Into the Light 1
Hagia Sophia, Istanbul

Bungled into Bangalore

We had an "interesting" trip home from Malaysia last weekend. Our plane (Sri Lankan Airlines, Colombo-Doha) got diverted into Bangalore with a fuel leak. We landed about 8.30pm, and finally allowed to reach a hotel about 5 am! Some very cranky people by then.
Never mind, I can say I've been to India now, and the hotel breakfast was great! The bus ride to the airport was mind-blowing, I took about 300 images in 40 minutes. Would I return to India's Silicon Valley? Actually, I wouldn't return to India full-stop. If I want to be uncomfortable, delayed and frustrated, I'll go hunting or hiking back in New Zealand. At least I won't have 50 witnesses to every frustration!

Along the road......

We do a lot of driving when we're in New Zealand, through some amazing scenery. I've seen it all before, but it's never the same. The kids are used to me screeching to a halt and shoving the car in reverse to "get the shot". Sometimes literally, because I've seen a rabbit or hare to shoot!
I guess because I'm a hunter, I tend to "see in telephoto". It's often a little detail in a big scene, or a compressed part of the view. The longest lens I carry is 45mm (90mm in 135 film equivalent), and I am looking to go longer.
Often in the evening light, I find it hard to get the DR I need to capture what I see.  I also find it hard to get the colour balance right. Sunrises and sunsets are not "natural lighting", especially in New Zealand. The whole scene can be drenched in colour that looks downright bizarre if I try to re-create it in post processing!
I'm enjoying this kind of landscape photography more and more. No point trying to think too wide if my natural world view is narrow! I'm enjoying seeing a pattern emerge, and I think I'll focus more on the "view from a gate" style images. I used to build fences and gates as a teenager, so I guess there's some therapy to be gained there.

MackenzieCountry, near Burkes Pass.
E-PL1, Panny 14/2.5 @ F7.1

Canterbury foothills.
Taken from across the road so that I could get the compressed view of the mountains fading away.
E-PL1, 45/1.8 @F7.1

A "Taranaki gate" in the MacKenzie Country. This pool was surface water from heavy rain, which is rare here. So I doubt I will ever get this scene again.
E-PL1, Panny 14/2.5 @F6.3

Pivot Irrigation near Tarras, St Bathan's Range in the background. Many of us don't like these things marching across the fields, but at least here they match the contours of the land. This sunset was even more ridiculously pink than I've shown it. No-one would believe it if I went for the real colour!
E-PL1, m.Zuiko 45/1.8 @ F5, ISO800, about 75% crop.

Catching the morning sun, Upper Clutha Valley. Kids nearly got whiplash when I stopped for this one!
E-PL1, m.Zuiko 45/1.8 @F2.8
About 75% crop. Should have stopped down more.

Aoraki, Mt Cook. Morning light in the MacKenzie Country.
E-PL1, m.Zuiko 45/1.8 @ F4, about 50% crop.

Cloudy Peaks, Burkes Pass-Fairlie Road. How many times will it take to capture what I see here? Next time....there will be many next times. Next time, I'll use HDR techniques.
E-PL1, mZuiko 45/1.8 @F4, very tight crop.

You can call Kiwi farmers many things, but you are always welcome if you do the right things.
E-PL1, Vivitar 135/2.8 @F2.8
Will use this lens more if I can get it to focus to infinity!

Some New Zealand Skies...

Have been back in Qatar a month. You can see why I'm missing New Zealand! Some taken from my kitchen...

Leaving Wellington, to cross Cook Strait

Tarras Sunset

From my coffee machine.

Irrigator

Arrow to the Lindis.

Lake Wanaka sunset

Taranaki in the MacKenzie.

Souq Waqif, Doha

Had a half hour to spare while doing some errands in the Souq, so thought some shutter therapy was in order. This market and it's surround have almost everything you could want. It's a bit of a hassle to get there and find a park, and the heat is something else, about 43 Celsius on this particular day.
But things bought there seem to have a higher value, to me.
All taken with the Olympus E-PL1. VF2 essential in this sun! Lenses Panny 14/2.5 & Olly 45/1.8

 Food Street

 Rooftop pool, in a new boutique hotel in the Souq.

 A mosque in Souq Najada

 Wind Tower

 Traditional storm drains. We do get torrential rain here in the desert!

Interior courtyard, Windtower House, inside Souq Najada.

Penang

The kids and I headed off to Penang for a few days R&R. Hadn't been there for a while, the food wasn't as good as it used to be! But the weather was nice, with a cooling thunderstorm every afternoon.

 From the Butterworth-Georgetown ferry.

 Honeymooners.

 Missing my old Rover.

 Pasa Malam vendor.

At least the satay was how I remembered it!