Along the Konkan Coast - Part 3

Two days of seascape photography. Was I bored yet? Hell, no! I had shot close to 400 pics but I still did not have a picture which I was fully proud of. There was always something amiss. This was the last leg of my trip and my last chance (for some time at least) to capture something great.


Day 3 - Kapu Beach & Surathkal Beach
Gear - Canon EOS 550D, Canon 10-22mm, Hoya ND400

I took the train from Gokarna to Udupi. From there, I took a bus to Kapu (or Kaup as the Brits called it). Spent the night at a guest house and left early morning to the beach in hopes of taking some decent pictures before the light became harsh.

Seascapes at Kapu Beach

Around noon, took a bus from Kapu to Surathkal. The plan was to reach there by sunset (yep, for that elusive sunset shot).


Seascapes at Surathkal Beach

Once again, threats of rain cut my session short at the Surathkal Beach. I had rushed to the bus stand to get a bus to Mangalore, from where I had to take my bus back home.


Overall, I'd say it was a satisfactory trip. I enjoyed my time alone with the rig. I was without any annoyances or anyone to rush me (except the weather, of course) and I managed to get half-decent pictures. But, after all this, I'm still looking for that great elusive sunset seascape shot. Someday..... someday for sure ...


~AC

Along the Konkan Coast - Part 2

There's something about sunsets in the sea that always .. ALWAYS .. makes for a great picture. I've lost count of the number of times I've seen pictures of seascapes during sunset and thought to myself - Wish I could take such pics!

The first leg of my journey had proven disappointing on that front. I was hoping the next leg would bring better luck.

Day 2 - Gokarna
Gear - Canon EOS 550D, Canon 10-22mm, Hoya ND400

I took the early morning train from Udupi to Gokarna. Reached the place by noon and checked into a beach side hotel. After an hour of rest, it was time to go out again!

Seascapes at Gokarna

 As luck would have it, my dream of shooting a good seascape during sunset was washed away with the rain that started to pour just around the time of sunset. Next time...may be?


~AC

Along the Konkan Coast - Part 1

This post has been long overdue. It's been almost a year since I took off towards the Konkan Coast on a semi-backpacking trip. I've been asked multiple times by different people about the lack of updates on my blog. Well, what can I say? My laziness had gotten the better of me, up until now, that is...

Anyway, without further ado, let me delve right into the details of the trip (or at least, what I can manage to remember of it).

Seascapes have always fascinated me. In a gallery full of pictures, I'll almost always end up picking a seascape as my favorite. How I wish I was staying in a sea-side town with regular access to the ocean -  round the clock, through out the year. But having stayed all my life in a land-locked city, I felt I was being deprived of all the great seascape photography opportunity I was missing out on. And so, I decided to take a little trip along the western coastal line of India - The Konkan Coast.

Day 1 - Udupi - St.Mary's Island
Gear - Canon EOS 550D, Canon 10-22mm, Hoya ND400

After an overnight bus journey, I reached the temple town of Udupi in the morning. Checked into a hotel and after the daily ablutions, left for St.Mary's Island.

The island is 6kms from the mainland. Regular ferry services ply from the Malpe fishing harbor to the island.

Seascapes from St.Mary's Island

 

 

 

I would have loved to get shots of the sunset from this place. But, unfortunately, the ferry services don't run that late in the day and there's no place to stay on the island. Such a shame ...

~AC

At the Auto Show

When a meet up of the photography forum members from Bangalore did not take off, I decided to visit the Auto Show never the less. It was my first time shooting automobiles and I'm not particularly impressed with the results. Low light conditions and the reflections and glares off the metal made it rather difficult.

Location : Auto Mall 2011, Bangalore

Gear : EOS 550D, Canon 10-22mm, Canon 50mm f/1.8

~AC

Ladakh - A land of mountains and monasteries - Part 4

Continued from Ladakh - A land of mountains and monasteries - Part 3.

The final leg of the trip was also arguably the best. I had heard about the beauty and splendor of the Pangong Tso, made more famous by the movie 'Three Idiots'. My initial reaction on seeing it in the movie was - 'Definitely not real!'. What awaited me in Pangong Tso was a sweet surprise.

The lake was nothing like I had seen or imagined. It's blue waters complemented the surrounding mountains exquisitely. The sky, as always, was azure colored. The lake had several shades of blue within it. The shallow areas were a beautiful mixture of green and blue and as it got deeper, the tone of blue got darker. A surreal image!

En route Pangong Tso Lake

Pangong Tso Lake

Dusk at Pangong Tso

Dawn at Pangong Tso

A Pano of Pangong Tso

With this ends the accounts of one of the best trips I've ever taken. The place is any landscape photographers dream destination, a must go place. Being an avid landscape photography enthusiast myself, I'm glad I was able to visit these places. Would I go there again? - Absolutely!

~AC