Lens Arrived - Finally, phew!

Today morning after reaching office, I finally received my lens from my friend's sister who works in the same premises. There was a one day delay in receiving the lens but finally the waiting paid off.

I haven't even had the chance to take a peek at it since my shift time started and I need to somehow waste away the 8 hours of work to get out and get a hands on on the glass. This is really tough since, I can't concentrate on the computer screen just ahead of me. I'm getting diverted on how the lens would be, how to compose good pictures, the zoom range etc. Man, its driving me totally crazy & insane!

Hope, I could tell a white lie and get out of work early to try it out! LOL

To Vote or Not To Vote - The Eternal Question

A forward received from active youngsters in politics to others (like me) via email:

"Did we the citizens of India know that there is a provision in our constitution, as per the 1969 act, in section "49-0" that a person can go to the polling booth, confirm his identity, get his finger marked and convey the presiding election officer by filling up a form that he/she doesn't want to vote anyone?

Yes such an option is available, but obviously our beloved leaders have never disclosed it. This is called "49-0".

Why should you go and say "I vote for nobody" because, in a ward, if a candidate wins, say by 123 votes, and that particular ward has received "49-0" votes more than 123, then that polling will be cancelled and will have to be re-polled. Not only that, but the candidature of the contestants will be removed and they cannot contest the re-polling, since people had already expressed their decision on them. This would bring fear into parties and hence they will look for genuine and honest candidates for their parties. This would change the way, of our whole political system. It is surprising why the election commission has not revealed such an option to the public.

According to the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, an elector can refuse to vote after he has been identified and necessary entries made in the register of electors. The EC has no data on the number of people who have used the rule because these "votes" are not counted and there have only been stray incidents of activism so far. But those who believe in the Rule say 49(0) gives people a powerful right: to say 'No' without boycotting the democratic process. It is hoped, at least theoretically, that with better awareness among voters, 49(0) will force political parties to put up better candidates. (Source: Indian Express)

Please spread this news to as many as you know. Seems to be a wonderful weapon against corrupt and inept parties and candidates in India.

Demonstrate your power, expressing your desire not to vote for anybody, is even more powerful than voting, so don't miss your chance. So either vote, or vote not to vote (vote 49-0) and do pass this information on. The people of India can really use this power to save our nation. Use your voting right for a better, terror-free and honest India."

I'm just sharing it to all the readers and visitors here!

Photo Shift

Friends & Visitors,

I have a New Blog: Photo Graphically showcasing my photographs and a few technical settings that were used to get the image. I also plan to write in a few lines about the techniques for photography and review a few equipments that I can lay my hands on.

I'm just an amateur photographer who is learning the tricks and tips of this subtle art by reading lots of books and interacting with a few professionals and I thought it would be better to share the knowledge with anyone who is interested in this field.

I hope everyone would enjoy the pictures and share their thoughts on the writings and photos that are added once every day (a promise which I hope to keep!). Any critique is welcome.

Thanks for your support & comments. :-)

Are bad times here to stay???

Today is Saturday and really a bad way to spend this weekend which started on a bad note! Yes, really a bad bad way... All my plans for this weekend is going awry and I've no control to stop it. Oh, how I pity myself in such times. Since, another friend of mine had an accident and has now been operated for a broken right leg, which would keep him off for some 3 months!

The other friend who meet with an accident on the way to Mt. Abu has been brought back to the city and is in another hospital, after all the operation done on his injured head. Time and work never permitted me to go and meet him and today I need to go to both the hospitals to meet both of them. One is approximately 8 kms away and the other one 25 kms away.

Gosh! the heat is hovering over 42 degrees, people driving around like maniacs and getting into heated arguments & ugly fist fights at traffic junctions over minor issues. I'm not sure if its heat or the frustration of the people which tend to drive them crazy over petty issues?

Another major issue that is bothering me is my own inability to go to Delhi and attend my friend's marriage which was screwed due to this heat and work load back in office. What ever the reason be, I missed a splendid wedding and travel opportunity after being cooped in a cubicle since the last 8 months with eyes glued to a computer screen!

Further, since I missed the marriage, I also missed my much awaited Sigma 18-200mm lens which was supposed to be delivered on the way to Delhi by my buddy. And, this lens is the one which gives me sleepless nights; as I just can't seem to keep my thoughts drifting away on the pictures I'm planning to take with it. Oh God, show a miracle and sent the lens to me asap or else it will convert me into a zombie, a maniac...

And finally, I still haven't received my new Sports Riding Jacket as some freak at the airport messed up with the luggage and all the belongings including the jacket is lying in a Singapore Airport Baggage Lot awaiting its flight back to India! Its been two days since their last dispatch date and I still haven't received the jacket :( Gosh, how painful it is to endure such mishaps while you're really expecting things like a small kid...

Alas, all I can do now is to pray for some miracle or good news! AMEN

Death - The Wake Up Call?

Today, I got up at 5.30am after snoozing my alarm for half an hour and rushed to office thinking that I can spend the whole evening fiddling with my camera and planning some nice pictures. However, fate had something different planned for me.

While at work, I get my friend's skype message that my good friend & co-photographer has met with a serious accident with grave head injuries & that his wife died on the spot. I was so badly shocked to hear that as he's a frequent traveller and has travelled alone on his Royal Enfield to Leh-Ladak and other places. Such a cheerful, active & jolly person... and life shattered with an accident.

Death - A word that even the gods fear! Ah, such an unrestrained wild horse whom no one can control, just desire! Everybody is in search for the elixir of life, to gain immortality. Its such a rude wake up call, that can shatter anything and everything it touches. And, its shards hurts the near & dear ones till their time comes to bid farewell to this life.

Yet there are some, who wants to take mileage out of death like Pakistan. Death was passed out as a mere show of power by some jihadis, in the land that is controlled more by the rebels than the government. And, the mute, deaf & dumb governments blames India for the terrorist attack on Sri Lankan players touring their country. How easy is it to blame others for one's own lack of governance, security and peace? The international media & other super powers play the role of mute spectators watching the ongoing spat between India & Pakistan. They won't burn their fingers in this issue until the flame of jihad hit their own lands like 9/11.

Can death be a level playing field? It kinda feels so, of late!

Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 OS HSM Lens - My Travel Partner

After months of debate and exhaustive research, I finally decided to get myself a lens I was interested in acquiring for my DSLR. Since, my Nikon D40 DSLR doesn't have an in-built motor, I needed to get a versatile lens that had a motor inside it which could help me while auto focusing any fast moving objects.

Now, getting such a lens was a daunting task as it would be too expensive and India doesn't have a big market base for photography equipment. I searched my city and found that here Sigma lens weren't available and the Nikkor ones were too expensive without including the 15% VAT. Nikkor 18-200mm VR lens would have been a better choice, if I had real deep pockets filled with loads of Ghandhi heads! But, looking at my budget, I should be lucky to get a Sigma. :D

Finally, I asked my friend Fenz in Mumbai to get me a Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 OS HSM lens for me which has set me back monetarily by 23 grands. This is a sort of an all rounder lens with an F mount for Nikon camera and would cover approximately 11x zoom range, good enough to be on your camera while travelling as it covers the wide- to tele- photo range without the worry of having dust in your sensors while changing lenses.

With the 1.5x camera crop factor the lens would give an amazing range of 27-300mm range on a 35mm film camera. Further, I heard that the OS - Optical Stability system is the best of its class, but not a real silent performer. It gives you a 3-4 stops advantage while shooting hand held in tight situations, but it would be of any use just in case you use a tripod.

The only itch is that I still haven't received it in my hands to try and test this baby! I'm hoping that the calender jumps to 15th April, when I get this lens and go around shooting some great street scenes in Delhi the next day. This is not a fast lens but would be much better in comparison to the 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens and would cover a good range for my bird & candid street shots. It should be a perfect travel partner for a photographer as one lens and the camera would suffice instead of a whole camera bag filled with an assortment of lenses.

Ofcourse, I Love You...

Recently, I was lucky enough to find time out of my busy schedule to read a book bought by my friend Arvi from Pune. It was titled "Ofcourse, I Love You - Til I Find Someone Better" by Durjoy Datta & Maanvi Ahuja. Wow, now that certainly was some cool read, laced with college life, night life, exams, peer pressure, girls, sex and lots of it. It had all the ingredients of a normal college student, studying in a big college, hostel life with lots of girls, alcohol, party and fun.

The book started off on the first gear (a slow starter) but somewhere in the middle it just reeves into the fifth gear with interesting developments and situations. Reading it was a breeze and my own college life did flash by in front of my eyes. But, some thing that really caught me was the love Deb had for Avantika after being an unusual talent around girls & she coming back to him at the end of Chapter 21.

There is a certain someone who reminds me of Avantika in my own life and wish she could simply come back to me just as it happened in the book. Though, we had a somewhat different issue that ended up the relation, I certainly wish she could bury the hatchet and come back to me! A happy ending... Applaud

Ahem, dude, wake up!!!! In real life these things never happen. I just wish her better luck in life with the one she's already selected. Well, an aching heart & the pangs of separation is something I'm destined to live with. :(