Burst!!

I had been eagerly wanting to do this for quite sometime... and this weekend was it!
The first thought that might come to interested beginner photographers would be that this was shot at a very high camera shutter speed. But actually the camera was at a slow shutter speed of 2.5 secs in a very darkened room with a black background. The image was exposed with an off-camera flash (Canon 430EX II). So the image was captured with the fast duration of the illumination by the flash. The exposure duration by the flash was approximately 1/15000 sec i.e. the flash fired light into the scene for a duration of 1/15000 sec. The flash was set at 1/64th power and as per available information by various third party tests at that power the flash duration is 1/15000 secs. The duration becomes longer at higher powers. The reason the camera was put on a slow shutter speed was to get enough time within that duration to move and burst the water-filled balloon! And of course, use manual focus to pre-focus the camera at the balloon before the final action.

And now the question of the timing! Well there is a very simple yet very effective phone app based contraption called 'triggertrap' (www.triggertrap.com) which can be used to trigger the flash or camera by sound through your smartphone. So the flash was triggered by the sound of the bursting balloon catching the exposure at that exact moment! The triggertrap can be used for many more interesting creative applications like time-lapse, motion detection etc.

Camera: Canon EOS 60D, Lens:  Sigma 17-50mm f/2.8 EX DC OS HSM FLD
ISO: 100, Shutter Speed: 2.5s, Aperture: f/11, Flash: Canon 430EX II at 1/64th power

Shooting at Sunrise!

In winter the skies here in Kuwait turn quite dramatically beautiful and spectacular, especially during dawn and dusk when the clouds throw out myriad hues against the sun. That is the season when there are clouds all over the skies and form wonderful cloudscapes. And I really enjoy getting those natural yet dramatic backdrops of the cloudy skies for my portraits.

This was shot last winter with my Sigma 17-50mm F/2.8 lens when friends Ashis and Samir agreed one day to venture out into the seashore to enjoy the glorious sunrise. As the sun rose over the horizon I got this silhouette on the pier and the birds added to the beauty of the moment.

Papon Magic!

I thoroughly enjoy shooting live concerts and more so because music has been an integral part of my life too! The lights, the smoke and the energy of the performers always throw out such spectacular images. And my loyal Canon 70-200mm f2.8L IS simply does its job really well. The large aperture throughout the zoom range and the premium optics lets me get the tack sharp shots.

This was at a concert by Anagrag Mahanta 'Papon', the effervescent lively artist from Assam, India who has made a mark in the world of Bollywood music scene. It's just a pleasure to see the young performer revamping folk songs from the North East India with touches of Reggae, Techno, Rock etc. and thus making them so appealing to the young crowd at large.

Baggy Denim Shirt

This has been a favorite so far... Shot with the very affordable yet effective Canon EF 85mm F/1.8, which I had owned for sometime before selling it off and acquiring the Canon EF 50mm F/1.2 L. The shallow Depth of Field (DOF) was well utilized to bring about that hazy foreground created by the foliage nearer the camera.

Plabita added a lot of flair with that baggy denim shirt, which she had actually fished out of her Dad's  wardrobe (but shhh... that's a secret!)

Good To Be Back!

It has been quite a long hiatus. Having launched the website www.abyjit.com, somehow started ignoring the amazing role that the blog can actually play. Recently, having interacted with some pros and semi-pros, I could see how their blogs make a difference to what they represent. So here I am at it again, hoping to draw attention to what I love doing and share whatever little I know about photography and its nuances through my experiences.

When I had started out with the blog having rediscovered photography with my first DSLR, I had somehow decided never to put up any portraits. I felt it would somehow dent the privacy of people I shoot. But as time passed and I kept on shooting, I ended up realizing that portraits are what my forte is! So, I had a re-think and decided to put up portraits as well. With the inevitable social media boom there are a zillion personal pictures flying around anyways.

For the records, I could add a Canon 50mm f/1.2 and a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS (Mark I) to my kitty, both of which are excellent premium lenses for portraits. This was shot with the 70-200mm. 

Sparkles On Venetian Masks

Recently acquired a Canon 85mm f1.8 lens and tried it out on these Venetian masks that were hanging on the wall of our home. The sparkles on the masks turned into those lovely round shapes of different sizes, known as 'bokeh' in the world of photography. This becomes more profound on this lens as it has a large aperture of F/1.8 which gives a very shallow 'Depth of Field' or rather keeps a very narrow range of subject in focus (see the nose and lips of the mask here). The rest of the image goes into a mysterious blur and the shiny little objects turn into those round objects called 'bokeh'. They are much larger in the mask in the backdrop which is completely blurred out.

Sunset 'Framed'...

Winter is the time when you can oft see the wafting clouds around here. The sunsets, therefore,  have been quite dramatic lately. Though there were not as much cloud as I wished for, went up to the 20th floor terrace today and shot this out of a window. The old window broken off in few parts turned out to be a beautiful frame!

Season's Greetings

The kids had done up their X-Mas Tree and the spirit of the season is on! Shot this with my good ole 50mm F1.8. Wished I could get some more profound bokeh.