Coorg Trip

All pictures taken with the Nokia N70 camera-phone

Coorg is a wonderful, picturesque place on the western side of Karnataka. Known for lush vegetation, brisk weather, fantastic arabica and robusta coffee & friendly, cheerful people, Coorg is definitely one of the best places to be for a relaxing weekend getaway.

We stayed at a holiday resort near Kakabe, from where a daredevil 4x4 Jeep ride took us to the top of a local hill. The scenery around was stunning as we watched the clouds try to crest the peak in vain...

More Flora..er..Pictures

It's that time of year again...

January 26 is the Republic Day of India, and in Bangalore, where I live, the local botanical garden puts up a massive flower show.

I've not been to the show since I was a kid - and it's mayhem out there on the 26th...so Mum, Smitha and I went out there on the first weekend following...

Smitha wanted to learn how to use the 30D, and I, not having much of a clue myself, thought I'd try a few shots as well.

We shot almost exclusively with the 75-300 lens. The camera was mostly on High-speed Multi-shot mode, and the lens got a chance to show off the ability to take technically difficult shots of flying bees and beetles...in focus, natch!

The gardens were still crowded, and the amount of litter everywhere was appalling - yet another indictment of what people who keep their houses spotless will do in public...

I've uploaded the pictures with reduced resolution to save space. Track back to me if you want any picture in full resolution and I'll do my best to e-mail it to you :)

Enjoy!!

Flora

Flora, Fauna and other Wildlife

Here are some of the pictures taken on the Ooty trip with the 30D.

The picture quality in some cases has been compromised because I aggressively compressed them on the camera. I need to get a 4GB card (or two) to allow me to take the pictures RAW.

The kit as it stands now is the 30D body, Canon EFS 18-55 and Canon EFS 75-300 IS.

The pictures have been uploaded without the corrections proffered by Picasa. So there! :)

Enjoy

Flora and Fauna

The Ooty Trip: Jan 15-17 2007

Smitha!

Smitha, my wife, is my favourite photography subject. Usually she acquiesces to my insane demands to "stand here...look there...there...THERE!!!" by gritting her teeth - which makes her smile look wonderful on camera!
She was sitting around while I was fumbling with the 30D the moment I got it, and I managed to squeeze off this spontaneous portrait.

Canon 30D, 70-300mm IS, flash

November 7-10 2006: Sydney, Australia

Sydney Opera House

All these pictures were taken with Smitha's handy Creative DiViCam. This was taken from a boat as we took a tour of the Sydney Harbour.

The Coat Hanger

Smitha and I in front of the famous Sydney Harbour Bridge. Someday we'll go on the Bridge Climb!

Pipe Organ, Sydney Opera House

A friend works in the Sydney Opera House so we got a bit of a tour of the inside. This is the pipe organ in the main hall.

Goodbye Old Friend...

I just upgraded to a Canon 30D from a Minolta 800si film SLR.

I've shot a lot of stuff with the 800si - bought it before a trip to Bryce Canyon in the US - but time and technology move on, and after a lot of compromising (mostly in the form of Digital Point and Shoots), and after a trip to beautiful, picturesque New Zealand with nothing but my Nokia N70 camera-phone, I finally chanced upon an opportunity to get a Canon 30D.

We went to the Himalayan foothills for the New Year and I shot a couple of rolls with the 800si before finally switching. I think the film roll is finally going the way of the polaroid...

Took the 30D on a trip to Ootcamund - a hill station close-by - and shot a bunch of water-birds in a bird sanctuary. The machine feels good. I have to still get used to the spot-metering and the AF, but it was a good first outing.

I'll post a few of the pictures as I get the time...