Night and Long Exposures in Pondicherry

Taken somewhere in the middle of Pondicherry around midnight. 2 sec exposure, f/5.6

Also in Pondicherry around midnight. 5 sec exposure, f/5.6. Was going for trails of passing tuk tuk, but they didn't show.

Also Pondicherry around midnight, this one had a 15 sec exposure at f/5.6. I wasn't carrying a tripod, so I think I just had the camera pressed against a wall. Still, I like the depth.

Sunset behind Pondicherry mosque; 1/800 exp at f4

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Image © 2009 Joshua Samuel Brown

These shots were taken in Pondicherry in September, 2009, between dusk and midnight. Captions tell most stories; in the case of the elephant, caption space is insufficient.

There is nothing technically interesting about that shot. Had to use a flash because she wouldn't sit still for a low-light shot. After taking the shot, the elephant - who's name, I was told, was Lakshmi, not Ganeesh as one might expect, and was also a she - spoke to me telepathically. "You're a good monkey," she said to me. "Go and get me some bananas and you can pet my trunk." Flabbergasted at being spoken to directly brain-to-brain, I complied. When i returned to the temple, however, Lakshmi was on procession, and I couldn't find her, or the parade. Where does one hide an elephant and a religious procession in Pondicherry, I wondered. However, the next day I saw her again, and, thinking quickly, ran and got the requested bananas. She seemed to remember me. "Good monkey," she said as I pet her trunk.

Published on 10/21/09