ramya's photo journal

Tag: nilgiris

Layers and Letters

portrait of a tribal mother-infant from the nilgiris, transferred using acetone onto a page of my grandfather’s book

A quick entry before I disappear.

I’ve been getting my hands dirty at image transfers for sometime now (sporadically, however) – as a part of prep for one of my next projects. Must say I haven’t really gotten far with these trials, but I’m loving every bit of the process and to be actually using my hands. I liked what came of one of these experiments and thought it was share-worthy :) Intend to peruse this a lot more next month when my current state of affairs is a little more relaxed. Any thoughts, ideas with regard to this are more than welcome.

I will be back soon, with a post about a favourite topic of mine – Indian Dogs.

February 15, 2013
Blues and Random Thoughts.

“Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again”

– L Frank Baum

…and wonder at how fresh those citrus hues look against the blues

…or catch the tingling aroma of street food and watch how it colours the air with it’s steam

and then stop to greet this patiently waiting basket…

and the dispersed petals about to join the winds of change.

It’s ironic that I have so much to say here, but feel completely blank once I start a new post. It’s not a rut for sure, but a blankness that comes with being overwhelmed by life’s potpourri in general – but in a good way. That heavy, heady blend of joy, confidence, sadness, love, creative flow, and fear.

So. on another note, I was surprised to see how many images of blue had found their way into my computer. Mostly from strolls in the mountain markets while scouring for fresh produce – sights and smells thereof. Like the fiery reds of the Indian summer, I like to think that these blues correspond with the Indian winter, which, I am savouring completely at the moment.

November 27, 2012
Here With Me

Again.

I've succumbed to the charms of the retreating Monsoon.Personally, the rains lift my spirit as much as a healthy dose of sunshine does and more often than not, I find that I function better on gloomy days. I don't mind the shades of grey and those generous clouds and all else that comes along.

November 4, 2011
Finding the Flow

The Nilgiris, November 2010

While I'm on a constant search to fill up on inspiration, I see a positive shift in how I feel about photographing and making images in general. Less inhibited. Less afraid of perceptions and criticism. The need to conform to set moulds is also on a receding path. It has something to do withgrowing up for sure but beyond that, I think it has also to do with making peace (gradually, of course) with both the devils and angels of one's creative life. Not the most fun thing to do particularly for the sorts like me, but I'm learning to like all states right from melancholy to joy. Just let them all be. Come and go. Let the negativity and fear hit-and-whizz past without too many questions or confrontations, so there's less chance of setting off new chains of unwelcome reactions. Become also a spectator and not just the experiencer is basically what I'm trying to say. It is liberating and lets ideas stem from one another and from places you'd never expect – simply because we are letting our playground become more expansive and less aggressive, besides bringing an element of objectivity into the volatile lives of those of us who thrive on creativity. I'm trying. So far so good. I'm in the process of developing some new work and the newly alert spectator cap puts me in a better state of flow while I think and work. I like this state of flow and the uninhibitedness that comes with it. Who knows how long it will last , so I'm going to make the most of it for now and report back if this little theory of mine backfires.

Hope all you people are living your most creative lives! I will be back next week with a little post on my favourite season, the monsoon, which is in full bloom right now this side of the world. Meanwhile, I thought this quote by JK reflects the spirit of Flow so beautifully.

July 20, 2011
Duality

” Did you ever wonder . . .

. . . if the person in the puddle is real, and you’re just a reflection of him? ” ~ Calvin and Hobbes

More monsoon beauties and colors continue to bring us joys, and quiet revelations.

I found this fellow meditating for hours on end on a window of an old planters bungalow in the mountains. I mediated away watching him, with him – Both his sides revealed different kinds of quiet. The smells and sounds of the rain outside made these meditations feel like dreams and I had to close my eyes to see any further.

September 22, 2010
Mountain Diaries

These mountains have a special place in my heart in a nostalgic way and also as a matter of concern as to how best their fragile eco systems and natural beauty can be preserved. We all have places that we love, that soothe our souls and comfort those aching nerves. This place is one such to me. The mountains of the Nilgiris. This is my attempt at bringing the place closer to you all through these personal visual notes I make as I see and feel the place. I hope these notes convey the love, the tenderness and an ethereal quality that exists in the spirit of these hills. And it is a beginning of sorts for me in this endeavor of spreading a message. Please click on the image below to view the complete(continuing) story.

July 23, 2010
Monsoon Love

The respite brought by the Indian Monsoon after a parched summer is incomparable to anything else that may rejuvenate an aching earth and all it’s creatures. She’s here again, ready to bless us with her lush bounties. The outtakes below were captured during a generous spell of the SouthWest Monsoon as she touched the mountains of the Western Ghats recently. Photographed at the gorgeous Thiashola Plantations in the Nilgiris.

~~~~~

rains always show me the way

~~~~~

“A lifetime of showers moistens the soul.” ~ Anonymous

June 24, 2010