What I like about the Photowalks is how the group collectively behaves. There are some who have done a recce the previous day to make sure everything is organized perfectly, and that the caretakers of the area are alright with a group coming in. Some have created online groups & communities to educate the newcomers on how to be better prepared for the shoot, detailed road-directions for convenience & even to-dos & not-to-dos lists . Most of the Photo Enthusiasts also talk & help each other, ask questions, get to know more about their camera, that oh-so-cool setting etc. And then there are a few seniors, who have been there for more than a decade and would take your questions with delight!

Its a great way to learn. Its a great way to meet upcoming photographers & the Pros at the same time. Its a great way to know your city better.

This Photowalk at Sultan Ghari, New Delhi – ‘The First Islamic Mausoleum’ conducted by DPEG – [Facebook Community] was well Organized by Rajiv, Kinshuk, Sundreysh & Nimish.
This was not one of those click & go walks – where everyone was more bothered about getting that best shot to flaunt later. But everyone in the community (unlike me, who was a newcomer – and knew only a few) knew each other and sat down to spend some more time with each other. To discuss how they could take Photography to the next level. To work Commercially, and learn on the go. It was amazing to see the enthusiasm of the Photographers.

This Photowalk was a great experience for me. More so, because I could see people going out of their way to help others grow with Photography. A very rare find these days.

DPEG-Photowalk SultanGarhi

*Click to see the Bigger Version. Downloadable 4k Resolution Image.

With the Group Shot, I wish everyone who participated, and all the members of DPEG who couldnot – The Best of Luck & Light. Wishing you endless photowalks (never ending – as in multiple times – and not a ‘single one’ that doesn’t end :p)

cheers…

-

Ramit Batra is a Lifestyle & Art Photographer. Open for Travel/Editorial/Commercial Assignments Worldwide. For Destination Wedding Photography – Kindly Visit his Flickr Stream or drop in an email at ramit@f-stop.in

What they Say & What they Really Mean!

1. Amateur: Your Pictures are Nice & Oversaturated!
(Damn! Where do you get those Godlike Colors.)

Pro: Your Pictures are Nice & Oversaturated!
(Loser. Still Struggling with Photoshop)

2. Amateur: Equipment doesn’t matter.
(I have a shitty camera body. And can’t afford better lenses)

Pro: Equipment doesn’t matter.
(I shot this with an iPhone, but yea I have a 1Dmk4 with a L glass in my bag and am too lazy to use it)

3. Amateur: I shoot Black & White. Because it makes the Subject stand out.
(Damn! I forgot to change the setting back to Color)

Pro: I shoot Black & White. Because it makes the Subject stand out.
(Damn! I should’ve shot at Lower ISO. Too much noise!)

4. Amateur: I love outdoor Candid Photography
(I will shit in my pants if you tell me to do a Light Setup & ask a Model to pose)

Pro: I love outdoor Candid Photography
(With the kind of Budgets you have, I will be shooting with a P&S)

5. Amateur: Great Post Processing Work
(I need to join a Photo School)

Pro: Great Post Processing Work
(Ah. I am Jealous of your Pics! How do I humiliate you without being rude!
So let me credit the post work!)

6. Amateur: Wow. That’s one Expensive Lens
(bohoohooo.. i want that)

Pro: Wow. That’s one Expensive Lens
(ha. So that’s where you get your fab pics from! I always knew you were a douchebag)

7. Amateur: Do you have any Photo Assignments?
(Dude. I need work)

Pro: Do you have any Photo Assignments?
(Dude. I am desperate!)

- This is a work of Fiction -
- Please don’t Hurt me if you feel I have quoted you -
- I have just Quoted my own Thoughts :p

©2010 Ramit Batra | www.f-stop.in

Ramayana & Facebook

Found this interested image compilation over the vast reserves of the Internet.

*No offense to Religion & Faith. I just think this is an interesting read.

The Xylopholks in Delhi

Click here to Download this image in High-Resolution.

*Music Basti is a collaborative project that designs music workshops conducted by young musicians, with street children.

**The XYLOPHOLKS are a dynamic group of musicians who mostly play novelty ragtime music from the 1920′s (featuring the xylophone!). They do so while wearing furry animal costumes. The XYLOPHOLKS wish to make people happy and perhaps even dance. Please feel free to contact us about providing music and entertainment for your events.

You can choose between canvas or premium quality photo paper.

Available in 2 framing options – Canvas on a wooden stretcher & PhotoPaper on a Wooden Frame with a Glass Top.

For details about pricing, Click Here

We wish you a Merry Christmas!

MEC01: Shutter.141

MEC02: Exhaust.21

MEC03: Shaft.key

MEC04: Slot.3

MEC05: Spanner.1x

FLS01: Crouching Dragon

FLS02: Jelly Fishy

FLS03: Slow Dance

FLS04: Dancing Queen

FLS05: The Peaks

NAT01: Let you light Shine Down

NAT02: Pan

NAT03: Tree Top

NAT04: I... I alone.

NAT05: Crazy Bird

ABS01: Thorns & Fences

ABS02: Fossil

ABS03: Mount Mary

ABS04: Music of Thought

ABS05: Orange Rock

Open Ballot: How to Evade Voting

I had no clue that a simple voting competition would open a whole new world of revelations.

The voting started with a few friends pitching in. Sending their best wishes along. It was Fun! I immediately climbed up on the leaderboard, with a little more than 40 votes in 2 days.

Another day of casual requests to vote and ‘fun’ voting, while the volumes of the leaders crossed 3 figures. My efforts to seek votes, which were as of now only asking the people we would see online, changed to sending email requests and Direct Messages on Twitter to close friends.

Strike 1: Since a lot of my friends are from photography and related fields, many Registered for the competition. What started as a mutual ‘let’s vote for each other’ turned bitter, in just a single day.

Strike 2: New leaders appeared on the board. Some friends, some not. Now I faced the dilemma of whether to go ahead and shamelessly ask everyone we had access to, to vote, or just continue chilling out :p This is when the fun started…

Restless Butterfly and a whole lot of voters (whom I do not know), voted for me regularly and kept my morale high throughout the competition. I wish I could thank them all personally. Their votes were the initial boost that took me to the top of the leaderboard.

With the two weddings I attended and photo assignments I had to deliver, the top of the leaderboard started dodging me. Gosh I was so stuck at #4

Nidhi Narula, Bhawana, and @Pacoblue made sure they updated their status messages/posts on twitter and steadied the inflow of votes along with encouraging chatter.

From friends who wouldn’t care to reply as soon as they heard about the competition, to acquaintances who would vote for everyone so that nobody exits and of course those relatives, friends and acquaintances who went out of their way to help, this ‘Open Ballot’ saw it all. *Thanks to Kingfisherworld, for keeping the Votes Public.

Some more instances which I would like to share:

*My Dad, a retired Army officer, loves to spend his time playing Sudoku and taking mom out to her oh-so-frequent visits to the relatives, got on with his military-like organizing skills. He got the whole family to vote for me – from my grandfather, to his cousins, to his retired colleagues, and quite surprisingly, the domestic help and his college going kid! everybody with an email id was now voting for me! So much so that they’d come home regularly to Vote. Fear Factor or just plain goodwill. Dad spread the message real quick. A #win +50. *He is back to Sudoku

*Special mention here, of my little cousin Neha from Agra. She’s all of 12 years and despite her weak health and barely managing to finish her homework, she made sure everybody she knew in Agra voted everyday. Another #win +20

*Ramit Grover, the only Ramit I know of (other than Ramit Sethi) made sure everyone around him, put in their share votes everyday

*Cathy, Laureen & Neha Batra – The three ladies here displayed quite remarkable networking skills when they got their friends and acquaintances from the US/UK and Australia to vote for me. International Votes #win

I’d like to mention here John Pfeiffer, a dear friend of Laureen’s, who also voted for me. At Laureen’s request he voted and that was among the last few things he did. John is no more. My heart goes out to John’s family.

*The Frameboxx Gang – Sachin Bhatnagar (North), Sathya & Reno (South) and Manish (West) helped with votes from faculties and students.

Mahesh Gaba never fails to add some spice to your day with his sometimes naughty and sometimes deeply profound SMSes. Swami Gaba ji helped us reach the hundreds of contacts he has access to.

Inching towards the end of the competition, I wondered how could I reach more people, and despite the constant inflow of votes, come unstuck from #4? Asking my Salsa Gang for votes, Salsa King Kaytee Namgyal and Vineet Bangera made this magic happen just like their dance.

They say there’s always a cloud in the silver lining… (I still don’t know who “They” are!)

I was quite saddened by how some cousins & friends reacted to the whole voting scenario.

Me: Please Vote for me…

Cousin/Friend: What do I get if I vote for you?

Me (Dude! I’m not standing for the Delhi Assembly elections promising regular supply of batti-paani. Besides, your Profile Picture has been clicked by me, isn’t that good enough for one vote? Of course I didn’t say that, out of politeness): How ’bout a nice new DP?

This always works, I guess I should add ‘Provides Free Profile Pictures’ in my Resume! :p

I don’t know if I’ll win this competition or not. But I know this for sure, a lot people want me to.

Latest Update – Rank #3 was not good enough. The First 2 contestants were declared Winners.

Love is Green

Amongst other contradictory definitions including Envy & Jealousy, Love is truly ‘Green’ & Environment Friendly.
1. You don’t need Electricity to Love or to Make Love.
2. It is Natural to Love & be in Love.
3. Love has Eco-Friendly By-Products. Broken Hearts are BioDegradable & Replenishable.
4. Lovers are Harmless Creatures. They Consume nothing.
When they are Hungry ‘Love keeps them Alive’
5. Love is Easy to Acquire, Build Upon & Enjoy for a Lifetime. No Service or Downtime.

Go Green.
Fall in Love.

After a very long time, I was sitting, listening to a Great Photographer, who had superb understanding of the subject.

But then, give photographers anything to shoot, and thats the end to the ‘education’.
As soon as the Model arrived on the set, the herds of photographers rushed to capture her, forgetting the core reason for being present there..
Maybe this was the part where you become a better journalistic photographer. And of course, those 2 hrs in the gym help!

Herds, Photographers

*Somehow this has become a highlight of most of the workshops happening around in the capital. I am glad my Camera and Lens survived the mad rush!

Where do we draw a line?
I have been struggling with the ‘do’ and ‘not do’ for quite a while now. And had finally given up on the dilemma of ‘When to shoot & when not to’.

And one day, the solution came almost instantly. Like it was there, waiting to be explored. When I look back and see the thousands of pictures I have clicked. I feel left out. Somewhere, I feel lost..

The counter-question that solved the paradox was simple ‘How many times were you asked to be in the picture, and not behind the camera?’..

Selfish? Not quite..
Honest? Yes.. Very Much.
So If I forget to send you your picture I took in the mall last night,
I am sure you will understand..

Dilemma