappearing if someone tries to grab the belt, pop the clasp, and run. I first tried this setup in Istanbul a couple of …

Baba Jee, Boatman on the River Ganges – Varanasi, India

The image above is almost the exact shot I ‘d envisaged when I started planning my trip to Varanasi. Luckily everything fell into place when I found  Baba Jee a photogenic boatman, warm golden light at dusk, and the three dimensional quality you get when shooting with a wide angle lens up close. Pentax 645D   Pentax FA 645 35mm f/3.5 AL IF Of course I didn’t just take one photo, but dozens. I switched between the 90mm and 35mm lenses, used both landscape and portrait orientations, and also shot  with and into the light. These images were taken at the end of my second day in India, but I knew straight away I’d probably just captured the best shots of the trip.

The Pilgrim in Orange

Got up just before dawn on my second day in Varanasi. Took a few shots of the sunrise, then started photographing the pilgrims coming down to bathe in the Ganges. The girl in the orange dress had come to Varanasi with her family. She wasn’t shy at all. She lit a floating candle, then beamed for the camera.

Cameraflage

And now for a public safety announcement, or a personal rant depending on how you look at things. I dislike branded camera straps. I hate camera straps that show the model number. I know that many camera owners are passionate fans of their own team, and proud to own a particular high-end model. However, wandering around a country where the average per capita annual income is $1219 and blatantly advertising the fact that you are holding a US$1500 dollar camera is not a good idea. (And yes I do believe thieves will know the value of different camera models.) My advice is to change your camera strap to something less obvious. I have a simple black PacSafe strap I can easily attach and remove. It’s also not a bad idea to give your camera a makeover so that it looks a little older and beaten up. An opportunist thief is less likely to want to steal your gear, when there are  pristine brand name cameras that would be much easier to resell. I put a few pieces …