2
Jun, 2015Views
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Awards
Member Selection Award
Staff Winter Selection 2015
Well Done
Absolute Masterpiece
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
Top Ranks
Top 30 rankTop 20 rank week 2Top 20 rank week 1
Top 20 rank
Top 30 rank week 1
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken during monsoon on a balcony of a common house in the capital city of India, New Delhi. Rain droplets would collate and form bigger droplets due to the curvature of the metal fence. Monsoon rain in India has a high importance for Indians as it provides water for most life sustaining purposes.Time
The monsoon rains begin with a roar and last as a constant downpour lasting for days. I remember this was the first rain of the year. I was particularly happy as summer in Delhi is usually extremely dry with temperatures as high as 48 degree Celsius. Furthermore, I was pondering upon the country's many environmental issues (water pollution being one of them) before embarking for my master's in sustainability science. Looking at galaxy like formulation in the rain droplet, it was at this moment when I realised water is truly universal to our needs and survival.Lighting
The lighting was all natural and I had no reflectors or any additional equipments to change the lighting.Equipment
It was shot on a handheld Sony HXV-200 with no flash.Inspiration
I love the details about the different world(s) that are not apparent in everyday life. A water droplet is insignificant for any commoner in Delhi who's caught up in the rushed and busy life. So, being curious to take a macro look at different everyday objects was what inspired me to find this shot. The fact that it turned out to be a photo that made me (and hopefully others) reflect and learn a perspective on presumably insignificant things in life is an experience that came through the pursuit of photography.Editing
I did mild post-processing of adjusting the brightness, blacks and contrasts to bring out the depth inside of a droplet. Since it was .jpeg shot I had to make trade-offs between post processing and quality.In my camera bag
Now, after 2 years since this shot, I have equipped myself with a Canon 650D with a 18-135 and 50 lens. Getting a macro lens is my next goal.Feedback
I would say DSLR is not the answer at all times. Even the phone camera can do wonders just for the purposes of enjoying photography. As I was a beginner then, my advice for beginners would be to learn how lighting and shadows work. When shooting macros, short distance focussing is definitely the first important factor but apart from that getting the correct lighting matters most. As water droplets both reflect and refract many interesting challenges can come up that would take some photo ingenuity to solve. There are no straight forward answers for me.
