Alternative London's "free" (pay what you like) walking tour certainly lived up to the hype... despite it being a dull and drizzly day the tour engaged us thoroughly in the sights, sounds and smells of Brick Lane and surrounding areas of Liverpool Street, Spitalfields and Shoreditch. It ranks highly on Time Out and this is how the site itself describes the tour: "This is our original tour which was established to showcase East London's incredible creativity whilst giving insights into important historical and cultural events that have made the area what it is today. "
Our guide (Doug) was incredibly passionate yet informative - all the guides have a personal connection to the street art they are showing - whether they are street artists themselves or have a strong interest in capturing it - Doug runs Fifth Wall, an independent short film company focusing on London's creative scenes. I don't want to give too much away - I strongly recommend signing up and going on one! You can book on the site here: http://alternativeldn.com/walking_tours.php I enjoyed the tour so much I returned a few weeks later to explore and re-capture some of inspiring street art in the area. Technical details: Fuji X-M1 with Fujinon 35mm and 16-50mm lenses.
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Fort Jesus is a UNESCO World Heritage site that was built in 1591 by the Portugese in the old town of Mombasa. According to Wikipedia, "between 1631 and 1875 the fort was won and lost nine times by the nations contesting control of Kenya." And in case you're wondering, those are shark jaws being sold on the street in the forth photo!
Technical details: Sony a33 and 18-55mm lens. Photos taken while pottering around the West End of London; a little street photography with the beautiful 35mm Fujinon lens.
Technical details: Fuji X-M1 with Fujinon 35mm lens. My free Friday afternoon led me to the London Ice Sculpting Festival, located in the midst of Canary Wharf skyscrapers on Wood Wharf. It was breathtaking to see the international sculptors from all over the globe race against each other to carve wonderfully intricate designs into their monolithic blocks of ice. The work in progress is taken during the "Freestyle" competition in which the sculptors had only 4 hours to carve their masterpieces. Additionally an unusually warm and rainy January evening with temperatures of approx 9 degrees resulted in the exhibits dripping and melting while being worked upon!
The super low-noise capabilities of the X-M1 deserve another mention (see post from Westminster a week ago)... most of the below photos were shot at ISO 3200-6400! (Photos have not been post processed / edited). Technical details: Fuji X-M1 with Fujinon 16-50mm lens. Like last year (click here), here is another round-up of some of the most memorable images taken over the past year. Click the photos to navigate to the associated full blog post. Happy viewing!
Please take a few minutes to vote for your favourite photos - click here. Photos taken during trips on the Keralan backwaters, off the Vembanadu lake near Alleppey (Alappuzha) and Kumarakom. Staying in a relatively luxurious houseboat was a unique experience - being spoilt by having our own and very hospitable staff on board, and able to observe the changing waterscapes from our comfortable lounge deck. However you can't beat the stealthiness and magical serenity of a punting / row boat gliding through the smaller channels without the noise of the engine! The first photo was taken in the early hours of the morning from the banks of Muhamma.
Technical details: Sony a850 with Tokina 19-35mm and Minolta 70-210mm lenses. "With God’s blessings, our mission is to rehabilitate people with disabilities; to reach and to serve them through love and dedication with the ultimate goal of enabling independence." (ATD's Mission Statement).
Over the past 17 years, Ashirwad, under the love and dedication of Mr Rambhai Jadav, has grown to provide a number of services and helped thousands of differently-abled persons. The first 7 photos are taken at one of the three day-care centres being run in the district (see the post on the re-opening of the third Upasana centre here). Services are provided free-of-charge for almost 300 children with various disabilities from visual impairment, hearing impairment, speech impairment, deaf and dumb, mental impairments, cerebral palsy and many other multi-disabilities. The third photo has been taken in the multi-sensory and mobility park, created with equipment, colours, materials and textures specifically designed for fun, safety, education and development. An experience to stimulate their minds and senses and to enhance functionality of their limbs. Photo 8-9 are taken during the newly established self-help groups in which differently-abled and other women join together in saving and livelihood collectives. They are spread awareness of important causes. The last five photos show a few of the community-based rehabilitation projects in which hundreds of people are educated and given household and vocational training on their doorstep. Other activities include physiotherapy, training disability field workers, assistive device camps and social awareness programmes. Further information can be seen at the Ashirwad website as well as pages 20-29 of the Raj Saubhag Janhit magazine. Technical details: Sony a850 with Tamron 28-75mm lens. This Jantar Mantar (photos 1-3), a step-up from the one visited in Delhi a few days ago, was far better preserved. We learnt how the larger instruments could be used for calculating the time, for example, to within a few seconds accuracy. The Hava Mahal "Palace of Breeze" was built in 1798 in the form of the crown of Krishna. Its unique five-storey exterior is also akin to the honeycomb of the beehive with its 953 small windows called jharokhas that are decorated with intricate latticework. The original intention of the lattice was to allow royal ladies to observe everyday life in the street below without being seen, since they had to observe strict "purdah" (face cover). Besides this, the lattice also provides cool air caused by the Venturi effect (doctor breeze) through the intricate pattern and thereby air conditioning the whole area during the high temperatures in summers. (Wikipedia).
Technical details: Sony a850 with Tokina 19-35mm and Minolta 70-210mm lenses. "This magnificent fortified ghost city, 40km west of Agra, was the short-lived capital of the Mughal empire between 1571 and 1585, during the reign of Emperor Akbar. Akbar visited Sikri to consult the Sufi saint Shaikh Salim Chisti, who predicted the birth of an heir to the Mughal throne. When the prophecy came true, Akbar built his new capital here. Although a brilliant Indo-Islamic masterpiece, the city was erected in an area that suffered from water shortages and was abandoned shortly after Akbar’s death. The well-preserved palace buildings and the still-used mosque [photos 1-5] are a superb reminder of the Mughals at their architectural peak" Lonely Planet.
Technical details: Sony a850 with Tokina 19-35mm lens. Photos taken from the Matushree Kashiben Harjivandas Sanghrajka Eye Hospital, operated by Raj Saubhag in Sayla, as well as the dental clinic. The eye hospital, equipped with the latest PHACO machines, conducts over 3000 operations annually - mostly cataract but also surgery for glaucoma, pterygium and corneal relaxing. The dedicated team lead by Dr Kamal Shah and Dr Vidhyut have helped assess over 260,000 patients over the past 8 years of operation.
The dental surgery, having opened more recently in 2010, is the only dental clinic in Sayla - previously patients would have to travel over 30km to the nearest town of Surendranagar, and this for many would have been unaffordable. Dr Sharma and his team extract over 100 teeth every month, and other common treatments include root canal, filings and dentures. All services, both dental and optical, are provided free of charge. The final two photos were taken at Ladakchand Manekchand Vora (LMV) Girls High School, named after the late Pujya Bapuji who founded Raj Saubhag. Established in 1997, the school was the first girls high school in its local district of 75 villages - a sign of traditional and conservative attitudes in the local area. Bapuji always had the upliftment of the local community in his heart and particularly emphasised with the disadvantaged women. Under the guidance of educationalist and headteacher Chandrakant Vyaas, the school now tops the district league table with 100% pass rates and the majority of college students earning a distinction for their efforts. Their are nominal school fees and the educational operations are funded by donations. For more details on humanitarian activities, you can read the Janhit magazine here. Technical details: Sony a850 with Tamron 28-75mm lens. |
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