Photography

New lens and my mom..

Picture of my mom taken with my new toy (Canon 50mm F/1.8 lens). My mom is usually a shy person and this is probably the first time I saw her being comfortable in front of a camera.

I took a photography class recently and am finally enlightened to what a good lens can do :).  Prior to the class, I was always of the opinion that a zoom lens is the way to go. But my instructor opened my eyes to the world of fixed (and expensive) lenses :).

More pictures from this photo shoot at http://www.flickr.com/photos/kudithipudi/sets/72157625773287053/with/5385052525/

January 26, 2011 by Photography Uncategorized 2

Places to visit : Letchworth State Park

If you are ever in the Rochester, NY area and have some time to kill, I highly recommend visiting the nearby Letchworth State Park. It is less than a hours drive from Rochester and is (as the brochure states) “the grand canyon of the east”. It covers an area of ~27K acres and has a varied landscape. You can enjoy a peaceful picnic in the lush green meadows, hike in the forest or get awed by a train running ~100 feet up in the air over a waterfall. The park was not crowded and is not as “commercialized” as the nearby world famous Niagara Falls. Here are some pictures from my recent trip to the park.

The falls with the train tracks

Second Waterfall

Train crossing the bridge

Drive into the park

June 14, 2009 by Fun Photography Travel Uncategorized 1

Places to visit : Cruise on Michigan Lake

Some pseudocode first 🙂

  • If you live in Chicago
  • If you are looking for a place to have a small get together

{OR}

  • Take your significant other on a special date
  • Just trying to impress a girl/guy 🙂

{AND}

  • It is summer

Check out the private sail charters offered on Lake Michigan. Unlike the giant cruise boats that you can get onto, at the Navy Pier, these trips offer a more intimate and unique experience. The gaint cruise boats are for the tourists :).

I got to take a trip on one of the sail boats this weekend. The Red Witch, name of the boat we sailed on, is a topsail schooner. Unfortunately, we were not able to raise the sails, since the owners were waiting on an updated “certification” for a new engine they installed this year. But we still got spend a couple of hours on the lake. We brought our own food and drinks, so it was like a picnic on the lake. You can get information on booking tickets with them at http://www.redwitch.com/.

Here are some pictures from the trip

[The Boat]

[The Crew]

[The Moon]

[The City]

June 8, 2009 by Fun Photography Travel Uncategorized 2

Places to Visit : Shri Swami Narayan Mandir : Bartlett, IL

I am going to start a new category of postings called “Places to Visit”.  I will be documenting various places that I visited and think that they would be of interest to other people.. 

The first one on the list is the Swami Narayan Mandir (temple) in Bartlett, IL. Although, this temple is dedicated to Swami Narayan (one of the Gods in the Hindu religion), it is open to anyone that wants to visit. The temple is built completely out of marble and was completed in a record 16 months. As it stands now, it is the largest Hindu temple in North America (Thx to Deepti for correcting me.. Looks like the newly built Swami Narayan temple in Atlanta, GA is the largest temple in North America now.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BAPS_Shri_Swaminarayan_Mandir_Atlanta). It was built in accordace to ancient architectural practises, which means that no steel or iron was used in building it. The temple is located at 

4N739 IL Route 59,
Bartlett , IL 60103 USA

An added bonus to visiting the temple, in addition to be able to view an amazing architectural wonder and (if you are inclined) a chance to sooth your spirit, you also get good vegetarian food :). It is cooked right in the temple.

Photography is not allowed inside the temple.. Here are some pictures I was able to take from outsite the temple

The Haveli

Intricate wood carving on the Haveli’s enterance

The temple, in snow..

Front view of the temple

The entrance of the temple

February 2, 2009 by Photography Travel Uncategorized 2