Photographica

Puppy delight

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:02:00 +0000

Tired after crying for more than an hour, snowy finally rested in between the pots in the garden.

Again so sad....Why did you tie me up??

Death of a snake

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 08:25:00 +0000

I couldn't help much rather than just witness this sad ending. This 6 feet long slimy reptile entered the garage today morning chasing a frog and fell prey to the most brutal creature on the planet. Though it was non poisonous one, but that can't stop humans from killing innocent creatures

Puppy mania

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:57:00 +0000

Puppy bath

Aaao twist karen!!!

Pup relaxing after a long chase...

Where Am I??

Tug of War

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 02:34:00 +0000

My sis decorated these pups on their completion of one month, but these playful creatures instead started pulling and teasing each other with these ribbons tied across their neck.

oooucchhh.. don't pull my ears!!

C'mon you lazy piece of meat..wake up!!

Puppy Ghost

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 10:46:00 +0000

My sister brought home this puppy while she had gone walking last Sunday morning, it was lost & crying in the middle of the street. It didn't hesitate being lifted up and started playing around merrily as it reached home.

Had breakfast..played around...now time to sleep!! This puppy caught everyone's attention at home though it was sent away the next afternoon.

The other two newborns, completing one month two days ago.

Hot shoe!!

Butterfly Effect

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:47:00 +0000

Yesterday a butterfly
Came floating gently through the sky.
He soared up through the atmosphere
Then drifted close enough to hear.

I said, "I'd love to fly with you
And sail around the way you do.
It looks like it would be such fun
To fly up toward the summer sun.

But I have not your graceful charm.
I haven't wings, just these two arms.
I've been designed to walk around.
My human feet must touch the ground.

Then magically he spoke to me
and told me what his wish would be.

He said, "What I'd love most to do
Is walk upon God's Earth with you,
To squish it's mud between my toes
Or touch my finger to my nose.

I'd love just once to walk around
With human feet to touch the ground,
But I have not two legs that swing,
I haven't arms, just these two wings."

And so we went our separate ways
In wonder and surprise.
For we'd both seen God's precious gifts
Through someone else's eyes.

The last, the very last,
So richly, brightly, dazzlingly yellow.
Perhaps if the sun's tears would sing against a white stone...
Such, such a yellow
Is carried lightly way up high
It went away I' m sure because it wished to
kiss the world goodbye.
For seven weeks I've lived in here,
Penned up inside this ghetto
but I have found my people here
The dandelions call to me
And the white chestnut candles in the court.
Only I never saw another butterfly.
That butterfly was the last one,
Butterflies don't live in here,
In the ghetto.

Dear butterfly,
Majestic monarch of the sky,
holder of universal secrets and reasons why,
color my canvas, touch my heart before I die,
to live in joy, teach me how never to say good-bye.

As you flutter by, you hear me sigh,
things missed because I forgot to try,
on your serene beauty I can rely,
oh what celestial magic you do supply.

Once you did struggle to be free,
you turned your life around to show me,
amazing my angel how you heard my plea,
you've cocooned my mind so I can see.

Lets fly together both as one,
and sore beyond time, once upon,
our silken wings God has spun,
Souls entwined, our infinite journey has just begun.

Happiness Within

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:56:00 +0000

At farmhouse I asked this little boy to do something interesting and this was what all he got.

I was on my way back from Bangalore to Delhi in the month of august, when the fear of swine flu had just gripped the whole country. With the precautionary mask on my face had nothing more worthwhile to do than using my cam. Started with the countryside landscape outside the moving train but was soon bored off, interestingly this small boy, who was witnessing all my photographic activities came to me asked to shoot him! After a few shots he threw himself at the door of the boogie, half hanging in air, though was terrified a bit but still excited. The expression on his face was a mixture of both!

The boy bewildered, puzzling over those incense sticks as my grandma offers her morning prayers to the Sun.

Garden venturer

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 04:08:00 +0000

Broken jhula(swing) lying unattended at a corner of my garden

Thats little bonsai, one of those many out of my mom`s collection

Small yet old, thats what attracts me towards these exotic bonsaiz

Abstract photography tips

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 16:01:00 +0000

Abstract photography has both confused and delighted photographers almost since the invention of the camera. Abstract whether in art or photography form, can be very personal. We are all

familiar with Pollock, Kandinsky and Picasso, great 20th century artists that painted based on their environment and live experiences. Like them or not, they were great painters that had portrayed great visual content in abstract form.

Choosing a subject of abstract form can be very challenging. However, abstract photography can be very fulfilling, in that, it opens the mind to a brand new visual experience, one that stimulates the imagination beyond the normality of perspective.

Abstract photography is a field that leaves many puzzled as to what exactly it includes. The definition varies so much by photographer and gallery, it seems like there is no common ground whatsoever. However, there are a few commonalities and motifs in abstract photography that will help clarify the field somewhat, even if there is no explicit, all-encompassing rule that all abstract photographs follow.

Abstract Photographers Have More Fun

It is from this point of view that we can now turn to look at the work of abstract photographers. For beginning photographers, especially, making abstract pictures is easy and fun. Anything can be used in the service of abstract photographers - literally. Let fly open the kitchen cupboard doors or wander your backyard during a snowstorm for inspiration. The results, whether in focus or blurred, will be abstract photographs as long as they do not depict or represent what we know as reality. The picture may remind the viewer of reality in some way, but that would be beside the point.

Abstract painters drip and pour paint; drag rags or brushes across canvas; or draw shapes with exaggerated precision and no obvious meaning. They build up paint or other material to create the painting. Abstract photographers begin with an object in reality and reduce, enlarge upon, or blur it beyond recognition.

Abstract photography is not just about shooting the image in its entirety. The perception of abstract photography has intrinsic values. The photographer not only concentrates on lines, forms and textures, but the compatibility of colours along with composition to achieve a great image. Abstract photography is the abstraction of part of an image that makes up the whole image. You remove all aspects of the image to reveal its artistic value.

It is amazing what you can find to photograph in an abstract way. Look around your home, your food cupboard, your fruit bowl and jewellery, all these make an ideal subject and will challenge your creativeness. Most abstract photography requires close focus to do it any justice. For example; you can use a 110mm macro lens that allows you to be 2cm away from your subject or, any short lens that allows you to focus in closely.

To make your subject even more interesting, try spraying water on it or vary your lighting with various filters. This will not just enhance the image, but will transform it into something captivating and intriguing to the viewer. When editing your image in Photoshop, de-saturating the image to black and white and then adding little colour brings out key aspects of the image.

Water droplets can be photographed in many intresting ways.I shot these droplets on a rainy day.

In essence, abstract photography is not a true reflection of the natural world. This is the beauty of it. It concentrates on a certain characteristic of the subject in an aesthetic way, and so the abstraction of a particular image becomes art. It draws you in and challenges you, it can move you, and it compels you to ask questions. It can be minimal, busy, colourful, dark and mysterious. You do not have to be a professional photographer to produce good abstract photography, nevertheless having some knowledge of the equipment and a good visual awareness will make this a fun thing to do whether for a hobby or professional pursuits.

Subject & Composition

The most common reaction to abstract photographer is probably an incredulous, curious,

What is that? Many abstract photos have no clear or discernible subject, while others try and make the subject appear like an entirely unlike object.

Most abstract photographers focus on the everyday objects around them, familiar things that they show us through their third eye to be less familiar than we like to think, turning sunny suburban sidewalks into dark noir landscapes, grass into exact geometric designs. Our daily life is transformed from something we are entirely used to something we are not entirely at home with.

Many abstract photographs are minimalistic, isolating a subject. Roadways are obscured beneath the snow with nothing but vague shadows to show the way, or a single droplet is left in crisp focus against a soft blur of the background. Simplicity of composition is another common trait of abstract photographs—through utter chaos of form is almost as common. The busy meanderings of twisted spider webs leave our eyes confused without a single place to rest upon, just as the dusty mess of an abandoned house or the fallen leaves of dozens of trees mixed together.

Intresting colors can be added to the photo during post-processing and refining the image

Color

Especial attention to color is paid by abstract photographers. Many seek color harmonies, focusing on the symphony of similar colors in the highlights and lowlights of hair, or

rust stains on old cold iron.

Others still seek to point out the exact same hue of entirely unlike objects. A bright green grasshopper may be juxtaposed next to someone's eyes, or a wedding ring next to a doorknob. Still others try to show complete contrast. The use of color filters is a very common technique. Rainbows may be splayed across otherwise color-drained photographs of cities, or the undercanopy of a forest turned to a distinctly underwater shade of aquamarine. Similarly, color isolation is another technique often utilized. A girl in a bright red dress in a blurry black & white city, a single leaf on a tree remaining green. Of course, there are countless other color techniques and effects pioneered by abstract photographers, many of which have since moved into other fields of photography.

Texture

Another factor that many abstract photos have in common is close attention to texture. Repeating patterns are a favorite of many abstract photographers, from the repetition of black umbrellas in a rainy city to dozens of converging parallel lines looking down a road into the distance with its sidewalks and powerlines. A common extension of this is a single, conspicuous break in the pattern, a blank spot in a line of plates, or an unusual gap between a crowd of people walking down a sidewalk.Just as common is the complete lack of pattern, utter chaos, from the clutter on the bedroom floor to the random placement of bathroom stall graffiti. Texture filters, from dust speckles to exaggerated noise to drip patterns are often utilized, either applied in a digital image editing program or on-site with pieces of glass or plastic placed in front of the lens.

Subjectivity

As this article has demonstrated, there is tremendous variety in the field of abstract photography. What determines a good abstract photo is similarly varied, determined

entirely by the user. What may deeply please one person may attract no interest whatsoever from another—sometimes for exactly the same reason. Indeed, much of the appeal in abstract photography is the incredible amount of interpretation left up to the viewer.

Nor is it impossible for an amateur to get involved in abstract photography: because of its incredible variety, personal style and the subjective experience reigns. Some find this distasteful, others liberating; just another subjectivity. Abstract photography, because of the sheer amount of imagination and creativity involved in the process, also serves as an excellent exercise for photographers of other fields to help improve their craft in general, building skills in attention

to detail, color and texture, and stretch the boundaries of their own personal style with experimentation. It's a wonderful type of photography to explore—try it for yourself.

Snail leaves a trail

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sun, 06 Sep 2009 18:10:00 +0000

That slimy creature was destroying my mom`s plants from within, eating up their roots.The gardener picked it up on his spade and brought it straight away to me.

Photographing this sticky creature on the ground would have been difficult, so I dropped it on "Sunday Times" and strted clicking.

It slipped of the paper again and again but I somehow managed to keep the folded newspaper beneath it steady with one hand whereas focussing the camera with the other.

Took around 50-60 snaps only to land with a handful of properly focussed pictures during post-processing.

It was very irritating and difficult to lock focus on this continuously moving creature, but then only hardwork pays off!!

Snail moving up & down as I continue rolling the newspaper

Slimy snail looking for alternative route..

The snail he lives in his hard round house,
In the orchard, under the tree:
Says he, "I have but a single room;
But it's large enough for me."

The snail in his little house doth dwell
All the week from end to end,
You're at home, Master Snail; that's all very well.
But you never receive a friend.

The snail pushes through a green
night, for the grass is heavy
with water and meets over
the bright path he makes, where rain
has darkened the earth's dark. He
moves in a wood of desire,

pale antlers barely stirring
as he hunts. I cannot tell
what power is at work, drenched there
with purpose, knowing nothing.
What is a snail's fury? All
I think is that if later

I parted the blades above
the tunnel and saw the thin
trail of broken white across
litter, I would never have
imagined the slow passion
to that deliberate progress.

Landscape photography tips

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 05:15:00 +0000

A landscape is a section or portion of scenery as seen from a single viewpoint.

Scenery is the subject of a landscape image. Typically, people and animals are

not shown in a landscape, unless they are relatively small in the image and have

been included in the composition to show scale. Some photographers argue that the

sea coast, the city and man-made structures in general should not be included in a

landscape, and images that do contain them are more accurately called seascapes

or cityscapes. From a purist perspective, they are probably correct, since a landscape

is a picture of the land and its aggregate natural features. However, if natural scenery

dominates an image, it can probably be accurately termed a landscape, even though

there may be a farmhouse in the distance, a city skyline on the horizon or a road or

path in the foreground.

The term “Urban Landscape” describes photographs of the city taken in the manner of a

landscape, using buildings and other man-made features as graphical elements of composition that are treated in the same way the photographer would treat mountains and trees.

STYLES OF LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY

Three styles of landscape photography are recognized - representational, impressionistic and abstract. The representational style is also known as the straight or straight descriptive style.

REPRESENTATIONAL

This style results in pictures that show scenery at its most natural and realistic, with no visual manipulation or artifice. It is a straightforward style - what you see is what you get. Successful images in the representational style are not simple snapshots. Although the photographer adds no props or other components to a scene and does not try to “bend” reality, great attention is paid to composition and detail. Light, timing and the weather are critical elements.

IMPRESSIONISTIC

The impressionistic landscape photographer employs photographic techniques that result in images that have vague or elusive qualities. They are less tangible and more unreal, while still retaining their values that make them landscape pictures. The viewer is given the impression of a landscape rather than the clear reality of one.

ABSTRACT

This style - Abstract - could also probably be referred to as the graphic style, since the components of scenery are treated by the photographer as graphic elements, arranged for their compositional values. Natural elements may be rendered as unrecognizable or almost so. Shape and form take priority. Elements may be juxtapositioned for comparison or contrast, isolated by extreme close-up, reduced to silhouettes by severe underexposure, and so on. Design is more

important than recognizable representation.

In the landscape taken above(on the way to Hemkund Sahib, Uttrakhand), the blossom has been used in the foreground giving the landscape a distintive look

QUICK HINTS FOR EFFECTIVE LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY

These quick tips are not essential to every landscape picture you take, but bearing them in mind and applying them judiciously will improve your picture-taking. A foreground object will help to frame the scene and add a look of three-dimensionality. Frame the scene so that it contains a center of interest - an object that draws the viewer's eye into the picture.Placing the center of interest off-center, in accordance with the Rule of Thirds, will create a harmonious composition.Placing the horizon a third of the way down from the top or bottom of the frame is usually much better than having it in the middle of the scene. Scale can often be important to the understanding of a landscape, and can be achieved by including an object of a known size in the scene. People, animals or other recognizable objects that would naturally belong in the scene are suitable for showing scale. The quality of lighting is perhaps the most influential attribute of a successful landscape. Waiting for interesting lighting that is moody, dramatic or diffused usually pays off in a memorable photograph. Ensure that your camera's flash is turned off when shooting landscapes, unless you require it to brighten a foreground object. Flash in a dusty, misty or foggy

scene may cause flare by reflecting off the droplets of moisture or dust particles. Use a tripod to ensure sharpness, especially in low-light conditions. In very low light, be sure to select a fast film speed or a high digital camera's ISO setting that will permit proper exposure and good depth of field. Watch for unsightly or unnatural elements such as overhead wires, hydrants, poles

and garbage cans, especially in the foreground. If you cannot easily move them, reposition yourself to a camera angle that eliminates them from the frame. Don't let the weather stop you from capturing an attractive landscape. Rain can add a degree of softness and peacefulness to a scene. On an overcast day, be sure your scene has an area of color in it to counteract the overall dull lighting.

Keep the rules of composition in mind when framing a scene. Lines, in particular, can be a strong factor in making an interesting landscape. Landscape photography is often more horizontal than it is vertical, presenting the opportunity to shoot a panorama. If you are faced with a wide vista and your camera has a panorama mode, this is the time to select it. Cropping afterwards can achieve a similar purpose.

When the wind is blowing or water is moving - waves, waterfalls, a tumbling brook - capturing that movement by using a slow shutter speed to create blur can add great interest to a landscape. When selecting a slow shutter speed, be sure you retain proper exposure by also appropriately adjusting your camera's aperture. Many cameras will do this automatically for you in Shutter Priority mode.

Stock photography tips

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:41:00 +0000

The criteria for producing stock photography is too high for most businesses to achieve in terms of time scale and equipment. No matter how good they make digital cameras, and no matter how many people use them, there is still a strict guideline to follow before submitting any work.

Normally companies are too busy taking care of their main core of business and simply don't want to start taking their own photographs. That is where you come in!

Many agencies and businesses around the world do not have the time or resources to take their own quality stock photographs, whether for a local press release or a massive advertising campaign.

Photographs worthy of a stock library need to be immaculate! They need to be well taken, well exposed, clean, high resolution and most importantly, what the customer is looking for!

A great snapshot of your dog in the garden just won't do, no matter how cute he looks. The resolution needs to be buffed up to around 50mb WITHOUT losing quality.

Of all the stock photography agencies there are, a market leading "Micro" stock agency is Shutterstock. They are a rapidly expanding company who's popularity is growing amongst photographers (amateur and professional) and buyers alike.

Many new photographers like the idea of making money from their pictures, and micro stock photography agencies tend to be the ones they look at closest, because as dicussed previously, they're easier to get started with.

A common beginner question though, is: "Can I really make a living taking pictures?". And the short answer is: Yes.

There's more to it than that though. Like any career or business, a lot of time, effort and study must be invested in order to get maximum returns. And the stock photography market is no different.

Having talent and skill to begin with helps of course, but almost anyone can learn the important aspects of creating great pictures, and thus almost anyone can make money in the royalty free micro stock photography industry. You must be willing to put in a lot of time and work though.

First: You must of course learn some basics of photography. These basics include composition, subject matter, focusing techniques, white balance and so on.

Second: You must be willing to take pictures often. Those photographers who make the most money tend to have the largest portfolios. It's not all about quantity of course - quality is needed too - but generally the more photos you have in your stock photography portfolio, the more money you're likely to make.

And more photos means taking tons of pictures, consistently. Not every picture you take will be of high enough quality to be accepted into your stock photography portfolio. So just going out and taking 100 pictures in one day won't do the trick. In fact, if you just go out and take 100 pictures, then upload all of those to a micro stock photography agency, you may risk having your account suspended or cancelled all together.

Only the best, most experienced photographers can take 100 pictures and have most of them be of high enough quality to submit. Even then though, I doubt there are any who have 100% success rates. Beginner photographers will likely find that only 5%-10% of the pictures they take are good enough for the stock photography portfolio. Some may be able to submit as much as 50% of the shots they take. How many useable pictures you get from one day's shooting will depend on a variety of things.

So, start shooting and keep shooting. The more pictures you're able to get accepted into your stock portfolio, the faster you'll be able to make some money.

How much will you actually make? This varies quite widely too. Some photographers are able to make $100 or more each month with just a handful of excellent stock quality photos. Others however, are barely able to make $100 a month with several hundred photos in their stock photography portfolio.

One thing is for certain though: Those photographers who make honest and consistent efforts to improve their photography, and increase their stock photography portfolio, continue to grow their income month after month. Some photographers who have worked consistently for a couple of years report $4000-$6000 per month from their stock photography portfolios.

So it may seem slow in the beginning, but with time and effort good photographers can make excellent full time incomes from their photography.

How to take photos which sell: Making the most of your subject

In Microstock Photogaphy, to sell photos online, every effort should be made to ensure each of your photos is the most appealing, best representation of your subject possible. The digital photographer should be able to manipulate 'most' photos to look substantially better than the subject itself in real life. The difference between a good photo and a Great photo is hundreds of dollars.

Points to consider are:

• Composition

• Cropping

• White

• Macro

• Colors

• The best subjects!

• Finishing touches and attention to detail.

Photographs speak for themselves. Microstock photography is about creating interesting and salable compositions which stand out amongst the competition. If your food photos dont make people people hungry you need to work harder at preparing the food or taking better photos. The more appealing the photo, the more photos you will sell online. Even very small subtle changes can have a hugeimpact upon sales.

In microstock photography it is common practise for photographers to create a composition which leaves an unused area of the photo empty, so that designers/publishers can insert text into this area. This empty area is called "copy space" and the words 'copy space' can be inserted into your keywords.

Cropping is a HUGELY powerful and very important aspect of microstock photography. For your images to sell, they need to stand out as thumbnails. Dynamic and dramatic thumbnails get more clicks, and sales. How much impact does cropping actually have?

The extra effort taken means that its now one of the best selling burger photos on Shutterstock :) It is true that cropping heavily doesnt give designers much copy space to work with, and cropping heavily is not always the best answer. But bigger subjects in thumbnails will have a very strong and positive impact upon your photo sales. If you want to sell photos online, you need to grab the attention of the buyers who are very quickly sifting through hundreds (or thousands) of similar shots.

Lighting your subjects is also important. A light tent (also called a light box or an infinity tent) helps to diffuse light and provides a white background. Do a search for pets. You will notice that the most popular pet photos are often those which were shot on white, whilst general pet snapshots do not sell as well. Shooting subjects and making them "isolated" "on white" or "over white" (more keywords for your images) allows the microstock photographer to blow out the background. And blown out white backgrounds appeal to buyers because they have less processing to do, as you have isolated their subject for them! Vary your shots of course. Not every buyer wants an image on a white background.

Bear in mind the fact that we are all bombarded with imagery by the media daily, in magazine adverts, the TV, billboards and posters. Nearly every image we see has been processed, and the fact of the matter is that if you want your photos to be noticed (and bought) they will also need to stand out. Shooting colourful subjects and making your existing subjects more colorful than they are in reality will help boost your sales tremendously! Make your subjects as colorful and vibrant as you possibly can, without making them look artificially so.

The less processing you do, the higher the quality of the image will be. Remember that whilst more colorful images are better, designers like to know the photos they are buying are of the highest quality possible

Generally speaking, the best selling subjects are usually of a business, lifestyle or conceptual theme. Photos of attractive women sell very well too, and most creative or conceptual people/ model photos are quite lucrative. Food shots also sell very well, and have a longer shelf life. Photos of your pets, landscapes and flowers do not sell very well, generally speaking. Thats not to say you cant make a good money from a pet shot, because you can.

If you want to sell photos online, then spend time planning your shoots in advance, printing off shots which are best sellers, thinking of ways to improve upon them, and then taking the time to get the shot you are after.

Learning to correctly keyword photos will also help boost sales.

Dew Drops

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 14:02:00 +0000

Our love is like this porcelain rose   Fragile, yet unable to be broken.  This rose, like our love,  Will never die.   The dew kissed petals represent  The tears we've cried.  It often says the words of affection  That sometimes go unspoken.   Please do not leave our love on the shelf,  With me, you do not have to be afraid to be yourself.   As our life together begins,  I want you to hold the porcelain rose close to your heart.  And remember our love is too strong to be torn apart.

Dew drops on rose petal

Water drop clinging by the leaf of a tiny twig, used red playcard as backdrop

You have
an ornate look
as you sleep on velvets
of crimson red
demure, a heavenly drop
of liquid crystal
staid and neatly poised
on a blooming rose petal

Awakened
by morning sunshine
the bead of glass comes alive
vibrant like a well cut diamond
exquisite and ethereal
your delicate fragility translucent
that I want to reach out
and touch...
the spectral colors of a rainbow
that you freely reflect

But as day grows
I watch your splendor diminish
colors disperse,
your existence permeate
in to thin air, you then vanish
like a scrawl on placid water
leaving no mark, nor splatter

Gone yet again...
dew drop of a different dawn
when silent nights condense
will you return once again
to bless my garden, my lawn?

I feel joy at the sight of the dewdrops
Shining on the green grass,
Shimmering by the touch of the warm sunrays,
Gazing at the sky and
Settled on the cheerful blooms.

My cheerful childhood glowed
In the sylvan settlement
Capered in the friendly neighborhoods,
Shimmered by the touch of the
Gentle care and affection of the dear ones,
Gazed at the silver streak striking across the sky.

The dewdrops cuddled up by the rising sun,
Those days are in the past,
Alas, I slouch now in my office with walls of sullen gray,
Hope, will be washed by the bright sunrays.

Tortoise

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 04:37:00 +0000

Filthy tortoise living in a pit in my garden.

Turtu was zooming in and out its neck out of its shell as I zoomed in and out my lens..hehe

The Cross, the Cross
Goes deeper in than we know,
Deeper into life;
Right into the marrow
And through the bone.
Along the back of the baby tortoise
The scales are locked in an arch like a bridge,
Scale-lapping, like a lobster's sections
Or a bee's.

Then crossways down his sides
Tiger-stripes and wasp-bands.

Five, and five again, and five again,
And round the edges twenty-five little ones,
The sections of the baby tortoise shell.

Four, and a keystone;
Four, and a keystone;
Four, and a keystone;
Then twenty-four, and a tiny little keystone.

It needed Pythagoras to see life playing with counters on the living back
Of the baby tortoise;
Life establishing the first eternal mathematical tablet,
Not in stone, like the Judean Lord, or bronze, but in life-clouded, life-rosy tortoise shell.

The first little mathematical gentleman
Stepping, wee mite, in his loose trousers
Under all the eternal dome of mathematical law.

Fives, and tens,
Threes and fours and twelves,
All the volte face of decimals,
The whirligig of dozens and the pinnacle of seven.

Turn him on his back,
The kicking little beetle,
And there again, on his shell-tender, earth-touching belly,
The long cleavage of division, upright of the eternal cross
And on either side count five,
On each side, two above, on each side, two below
The dark bar horizontal.

The Cross!
It goes right through him, the sprottling insect,
Through his cross-wise cloven psyche,
Through his five-fold complex-nature.

So turn him over on his toes again;
Four pin-point toes, and a problematical thumb-piece,
Four rowing limbs, and one wedge-balancing head,
Four and one makes five, which is the clue to all mathematics.

The Lord wrote it all down on the little slate
Of the baby tortoise.
Outward and visible indication of the plan within,
The complex, manifold involvednes,s of an individual creature
Plotted out
On this small bird, this rudiment,
This little dome, this pediment
Of all creation,
This slow one.

Within my house of patterned horn
I sleep in such a bed
As men may keep before they're born
And after when they're dead.

Sticks and stones may break their bones,
And words may make them bleed;
There is not one of them who owns
An armour to his need.

Tougher than hide or lozenged bark,
Snow-storm and thunder proof,
And quick with sun, and thick with dark,
Is this my darling roof.

Men's troubled dreams of death and birth
Puls mother-o'-pearl to black;
I bear the rainbow bubble Earth
Square on my scornful back.

Snake in my garden

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 11:55:00 +0000

Blood bath: nearing its end...

The last gasp...

ShhHHHsshHHHH!!!! quiet....That's my closest encounter with a half-alive snake.

The snake was accidently sliced through in between by a grass cutter. Bleeding to death, it was gasping for air vehemently.

Trying to move around in pain, finally it was separated from the rest of its body. Poor snake, may its soul rest in peace.

the snake
slithers around
sneaky
not a sound

creeps upon
his prey
attacks then
runs away

he might be
pretty look at
outside hes a snake
inside hes a rat

beware of him
he bites
and does it within
his rights

the snake
will smother
even kill
his own mother

snakes are
full of greed
upon your soul
he will feed

the snake is
a self-adoring creature
humility
is not a feature

snakes are
everywhere
so
beware

Bat returns

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:23:00 +0000

This hanging Bat was disturbed by my activities below, near the tree's base and stared at me for quite a long time. This gave me ample time to capture it in my camera. The look in its eyes said : " Why bothering me?"

They sleep this way...how do you sleep???
BhewwwOOOOOhAHaa!!! scary enough right??

Huge Banyan tree full of Bats "hanging-out" during day time. Seemed like all the bats of the entire city had cluttered onto this single tree.

No baby, dont eat my camera's lens, that's not edible!!

Ever used your wings to walk/creep?

I positioned the camera in front the bat's face and it started following the camera. I had keep up with the bat and move backward to capture the "expressions' of the creature!

It became violent for a mean while, tried to bite the lens of the camera!! It even hit against the camera's lens for a couple of times.

The grass was wet, watered with dew-drops which made it even more difficult for me to keep the camera at ground level

This baby bat fell down on the porch after gettin injured. I kept this creature in a box for the night and released it the next morning, and this was its reaction!!

His fingers make a hat about his head.
His pulse beat is so slow we think him dead.

He loops in crazy figures half the night
Among the trees that face the corner light.

But when he brushes up against a screen,
We are afraid of what our eyes have seen:

For something is amiss or out of place
When mice with wings can wear a human face.

The Bat's skin was flooded with tiny insects and ants.

Squirrel squabble

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 15:29:00 +0000

Feeding bread crumbs to the squirrels...

Whisky, frisky,
Hippity hop;
Up he goes
To the tree top!

Whirly, twirly,
Round and round,
Down he scampers
To the ground.

Furly, curly
What a tail!
Tall as a feather
Broad as a sail!

Where's his supper?
In the shell,
Snappity, crackity,
Out it fell.

Beetle is back

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 08:58:00 +0000

Busy Beetle Hey, busy beetle,

Don't roam on my rug!

A rug is no place

For a wandering bug.

Crawl into my hand,

And I'll give you a ride.

There! You can do All your roaming outside.

Lovely tiny little beetle in my garden.

Railway crossing-How India moves ?

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 07:49:00 +0000

This sight was just just shocking, the way people were loaded on this local train just like overloaded trucks and tractors plying on the highways. Even luggage is not stacked in such a way! Well this could be a perfect shot for Fevicol's advertisement! Just the thought of people sleeping atop the moving train under the burning sun in the month of June gave me shivers throughout the journey.

My garden ant

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 07:33:00 +0000

Photographing that creature was not an easy task as I was continously loosing focus because of the wind. I was working as hard as the ant itself, trying to lock focus upon this tiny thing.

I venture out to photograph new creatures but finally land up with these "plenty of" black ants, they are swarming around this place, evry tree, plant and evry branch!!

Busy black stingy ants moving in and out of the roots of a mango tree.

If I were a little black ant
I wonder what I'd say
To all of my ant buddies
Who work so hard all day.

"Stop!" I'd yell, in ant talk.
"Let's rest upon this leaf.
Or swing upon this spider's web
He won't mind, if we are brief."

I know the ants would tell me
The secret of their strength;
How they move those boulders
And trees, three times their length.

Down their hole we'd slide
Into their hidden spaces.
We'd talk and eat and crawl around,
Exploring strange new places.

Then home with me they'd come
And play with all my toys.
We'd colonize my room.
We wouldn't make much noise.

I think the ants would want to,
But couldn't really stay,
'Cause they wouldn't like the smell.
The bug man sprayed today!

Monitor Lizard

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 07:23:00 +0000

This deadly reptile entered my garden at noon but was checked by my pet dog. Though the dog kept barking trying to oust the lizard off, the reptile din't move an inch from its place. After half-an-hour of hustle & bustle this monitor lizard found a safe place on the top of a tree

The lizard’s Elizabethan ruff;
His bootlace tongue;
The way he throws his legs

From front-left/back-right
To front-right/back-left,
That stationary trot

As the starved sand
Made insane by the sun
Bites the soles of his feet.

All that tongue work, and nothing to say
Lizard? All that supple dancing
And no mate to impress?

You and I, lizard. You and I.

Macro-Photography-tips

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 04:58:00 +0000

Tips for improving your macro photography:

Exploring the world of miniature objects with a macro lens is a special and exciting area of photography, and once you start, you will quickly become addicted. The world of macro photography holds many delights and is an area that cannot be appreciated with the human eye.

Macro photography is the name given to close-up photography, and is best explained as images that are taken at reproduction ratios of life-size and above. Ratios of between 1:7 and 1:1 fall into the macro photography category.

Understanding Ratios: This is a term used to express the magnification of a macro lens or other macro equipment that relates the real life-size object to the reproduction size on a slide or negative. If you shoot an object that is 3cm in length and it measures 1.5cm on a 35mm slide or negative - the ratio is 1:2. When both are equal length the ratio is 1:1

Choosing the right lens is the most important factor with macro photography. While a telephoto lens may be acceptable with some types of close-up photography, the macro lens is invaluable to get really close and really accurate focusing.

There is an endless range of subjects that fall under the range of macro photography. The most common subject for macro photography is the natural world - all types of flowers, plants, and insects. For the more creative photographer, macro photography is used in abstract imagery.

With many forms of macro photography, especially with insects, a lens with a long focal lens - minimum 200 mm is required for some nature subjects. You need to keep a working distance from the subject to get a successful image - you don’t want to frighten your subject away.

When shooting close-ups you are limited with depth-of-field - to get an attractive image you must focus on the most important part of the subject. This will be achieved easier if you place your camera on a tripod or monopod.

By using your tripod you will reduce the risk of camera shake. Subject movement is also an important factor to consider. Macro photography magnifies the subject, leaving more room for blur. A strobe unit can be used to freeze movement - even on the brightest of days you should consider using your strobe unit. Try bouncing light from your strobe unit off a reflector. This will give your image a softer illumination.

Many amateur photographers stay away from macro photography because they feel that their technical ability is too inept - your personal ability should not turn you away from this exciting part of photography - macro photography is like all types of photography - practice makes perfect.

* Though you can achieve similar effects using a non-D SLR camera also, they have inbuilt feature/option for macro photography. Certain models have the manual focus option which comes handy when focussing on very tiny objects with background very far away, in such cases the camera focusses on the background rather than the object. This is where the manual focus mode comes in handy.

These are some pics I clicked using my Nikon P80, they can be further refined during post-processing.

Some important points:

DOF:- Super macro means super importance to DOF, this means u will need to either make really tough decision on where to focus. The fact that most of these setups reduce total light will make it more difficult to working at higher f-stops. One method would be to take multiple images with varying areas in focus and combine them to get the desired image.

Lighting:- Most of the above setups will reduce total light available thus, artificial lighting is very important in super macro photography. Use external flashes, it will be convenient to use a ring flash. If there is more light to work with the image can be captured much better. This means that investing in a good lighting device will be worth every penny.

Stability:- The high amounts of magnification means that you will need very high stability, this means you will need a very steady tripod for one. The setup is very sensitive due to the high magnification so you will benefit from using a remote release. Another feature you will benefit from would be live view to increase stability.

Subject:- Live insects will not make good subject for super macro simply because they keep moving. Good subjects would be dead insects and other such subjects that will not move. Flowers and their interiors make very interesting subjects too. Small stone , twigs etc also have a lot of story to tell. Remember that the possibilities in the miniature world is limitless there are so many things that we can capture, but as mention before lighting is very important.

Perspective:- As in any type of photography perspective is important in super macros also. The angle the framing everything counts. When working at high magnification it can be a very precise maneuver that sets it right or makes it all wrong.

The possibilities are limitless so keep in mind these tips and start experimenting.

Monkey-Mania

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 18:13:00 +0000

In a forest, in a tree,
There's a monkey swinging free,
Hanging by his hands and feet,
Looking for a treat to eat.
Ripe bananas grow nearby,
Soon they've caught the monkey's eye,
Monkey grabs one, starts to peel,
Now he's got a monkey meal.

What?? no dinner tonight??

This hungry primate caught my attention while I was moving out of an old temple in Bareilly after worshiping. I could not resist myself from capturing it in my cam, the way it was searching for food and finally got hold of a stale chapati thrown away by the passer byes, near a banyan tree.

Cutie Pie - Kitty kitty kie: Lovely kitten

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 17:33:00 +0000

Look at the glaze in the kitten's eyes, that completely mystified me!!

Found that cute kitten sitting at corner of a room near CME lake, Pune

One little pussy cat looking for some fun
He saw a butterfly
And then there was none...

ExpRessioN - lOok wIthin

zuluzymph@gmail.com (Argha Kumar Singh) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:22:00 +0000

Gorkha man: giving me killer looks at a construction site

As i zoomed in to take the shot...i noticed that the child was staring straight into my eyes through the lens!!

Was experimenting out ways to give the pic most suitable look and came out with these interesting results...

Took couple of shots of this young boy playing around in the dirt with garbage near a construction area, on the way to Mana camp.....were stuck in traffic jam for about an hour when this boy caught my attention...