WH Yeo Photography

Portfolios: India

The trip to India was a commissioned job and throoughout the 18 days, we were in awe of the country. The colours and light and people were all etched in our memories and we are looking forward to heading back soon. Though that does not change the fact that we will not be paying the astronomical sum to bring a tripod into the Taj Mahal.

All images in this gallery have been displayed in the panoramic format as this was the requirement of the client. Thus special attention had to be taken while shooting. The composition and subject matter had to really suit the requested format. There were of course times where I forgot all about that and shot a perfectly framed 3:2 image only to slap myself later on for that error. Fortunately, that happened during the first few days and I was soon accustomed to the fact that I needed the extra space for the crop to take place.

Since it was winter when we arrived, the light was pretty much amazing throughout the day. The evenings were giving us soft warm light and when this boy waved, I lifted the camera and grabbed a few frames.
  
At the Gateway of India, the morning traffic was getting heavy and the contrast and exposure range was just too much for the camera to handle. Using a ND grad will result in unatural looking images. Thus dialed in a -2 and underexposed the frame.
   
It has to be emphasized that the locals are really really friendly and smiles were just omni-present. Never once did we feel threatened even while we lugged the expensive gear.
     
  
At a shoot for a support group, the youths welcomed us with much enthusiasm. Requesting them to get into gaming mode was quickly obliged and the frisbee was definitely a hot favourite.
  
The Taj Mahal was a location we were looking forward to getting but the security checks slowed us down too much. The lighting however made up for it and using a tilt shift lens, the buildings were kept vertical.
  
I was in awe of this young man's ability to get the chess pieces around the board despite his handicap. And yes, he was great with the game too!
     
  
I was very sure he was not posing for me. I was too far and in a car that was moving...how could he have seen me? Perhaps he was just enjoying the train ride...
   
The boys were unusual....they actually enjoyed studying. Most kids their age will be yearning to get out shopping and downing Coke by the gallon. It was however a luxury they could not afford but my money is on them being able to do so if they keep the effort going.
   
The key to getting natural expressions is to avoid having your subjects getting conscious of the camera. Thus, I usually move around as quietly as possible and my presence is soon ignored. This girl started playing with a deflated ballloon and with a long lens, I shot from a distance away. The sunlight reflecting off the balloon provided the warm ,almost reddish fill light.
     
  
The saris were amazingly colourful but they were hung outside a balcony and I could not get a good angle. Walked into the room and saw this lone toy hung on the window. It was a weird juxtaposition.
   
It was breaktime and the kids went dashing onto the empty court downstairs. Grabbing the bats, they are evidence of the immense popularity of cricket in the country.
   
I looked totally drab standing next to the sari-clad women. In this case however, I was shooting from the car with a wound-down window thus my lack of fashion sense was not an issue.
     
  
Lucks comes to those who are prepared and for this frame, we were in the car, heading for the next location (hours away). The sun was setting and I had the long lens on a body and a wider angle on the other. Windows down, exposure set and waited for the right moment before I triggered off a few frames.
  
Peak hour traffic in the city was an exciting time to be grabbing shots. A slow shutter speed with a pan towards the sun introduced flare but was I bothered? Nope as it somehow highlighted the genuine rush of the people to get home to dinner.
   
The 3 elderly folk walked past my camera and must have been smiling at my weird shooting pose. I was on the ground, body twisting constantly like a snake charmer's python. The reason for that? To avoid casting my own shadow on the ground.
     
  
The streets and roadside scenes were always amazing and each turn packs a surprise for us. With the windows drawn and watching our shutter speeds, we could actually grab some amazing moments that would otherwise have been missed.
   
Something must have caught the motorcyclist's eye as he gestured to his pillion rider to look up. I peeked out and saw a giant flock of pigeons circling the cloudless sky.
   
The guide was going through his well-versed lines, bringing the history and introducing the architecure of the place to us. Hang on a minute, this is some nice light. A 3 shot HDR later, he was already 50 metres ahead, seemingly unaware of the photographer's need to move slower than the normal tourist.
     
  
I'm known to doze off while the drivers do the hard work of negotiating the roads and dirt tracks. But I was lucky to be awake when we drove past this scene. I reacted a little too slow however and the driver had to reverse to let us get off for a ten minute shoot. That of course turned into half an hour of sheer joy.
   
We had just landed at a tiny airport and was heading towards the coastal areas. For once I felt really warm and wished for the air-conditioning. They should however be feeling much better with the nice cool sea breeze.
   
The light was gorgeous and I was determined to make the most of it. Spotted a street that had unblocked views of the setting sun. Camped there and waiting for interesting moments and juxtapositions to occur.
     
  
The patterns of the building was just too tempting. Whipped the tilt shift lens on the camera and exposed a frame. Something was missing....I needed something to provide a recognizable sense of scale. A while later, a tourist wandered past and walked towards the opposite end. Just what I needed.
   
I would have loved to be on this very same spot during the magic hours but it was not to be and I had to make do with what I was given.
  
We were up there on the container cranes and 4 cameras had been set up for the timelapses. Lugging the fifth body and 2 lenses, I noticed the shadows of the cranes over the containers.
     
  
Like parts of an airborne futuristic ship, the cranes were high up in the sky. The deep blue sky meant that a polarizer was not needed. Even if I wanted to use one, it would be problematic with such a wide angle lens as the polarization will be very uneven.
   
The buses were coming at very short intervals and that meant we could shoot till our hearts content. I chose this frame however as it had the yellow warm light reflecting off the window panes. Without it, the image will not be as strong and will most probably not be selected at all.
   
While watching the stall holders on the side of the road. The boy staggered down, struggling to balance the empty container on his head. A goat nearby was watching with as much interest as I did. Too bad it did not have a camera.
     
  
The 2 main forms of public transportation in Mumbai; the buses and the taxis. The latter was the only one I had the time (or rather lack of as we were rushing around) and it was extremely affordable and really quite comfortable.
   
The corners of the Taj Mahal have 4 huge towering pillars and walking around with my guide, I gestured that I needed some time. It was good for him too since he could take a well-deserved smoking break. Walking to and fro the grounds, I lined pillar with the sun and used a small aperture for diffraction to set in which resulted in the starburst effect.
   
The one thing that is never going to be lacking in India is colour. Even the buses were rich with vibrant reds and greens. Had to wait by the street for 2 buses to enter the frame with one of them moving while the other stayed put.
     
  
A blessing in disguise will be the perfect description for this. The driver had trouble finding his way to the airport offices and made a few wrong turns. On one of the turns, we chanced upon this worker laying bricks for what may be a new office building that is hopefully easier to navigate to.
   
Thw wind was blowing and I had trouble getting the tripod to be as stable as it normally would be. Bringing the ISO up to boost the shutter speed was necessary. A sharp but noisier image is always going to be better than a clean but one laden with motion blur.
   
The traffic light turned red and to the left was the lady peering out to sea. Was she enjoying the breeze or comtemplating the future?
     
  
This photo of the Taj Mahal may impart a sense of serenity but truth is, rush hour traffic was piling up on the roads just nearby. We had to rush off to the opposite side of the river and no, we did not make it in time. The sun had already set by the time we reached and the palace was no longer bathed in the soft warm light.
   
The boys stopped by the roadside, chatting to a biker. Given the close proximity of the traffic, it's a wonder how they really can concentrate on their conversation instead of their safety.
   
Flies were many a time a constant pest in some of the more remote areas. Stall holders and I would then have a simliar action despite the vast differences in both language and culture.
     
  
Ok, a confession here. The taxi was not really speeding, in fact it's almost impossible given the amount of traffic with ten times the number of pedestrians. Panning at a slow shutter speed gave the illusion of speed and a different feel to the photo.
   
The farmer was just taking a stroll in his fields when we drove by. SIgnalled our understanding driver to slow down, I grabbed as many frames as I could before we sped off.
   
Security was not only taken seriously near the crowded areas but at the lesser known tourist spots as well. Granted, it was a little frustrating to have my tripods refused entry but it was something we could not argue against so we just abided by the rules.
     
  
Along Marine Drive at Mumbai, there was a part of the beach that had literally thousands of pigeons. Not just on the ground but in the air too and it was an awesome sight to see flocks of them in the air. Things do get messed up when a kid runs towards them with hands waving faster than their wings can flap.
   
Red lights trigger the flood of innovative street entrepreneurs selling everything from snacks and drinks, led torches to magazines. Oh, they did have the iPhone chargers as well. Cool.
   
Why is this shot labelled such as? Simply put, there was at least a thousand people roaming the palace grounds and yet, in this image, there was not a single being. It was the only frame that really gave me what I had envisaged beforehand i.e. the Taj Mahal alone bathed in the morning light.
     
  
An intimate couple, a family outing and kids diving into the cool waters was a scene out of a fairytale.
  
This was something I wished I could do....the ability to carry heavy loads on their heads was baffling and made me shine with envy.