March MHK: Photography Contest

The following are the entries received for the photography contest held during the March MHK. The rules for the contest are listed below:

1. Send your two best photographs taken during the course of the workshop at Panchavati
2. Photos must be resized so that the longer side is no more than 900 pixels
3. No digital manipulations must be done except contrast/brightness/levels/crop
4. Only JPEG format
5. For each photograph, include an explanation as to the "science" and "art" behind the photograph

The result will be announced once the judges (Rathi, Ravi, Roshin) have had a chance to review all the photographs as per the following criteria: Grading out of 10 points with 4 for Technique, 3 for Originality and 3 for Aesthetics. The higher weightage for Technique as it is the easiest to improve immediately after a workshop.

All viewers are encouraged to express their opinions/criticisms of the photographs in the comments section of this page.

As announced, the winner gets to take home a copy of the book "How to take Great Vacation Photographs" by John Hedgecoe.

Ananth - I

Inverse Silhouette

Camera: Panasonic
Model: DMC-FZ8
ISO: 100
Exposure: 1/50 sec
Aperture: f/6.3
Focal Length: 6mm
Flash Used: No

Art, Sciene etc... : Hmmmm, firstly, I guess I've been lousy with the rules in this pic. No thirds, leading lines... afternoon sun. I wantedly over-exposed the pic etc. I initially wanted to take a pic of my shadow on the lawn. Then I thought it would be cool if I can manage to get the grass filling the silhouette and no details outside the shadow area. So I decided to overexpose the picture, by using spot metering and focussing on the shadow region. I added a spot of brightness and contrast in post processing, but that's more for the outer fringes to appear whiter.

Ananth - II

Heron

Camera: Panasonic
Model: DMC-FZ8
ISO: 125
Exposure: 1/25 sec
Aperture: f/3.3
Focal Length: 72mm
Flash Used: No

Art and science:

While driving up to Panchavati, I'd noticed some birds flitting about in the adjacent field. So after the workshop, when I was goofing off on the roof trying futile attempts at Nat-Geo-ish pics, I saw the field again. So I hopped off the roof (in safe stages) and walked across. I had hell taking this pic, since there was only one spot from where this pic could be taken, and that was a slope beyond the bamboo fringe. So I was rather precariously perched to take this one. It also made it hell to keep my hand from shaking, I used 12x zoom for this pic. I like the fact that the foliage forms a natural frame from my location of view in this pic. The plants forming the lower half of the frame are much closer to me, and hence they are out of focus. In hindsight, it has a nice effect of focussing on the heron. I also loved the way the grass in the field looked. So I aimed at the ledge on which the Heron stood, using the depth of field available to get a focus on the heron and the grass/paddy/whatever too. I used a slower exposure (which on hindsight was crazy because I was on 12 x zoom and my hands have a St. Vitus dance temperament) because it was already getting a little dark by then. The ledges on the fields also add lines, some leading,some misleading, to this picture. I just liked the overall effect. I took a few pics until I was satisfied with this one. Ravi identified the bird for me the next morning.

Varun - I

Caption: FIFA World Cup Final, 1998

The photograph depics a football in the colours of Brazil. The focus is on the ground, and the football is blurred. Symbolically there are 3 things here,
1) the ground (depicting Down to Earth)
2) The Brazilian National Flag coloured football
3) This football not in focus

This, for me, depicts the loss of a highly anticipated-to-win team in the world cup final.

Varun - II

Caption: Game On!

The photograph has leading lines which leads to the epicenter of the pic, the football. The ground adds the effect of a good contrast and makes the pic more natural.

Diwakaran - I

Shoes

This photo symbolizes that just the way we leave footsteps where ever we go, we also leave our shoes for everyone to fit in in that path... It may be easy to follow someone on his footsteps but very difficult to actually fill in their shoes..

Diwakaran - II

How High

This photo creates a pseudo sense of height. This is to symbolize that some obstacles even though actually small may look really huge..

Tharunya - I

"Who's coming to tea?"

The photograph was meant to be of a place set for tea (specifically in lieu of a living subject). The empty chair suggests limbo; one feels as though someone has just left, or will soon arrive... I liked the play of light and shadow through the photograph (especially the difference in the sharpness of shadows of objects close to and far from the wall - a nice study in perspective!) and the bold colours around the doorway. (The pillars in yellow and green, and the jalli-work at the corner). I felt the elements were well-balanced both by position and orientation.

To me the most interesting aspect of the photograph is the fact that although it is a still-life, this particular view of it, with the sunlight at this angle, lasted for only a few seconds. Static and dynamic simultaneously.

Tharunya - II

"Look up, baby!"

One of the reasons I liked taking this photograph is purely because of the fact that I followed little Jördis around for quite a while before I abandoned the attempt, and the moment I did that she sat down most obligingly in mamma's lap. I love the way she really is the focus of the photograph, both by the way it's composed, and because of the way her mother's head is bent towards her. I liked, also, the fabric of the skirt an the way it gives shape to the legs around the baby.

Technically, I tried to capture the diagonal line of the mother's arm and the baby's leg contrasting with the vertical of the wall on the side.

P.S. That wall is constructed quite shoddily.

Manasvi - I

Manasvi - II

Gururaj - I

Gururaj - II

Sugandhi - I

Ants:

Science : F5.5, Shutter speed : 1/1000. Wider aperture to capture only the foreground (subject) in focus. Shutter speed was taken to be that value , while I set the camera mode to 'fast' or 'sports', to freeze the ants which were moving

Art : The wider aperture has blurred the background, bringing the focus only on the ants. The ants are moving into the picture. The rope is adding the diagonal factor into the picture.

Sugandhi - II

Kid:
Science : F3.5, Shutter speed : 1/30. Fstop and shutter speed were set such that the girl and the background are captured clearly (higher dof)

Art: The picture follows the rule of thirds, with the girl in the left 1/3 of the pic. She also acts as the frame.

Asif Raj - I

The road less travelled

This is actually the photo of a ditch where dead trees etc. is burnt. A tough road to walk on.

Asif Raj - II

Face__Off

I just found this broken card board sheet, and incidentally it looked like a human face. One can easily make out the eyes, the nose and the beard. The background makes it look like the only survivor of a catastrophe.

Markus Ehrnsperger - I

Science:

TV: 1/100
AV: 1.4
ISO: 800
Focal Length: 50.0 mm

In spite of some missing light (especially in her face) no flash was used. This ensures saturated, clear colors. The AE was taken at her neighbor to ensure proper exposure in spite of the window behind her. Full apperture (1.4) and somewhat higher ISO (800) was used to achieve sufficient exposure. The shutter speed (1/100) is sufficient to avoid blurring. The background is very close to the foreground, so it is blurred only somewhat (on the left side) in spite of the very large apperture (1.4). Nevertheless, the women is very well emphasized in front of the rather uniform curtain.

Art:

The picture concentrates on one face. The expression is kind of mysterious, maybe musing about something. The very shiny background provided by the sunlit window gives a stark contrast to the person's features, emphasizing especially the contours of her eyes and the dark irises.

Markus Ehrnsperger - II

Science:

TV: 1/500
AV: 5.0
ISO: 400
Focal Length: 50.0 mm

The aperture ensures good DOF for the persons in the foreground and a blurred background to emphasize the persons. The exposure in the foreground is good in spite of the sun in the background.

Art:

The central subject of this picture is the very intense one-on-one talk between adult and child. Both have not been "set up" for this photograph, but it is rather a "catch of the day" kind of photo. There is a whole story within the way both are focused on the display of the laptop held by the woman; both are intently looking at its content (she showed photographs on it - so there is actually photos within a photo); the woman leans towards the the child holding him in a tender embrace. The child draws himself closer to her - on the outside to get a closer look, but on the inside maybe to better enjoy the intimacy of the moment. It is all about that "strong shoulder" that he can lean to.

Both persons are looked at from behind, but you can only do so much as guess what their faces would be like in that particular moment. You are also tempted to start wondering what might be so fascinating on that computer screen...

The outer settings of the picture provide for a kind of frame for the pair, the tree to the right, the car (blurred because it's background) and the bamboo stems. The heads of the two people are not in the center but rather in the upper third, and so your gaze is almost directed to their backs and particularly the strong shoulder that the child is leaning to.

The background provides for a lovely play of light an shade on the gravel, provided by the leafy tree shadows.