Behind the Lens

a blog every Friday on a specific species of animal or bird and stories of photos

Search for a specific species, genre or even a location or use the directory for a complete list of species I have photographed and written about till date.

Panchgani - Holy Grail Timelapse

Spectacular locations often make for some spectacular photographic opportunities. The stunning hill station of Panchgani is one such location which offers a huge array of opportunities. On this trip I spent time doing day to night timelapses - the Holy Grail. A Holy Grail timelapse is a one where you go from day to night or from night to day. It gets the “Holy Grail” epithet because of just how insanely difficult it is to make given how the ambient light changes SO DRAMATICALLY from the beginning up until the end of the shoot. Luckily for us today, camera technology has caught up and it’s made shooting and editing a holy grail timelapse almost as simple as any ordinary timelapse.

#wildartworks, #Canon, #PromediagearTR424L, #holygrailtimelapse, #LandscapePhotography, #Longexposure, #ETTR, #Sunset, #SunsetTimelapse, #LongExposureTimelapse, #Timelapse, #timelapseplus, #holygrailphotography, #Panchgani, #KrishnaRiver, #DhomDam, #MountViewHeritageHotel, #KatesPoint, #SydneyPoint,

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Bansilalpet Stepwell

The Bansilalpet Stepwell (Naganah Kunta) is a six-level baoli or stepwell in close proximity to the centuries old Hussain Sagar Lake. Much of its history has disappeared with the passage of time but its architectural features stylistically date it to over 300 years old. The Pharaoh & Co. mentions the well as Naganah Kunta in their 1954 map of Secunderabad as part of a garden of tamarind and palmyra trees during the British period. Later, in the 1930’s, a Britisher - T.H. Keyes - developed the area and the project was funded by local businessman Seth Bansilal, after whom the stepwell came to be known.

This is the first chapter in finding the Stepwells of the Deccan series in collaboration with the Rainwater Project.

#wildartworks, #canon, #1DxMkII, #7DMark2, #EF1635f4LIS, #EF2470f4LIS, #landscape, #landscapes, #Cityscapes, #LongExposure, #LongExposures, #Syrp, #SyrpGeniMini2,#PromediagearTR424L, #LightandShadow, #NightScapes, #BreakthroughPhotography, #sunset, #holygrailtimelapse, #timelapse, #timelapseplusview, #bulbramping, #Hyderabad, #CityLights, #Bansilalpet, #BansilalpetStepwell, #Stepwell, #17thCentury, #Renovated, #SethBansilal, #Secunderabad, #HistoricalMonument, #Landmark, #HistoricalLandmark, #17thcenturystepwell, #therainwaterproject, #bhoigudalandmark, #hyderabadhistory, #groudnwaterconservation, #rainwaterconservation, #baoli, #nagannakunta, #subterraneanheritagestructure, #hyderabadsubterraneanheritagestructure, #sustainability, #BreakthroughPhotographyX4ND, #PolarProPeterMckinnonVND, #MomentCinebloom, #momentfilters, #tiffenfilter, #tiffenglimmerglass, #tiffen, #tiffenblacksatin, #telanganahistory,

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Photographing Fireworks

Why are fireworks so mesmerising? The sudden, bright, moving sparks they emit are compelling to watch and seem mysterious because we’re so unused to light of that type travelling directly into our eyes. In general, the colours we see are created by light bouncing off the reflective surfaces of objects around us. As we encounter this reflected light all the time, we’ve become very good at unscrambling the colours in our brain and, as a result, anything different can seem other worldly. This could be why other sources of moving light, like shooting stars and fireflies, are also thought of as magical.

People are fascinated by pyrotechnics. In an age when highly-polished and sophisticated computer generated images are the norm, a live firework display feels like ‘border country’. It’s a rare mix of controlled, careful choreography with that exciting sense that anything might happen. For, while almost all large displays are fired electrically, once that electrical pulse is turned into fire, the device is unstoppable. It’s a hypnotic cocktail of science and spectacle, raw power and beauty, colour and noise.

#WildArt.Works, #Canon, #Photography, #Nightscapes, #Landscapes, #Fireworks, #LongExposurePhotography, #FireworkPhotography, #LightTrails, #Celebrations, #EventPhotography, #Cityscapes, #Skyline, #Singapore, #NDP, #CNYFireworks, #MarinaBay,

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Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

The rural countryside

In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. The word rural is defined as encompassing "...all population, housing, and territory not included within an urban area. Whatever is not urban is considered rural."

Typical rural areas have a low population densities and small settlements or villages. Agricultural areas too are commonly categorised as rural, as are other types of area such as forests. Different countries have varying definitions of rural for statistical and administrative purposes.

About a 100 kilometers from the capital city of Hyderabad, Zaheerabad is one such industrial town and Municipal Council in the Sangareddy district of the Indian state of Telangana. It is the base for visitors of ancient sacred religious sites like the Ketaki Sangameshwara Swamy Devasthanam (a temple) at Jharasangam, Siddhhi Vinayaka Temple at Rejinthal and Hazrath Multani Baba Dargah (A dargah is a shrine built over the grave of a revered religious figure, often a Sufi saint or dervish) at Metalkunta.

The Zaheerabad area has many diverse areas for birding and in some instances wildlife watching and observation. In close proximity are the Manjira Wildlife Sanctuary, Gottamgutta, Karanja Reservoir and the Chandrampally Dam and Chincholi Wildlife Sanctuary just over the border in Karnataka. I have had the good fortune to spend a fair bit of time at all these locations and have obtained some beautiful photos with the help of the Forest Officers and Rangers.

Some of these locations are home to migrants and seasonal visitors and every experience of seeing a new bird provides a rush that one can only feel by doing something they love. As I mentioned in my last blog, bird and wildlife watching is a great form of recreation for people of all ages and always provides an opportunity to learn something new.

This is an extended video and some photos from a recent visit to the rural countryside surrounding Zaheerabad.

#wildartworks, #Canon, #Bird, #Birdinginthewild, #BirdWatching, #WildBirds, #naturephotography, #your_best_birds, #planetbirds, #earthcapture, #photo_pond, #earthpix, #naturyst, #conservationphotography, #wildlifeonearth, #bbcearth, #natgeowild, #natgeoindia, @awpc.hk, #animalsofinstagram, @globalcapture, #Zaheerabad, #ruralcountryside, #countryside, #manjeerawildlifesanctuary, #manjirawildlifesanctuary, #manjira, #manjeera

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Architecture, Light Painting, Astrophotography Siddhartha Mukherjee Architecture, Light Painting, Astrophotography Siddhartha Mukherjee

Light painting the Bodhisattva

Also known as the 500 Lohan Temple, Vihara Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is one of Bintan’s best hidden treasures. Located in Kijang (South Bintan), the premise is just a short drive away from the main bustling scene of Tanjung Pinang. Step into the temple grounds and be transported into surreal settings of towering structures and the highlight—more than 500 life-sized (Lohan/arhat) stone statues with intricate physique and facial expressions, each one unique and different from the next.

#WildArt.Works, #Photography, #Nightscapes, #Landscapes, #LightPainting, #Astrophotography, #Bintan, #500Lohan

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Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Wildlife, Bird Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

Birds on the Doi

About 685 kilometers to the north of Bangkok lies the former seat of the ancient Lanna Kingdom and it is considered one of the most scenic provinces in the country given its mountain ranges, valleys, flora and fauna. A land of misty mountains and colourful hill tribes, a playground for seasoned travellers, and a delight for adventurers. Despite its relatively small size and blissful calm, Chiang Mai truly has it all, a city that is still firmly Thai in its atmosphere and attitude.

Located in a verdant valley on the banks of the Ping River, Chiang Mai was founded in 1296 as the capital of the ancient Lanna Kingdom. Today it is a place where past and the present seamlessly merge with modern buildings standing side by side with venerable temples. Of all the places I have visited in Thailand, Chiang Mai with its forests and mountains and the historic city of Ayutthaya are by far my favourites.

Here are only a few of the innumerable birds who have made these hills their home.

#wildartworks, #wildlifephotography, #wildlifecentral, #your_best_birds, #nuts_about_birds, #planetbirds, #earthcapture, #bbcearth, #feather_perfection, #nuts_about_wildlife, @wild.planet, @wildlifeonearth, @discovery, #wildbirdtrust, #natgeowild, #Thailand, #TH, #2019, #December2019, #BirdWatching, #Hide, #DawntillDusk, #Wildlife, #WildBirds, #Wild, #NorthThailand, #DoiAngkhang, #DoiSanju, #DoiLang, #DoiInthanon

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Landscape Siddhartha Mukherjee Landscape Siddhartha Mukherjee

God Rays

A sunbeam is a beam of sunlight that appears to radiate from the Sun's position. Shining through openings in clouds or between other objects such as mountains and buildings, these beams of particle-scattered sunlight are separated by darker shadowed volumes. Crepuscular rays or "God rays" are sunbeams that originate when the sun is below the horizon, during twilight hours but not necessarily always as these photos will illustrate.

#wildartworks, #godrays, #crepuscularrays, #Landscapes, #landscapephotography, #bhutan, #drukyul, #landscape, #landscapephotography

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Landscape, Infrared Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee Landscape, Infrared Photography Siddhartha Mukherjee

The Beauty of Infrared Photography

One of the most charming contrasting color effects you can get in photography is by using infrared. An easy way to understand near-infrared light is to think of it as the color of the rainbow next to red, a color that is invisible to the human eye. But near-infrared is not the same as thermal imaging which is far-infrared. What I have done here in my photographs is leverage the near-infrared spectrum and have tried to provide a look into an invisible world present in the visible around us. #wildartworks, #infraredphotography, #longexposurephotography

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