Using Polarizing Filters with Digital Cameras

Here's a photo tip I've picked up in the last couple of years. Digital cameras can't do everything, and they need filters, too. When I used film cameras years ago, I became very familiar with different types of filters and how they could help my photography. With digital cameras I forgot about filters, just figured that the computer inside the camera and my processing programs (Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop, Photomatix, Perfectly Clear, etc.) could digitally add any filtered effects to the captured images. Not true.

I found this out the hard way on my first trip to Nepal. When taking photos of the mountains, I noticed the skyline was extremely washed out, overexposed. I hunted the shops in Thamel to find a good polarizing filter with no luck. Once I returned home, I immediately did my research and found a good polarizing filter (they are not all the same), and noticed an immediate difference in my photos. The original mountain photos were washed out. Without the captured data, there was no bringing back the detail of the mountains. The polarizing filter definitely helped me to capture more details on my second trip to Nepal.

I now have a new favorite lens (AF-S NIKKOR 18-200 mm 1:3.5 - 5.6 GII ED), and a new polarizing filter (Promaster Digital HGX CPL Filter - 72mm). I saved up for this filter, but have also used Tiffen circular polarizer filters with good success (much less expensive). From Amazon.com: "The PROMASTER Digital HGX Circular Polarizing filter allows you to remove unwanted reflections from non-metallic surfaces such as water, glass etc. It also will enable colors to become more saturated and appear clearer, with better contrast." When the filter is turned, I get different levels of the filtering effect. Posted here are examples of photos I took this week on the metro, all with the same filter.

I love photography. I can't stop taking photos, and won't stop learning as much as I can in the process. :)

Can view full reflection in the window. 

A small twist of my polarizing filter, and the reflection begins to disappear, I can see through the window.

I have some of my father's old filters from the 1980s, and they also work well on my newer lenses! I'm now looking at different graduated neutral density filters, after hearing a National Geographic photographer talk about he uses them with his work. I've always used UV filters to protect the exposed lens glass. Every photographer should at least be carrying one of these in their bags and using them on their lenses.  

Ooops... I'm a little busy at the moment.

I'm sorry for not reporting more survey results in a timely manner. As a military family member and shutterbug fanatic in the DC area, I'll be busy the next couple of days taking photos at the Army Ten Miler and the AUSA convention. More results will follow, though, soon enough. :)


Click on the photo to visit my ATM 2013 Flickr set.

 

Where do you share your photos online?

As promised, I’m finally sharing the results from my Online Photo Sharing survey. Hooah!

I conducted the survey through www.surveymonkey.com. Through their free plan, I was limited to 10 questions and one hundred responses. Today we’ll look briefly at the first question.

Question 1. Which of the following photo sharing/social media websites do you currently have an account with? (Check all that apply)

Additional responses (some responders listed multiple sites):

• 500PX (3)
• ArtSig
• Ask.fm
• Behance
• Better Photo
• Deviant Art
• Fotofanatic (9)
• iperrnity
• largeformatphotography
• MPix
• MyShutterspace
• Photo.net
• PhotoSig
• Pixoto
• Redbubble
• Tumblr (4)
• ViewBug
• Wordpress
• None
• others...
• I think I probably have accounts with others, but I don't use them.
• my own web site
• a village web site

My first thought was, “Wow -- 97% of those who responded post their photos on Facebook.” Then I realized that I primarily promoted the survey through my Facebook contacts, meaning most of the responders were already Facebook users. The other sites with higher responses in this survey: Flickr, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, Shutterfly, Snapfish and Twitter.

The next thing I noticed was how many photo sharing sites I had overlooked when preparing options for the question. Each of these sites has different sharing options, some strictly controlled while others are able to interact with each other. With millions of people sharing photos online, and the large number of avenues to share our photos, it’s easy to see how quickly we can lose track of even our own online images.

Another thought that jumped out to me is that some sites are solely focused on sharing photos, while a few of the others are also focused on the business of printing these images.

Okay, enough for today. Tomorrow I’ll look at the next couple of questions. Were there any other photo sharing sites I missed in the limited survey?

Online Photo Sharing -- The Survey

In an attempt to learn more about the best practices of sharing photographs online, I put out a survey to see how other people were sharing their photos. One hundred people completed the survey. Looking at the survey results and comments, the respondents seem to have been pulled from a wide range of photographers. I’m especially interested in the comments that were shared after a few of the questions, as these give us even more opportunity to learn from each other.

There were nine questions in the survey. I hope to go over the responses one day at a time. I will post the results and discussion on my photo blog (www.klmarkert.blogspot.com), and link the posts to my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/MYPhotoOnline).

During this survey one person commented on a post that I was quite angry, taking my anger about my shared anger on others, and “good luck with policing the internet.” Obviously this person doesn’t know me at all. My goal through this process is to not only learn more about sharing photos online (my photos and those of others), but to help educate others to the different ways we should be doing sharing photos.

Copyright concerns are quite interesting to me. Before one of my photos went viral (search “Tomb Guards in the Rain”, I wasn’t too concerned about protecting the copyright rights of my photos. Who saw my photos, anyway? I took photographs of our military unit to share with the soldiers’ family and friends. They were most likely just sharing those photos with more friends and family. This was my goal in taking the photos.

I love the history of our unit, the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard). Taking photos of our soldiers at work is my way of documenting all of the work that they do: ceremonial affairs, memorial affairs, and the amazing folks who also do a world of work behind the scenes. When my photo went viral, thankfully the majority of comments I read connected to the photo were very positive. The photo achieved the goal of bringing more honor to our soldiers, and other soldiers as well. Hooah!

The speed with which the photos was shared, though, unfortunately connected with misinformation, has caused me to think about the photos I’ve been sharing online, how I’ve been sharing those photos, and what others were doing with my photos. Hmmm… The photo was not only a conversation starter among my friends, but also with professional photographers, journalists and copyright lawyers. This has encouraged me to learn more, and to share what I learn with others.

I don’t have all the answers about sharing photographs online. I actually have very few answers, but have more of a thirst to learn as much as possible. What I’m learning not only applies to professional photographers who make a living from their photos, but to moms and pops posting photos of their cutie pie kiddos via social media.

The results of the quick survey I posted were quite interesting. Tomorrow I will start sharing the results with Question 1: “Which of the following photo sharing/social media websites do you currently have an account with?” Please share your thoughts and participate in the discussion. The questions you have and the answers you can offer may be helpful to other people.

I’m looking forward to the next nine posts! Again, HOOAH!

More reading/listening:
That photo of the Tomb of the Unknowns guard in the rain? It’s from September: http://www.poynter.org/latest-news.../mediawire/193449/that-photo-of-the-tomb-of-the-unknowns-guard-in-the-rain-its-from-september/

Tomb of the Unknowns photographer learns a ‘real big lesson in social media’: http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/mediawire/193503/tomb-of-the-unknowns-photographer-learns-a-real-big-lesson-in-social-media-today/

1 billion views in a week: 'How my photo went viral': http://www.photocoachpro.com/home/1-billion-views-in-a-week-how-my-photo-went-viral.html

Concerned about online photo sharing?

Me, too. I've started a Facebook page in an effort to collect information about sharing photos online. Check out the page, "Like" and share it with others. We can learn a lot from sharing this information with one another! To visit the page, click the picture here:

 

HDR Basics

When I first saw Brandon Kopp's HDR images, I knew I had to learn this photography skill, too. A link to his main web page: http://www.brandonkopp.com/Welcome.html.

HDR stands for “High Dynamic Range”. This technique combines photos of different exposure values of the same scene to create an image with greater detail and potential clarity than seen in a single exposure photo.

Below are three images I took of the same scene, at different exposure values. My camera was handheld, not on a tripod, set to Aperture Priority, f/3.5, 18mm focal length, ISO 6400. I used the camera's bracketing feature, set at three photos, each taken at 2 exposure values from each other.



Caisson Horse at Rest, normal exposure value



Caisson Horse at Rest, +2 exposure value (overexposed)



Caisson Horse at Rest, -2 exposure value (underexposed)

I used Photomatix (http://www.hdrsoft.com/) to first combine the three "bracketed" photos into the HDR image. Using the different ranges within the program, I pulled out light and dark elements of the over and under exposed photos, and combined them into an image with a wider range of exposure, more balanced light and dark areas. The way a person tweaks the HDR image when processing it is highly subjective. While some people might like a smoother photo of the horse below, I chose to keep more detail (and graininess) to create a more dramatic effect, with cooler temp of colors. After processing HDR images with Photomatix, I usually touch them up a bit with Photoshop CC.

Caisson Horse at Rest, HDR image

It is much easier to create HDR images of still objects using a tripod than moving subjects such as animals and people, especially when hand-holding the camera. If a subject moves in between the times the photos are taken, this will create "ghosting" in the combined images. I use the bracketing feature of my camera which quickly takes three consecutive photos at a time, with set different exposure values. If I wanted to take more exposures manually (create an HDR image from more than 3 photos), I would have to do that on a tripod to produce photos that are easier to line up when processing as HDR images.

I have used the HDR processing in Photoshop 6 and CC, yet still very much prefer Photomatix. Photomatix processes images more quickly than Photoshop, and also has more features for manipulating the image when processing. Here's a link to a great HDR tutorial website, with a discount for purchasing Photomatix (in right column): http://captainkimo.com/.

I remember attempting some sort of HDR processing with my old Beseler 23CII enlarger back in the '80s. This is a much easier and cheaper task with digital photography! :)

Playing with photos, Nepal

I wake up most mornings, grab a cup of coffee, and think about pictures. I don't always have time to do anything with photography, but steal a few moments to mess around with pictures when I get the chance. As soon as I learn a new (to me) technique, I obsess about it until I can sit down and crank out a few images using the new technique.

Lately I've been processing my RAW data files. When you take a digital photo, your camera actually records the image as a RAW file and then processes it into a .jpg image. What you see as a .jpg image is a processed, somewhat watered down copy of what you originally viewed through your camera. If your camera also records the RAW data files, you can then pull out details from that photo that you didn't catch in your processed .jpg image. In the camera recorded .jpg image of this photo, the background was so dark that I could hardly see the lady in back and the shelves behind her.

Processing the RAW data file allowed me to pull out those otherwise darkened details. With this image I also used a High Pass filter layer, in the Soft Light blending mode, something else I've been playing around with in my pics. The image is still very grainy to me (low res copy posted here, even grainier), but I'll work on that another day.

I look at this image and wonder, "What if...?" What if I was born in Nepal and not the U.S.? What if my whole village was of a caste that included pottery makers, so I was expected to learn pottery making skills? What would I be doing on this Sunday morning/evening if I were living in Bhaktapur, Nepal instead of Virginia, USA? I liked photographing the people in Nepal, but I wish I could go back and talk with them, ask them some questions, learn more.

Oooh! It's been a few months!

I'm sorry for not posting, but am busy with my sons this summer. There are still a number of Nepal photos and memories that need to be posted, some good shots from a recent trip to Ottawa, and of course plenty of nice Washington DC scenes. A friend flew me out to Colorado to shoot a wedding, and I've also recently shot an office in the DC Metro area. I've been playing around with Adobe Creative Cloud, experimenting more with HDR and IR photography. Keeping busy -- all fun! :)

Re: Blog format change. I originally created this blog to link with my SmugMug site. Today SmugMug introduced their new page formatting, and now I must also update my blog format. I'm quite frustrated at this point, and have discovered that the Blogger "dynamic templates" look better in Google Chrome browser than in IE. Wait... Sometimes the navigation bar with tabs for my gallery and "about me" pages don't show up. I have to reload the page a few times to get it to show properly. ARGH! Well, goodnight, I'm throwing in the towel for now. Off to dreamland (finally)...

View more of my photos here, to see what's been keeping me busy: http://www.flickr.com/photos/klmarkert/. Enjoy!

Tiger for Breakfast (Interesting Book)

I always love an interesting book! Here's a good one, somewhat related to my current trip.

From a review: "Biography of the fantastically exciting and dramatic life of a Russian man, tracing his childhood escaping from the bolsheviks, to his days living it up as part of a famous ballet troupe touring Europe and subsequent tour through Asia, leading to his setting up an exclusive club for socialites in Calcutta and finally becoming party planner and hotel owner extraordinaire in Kathmandu. Boris the extrovert, whimsical and full of creative energy with amazing organisational skills as proven in his key role in the royal hunt of Queen Elisabeth II in Nepal - the likes of which will probably never be seen again in terms of sheer grandeur and scale. Would have been rated even higher if not for the occasional chapter on more tangential subjects like mountaineering or describing his mother in law's eccentricities. Surely one of the most interesting and intense lives of any person of the 20th century!"

(Be patient, the reader might take a while to load. Click here for alternate link to full text online.)

Having too much fun to post...

Sorry, it's true. My goal was to take pics and post daily, but between having too much fun here and the lack of consistent power/internet access, I just can't keep up with daily posts. I'm still taking THOUSANDS of photos, had an amazing time during Holi, just got back from The Last Resort up near the border w/Tibet, and will put up some posts and more photos in time.

Again, sorry for the delay, but I am just having too much fun visiting with my friends and seeing the sites. More later... :)

My Transportation Adventures in Kathmandu

I've been taking too many photos to process and post every day. This post I'm just going to talk a little about transportation in Kathmandu. (You can click any of these photos to bring you to more, or view my entire Flickr photostream by clicking here.)

I'm staying with friends who have a car and a driver. Me being the independent traveler that I am, though, I like to hoof it out on my own and use the local transportation as well. At 5' 10", blond hair and blue eyes, no matter what I do, I stick out like a sore thumb. That isn't stopping me in Kathmandu this time around, though.

While the roads in DC might be cause for headaches, especially during rush hour, they cannot even begin to compare to the chaos found in the capitol of Nepal. If you find yourself on a paved road, it may have suggestive lines for traffic to follow, suggestive being the key word. Most transportation travels on the left side of the road. When he opportunity arises, they also drive on the right side of the road, if there is temporary clearance for passage. Are there two or three lanes total for traffic on the road? No problem. Five or six threads of trucks, buses, micro buses, tuk tuks, four-wheeled tractor thingies, motorcycles, mopeds, bicycles, rickshaws and the occasional holy cows can easily needle there way through for passage, also using the dirt on each side of the road for additional lanes when possible (all the time). I have video of the traffic chaos, but haven't yet taken any good still photos. There is still time for me to do so, and plenty of opportunity.

Going around a corner on a narrow road and concerned about possible oncoming traffic? Honk your horn. Pedestrians/bicyclists/parked cars in the road, blocking your easy travel from point A to point B? Honk your horn. Holy cow meandering down the road, blocking traffic from all directions? Don't honk your horn--not because the cow's so holy you don't want to upset it, but because the cow simply doesn't care. You'll pass a stone Vishnu soon enough. Say a quick prayer that the holy cow will soon find some weeds to munch on in a nearby field, thereby clearing the road for all.

 It is my firm belief that Nepali vehicles are the most hardy in the world, and that those who repair the vehicles are the most adept at reinforcing said vehicles when necessary. Why do I believe this to be true? I have ridden in cars, tuk tuks, micro buses and buses on some of the most non-smooth roads possible, weighted down by more passengers than clowns coming out of a circus car, in and out and around the most cavity jarring potholes imaginable, and yet these vehicles keep chugging along. Some of the vehicles look older than the orange Pinto my father used to drive (in the 1970's), and chug chug chug, honk honk honk, they still get us all from point A to point B without side panels falling off.

Yesterday in a microbus (for micro people? I am anything but micro...), a school bus was heading toward us from the right and the road expansion crew was working on the left of the very narrow road, pick axes and shovels in hand, stirring water into a pile of cement mix on the road like I would stir eggs into a pile of flour when making pasta on the counter at home. All I could think of was, "Please dear God, do not let us roll over, past the road work and into the little valley below. Today is not a good day to die...in a microbus." I closed my eyes and we all made safe passing, most likely with a little dose of Harry Potter style magic, temporarily shrinking all of us so we could fit together on the narrow path. At least that's what I chose to believe, from behind my closed eyelids.

We continued along on our safe journey, heading south toward Kathmandu Durbar Square. Every five or six major potholes we'd stop and pick up more passengers, and more passengers, and more passengers... Last I could count we had 25 people in the microbus! Granted, I was smashed back into the far right corner of the microbus, I couldn't tell if anyone else jumped on to ride after my last count of 25 souls aboard the bumpathon ride to anywhere. I didn't care about our destination at that point, I just looked out the window and reminded myself, "We're not in Kansas anymore, Toto." I stared out the window to distract myself from the bone crunching squeeze of a ride. I tried not to panic. I am a wee bit clausterphobic, and needed sedation for an MRI years ago. This ride was quickly rising my anxiety to a much higher level than during that simple medical procedure. Ah, I could crack open the window for some fresh... carbon monoxide from the tailpipe, yeah... Visions of sardines in a can came to mind. The circus clowns getting out of tiny cars after driving around the center ring. Yes, back to Harry Potter, magically shrinking bodies or an impossibly large interior of a tent or house that otherwise looked so small from the outside! No magic here, just bodies crammed into a vehicle, and a few others hanging on for dear life from the outside (lucky ones who were breathing fresher air with lungs that could expand to hold said air...).
How big is a "microbus"? When my dad passed away in 1988 I started driving his Chevy Beauville 20 van to and from school. The microbus is about the same size as that van, possibly a foot or so longer. And for the life of me I cannot imagine stuffing our old van with 25 human beings and driving it around a bumpy non-holy-cow pasture back in Wisconsin. After much thought, that's about the closest description I can come up with re: the size and ride of a Nepali microbus.

We finally came to the end of our ride, extricated ourselves from the tin can, and paid our fares. What? Only 18 rupees (less than $.25), vs. 300 rupees ($3.60-ish) for a taxi? Hmmm... Yup, the cheapskate in me decided to the microbus home after our visit to Durbar Square (accompanied by Talim Shrestha, my trusty guide). I counted only 21 passengers on the microbus ride home, not so bad.

A few days earlier Talim and I went to Swayambunath, the National Museum and the National Military Museum. We road to Swayambu by taxi. Then we took a tuk tuk from Swayambu to the museums. To me, a tuk tuk is another tin can, smaller in size, and set on the frame of a very large, motorized "tricycle" frame. I counted 16 people total riding inside and hanging onto the back as we bounced along the roads.

 

Without Talim as my guide, I could not have so easily navigated our bus, microbus and tuk tuk rides. I might venture out on my own next week on some form of public transportation, taking enough money to hire a taxi to deliver me to the intended destination once I realize I've jumped on the wrong bus line. With taxis costing anywhere from 200-500 rupees within the city ($2.40 - $6.00), I think I can afford the transportation adventure. I will head out, armed with a good map (with most roads unnamed), Swayambunath sometimes poking out high above the smog, helping to me to reorient myself within the city, and a heavy dose of positive attitude for when all (loosely made) plans invariably go astray. Last resort, when I can't remember the name of the location where my friends live, I shall request of the taxi driver, "Please take me to the American Embassy." I think I know how to walk back to my friends' house from there. :)
 

 

 

 

 

Nepal Day 5: Thamel

(Clicking on any of the photos here will bring you to where they are posted on my Flickr site, or you can view the entire set by clicking here.)

I've been in Kathmandu for a few days now and have been avoiding Thamel. When I visited last year, I visited Thamel several times to shop, see what was available, compare prices, etc. After the first few visits I grew tired of the shop keepers hawking their goods, following me down the street, trying to pull me into their shops to buy any assortment of trinkets. This year I packed my photo gear and prepped myself to say, "NO, THANK YOU," in a most convincing manner.
 

The first place I stopped was a jewelry store, right at the entrance to Thamel. Last year I met a deaf man who works there, Moshin, and I had wondered if he'd still be there. The second I stepped into the shop one of the men who works there said, "Karin! Are you Ms. Karin? I remember you!" No kidding. Not only does Moshin still work there, but the whole shop still remembered me from my visits last year. We sat and talked for a while, in English and a mixed up version of Nepali and American Sign Languages. How fun! Since it was Saint Patrick's Day, while we talked my friends from Kiss decided to hang out out and check out some green gem stones (peridot?).
 

With my eyes forward, looking for potential photos, and well prepared with my, "NO, THANK YOU," I finally ventured into Thamel.
 

Street scenes from Thamel, stores...
 

 

 

 

 

 

When I walked past these guys they yelled out, "Hey! Let me take your money!" I give them points for honesty, but am still not giving them my money...
 

People spotting in Thamel...
 

 

 

 

 

 

I spotted some stone carving that I thought would make good souvenirs. Then I heard the tap-tap-tap of work being done in the shop. Stepping back into the shop I saw these two young men working on some new pieces. I asked if I could take some pictures of their work, and we started talking. They learn this trade through their family, not at a school. They are brothers, from a very small village south of Mt Everest. With no work in their village, they've travelled to Kathmandu, hoping to sell their hand made items. I gave them 500 rupees and asked for three small stones to bring back to my boys, "From you brothers in Nepal, to my boys who are brothers in the US." I will most likely go back and buy more from them before I return home. 

 

 

 

Butcher and street food vendors (I couldn't even look at or process these pictures yesterday when I was suffering from my third day of "Montezuma's Revenge".)...
 

 

 

 

 

 

I walked around Thamel and the area a little more, took some photos, then met my friends and had a nice dinner at an Indian restaurant. Unfortunately I was already feeling sick, so wasn't able to eat much. It was a very nice place, though, amazing service, dinner by candlelight and live entertainment. I'm so glad I took photos throughout the day, because they help to keep the memories alive. It's also very nice to be able to share these memories with my boys, too. :)
 

It was a long, wonderful day, even with the tummy upset. I still have problems looking at any food pictures, though. I keep wondering about what I ate or drank that made me so sick. I went to bed hoping I felt better in the morning. Didn't feel much better, but not much worse. With only a piece of bread and some water, I went out exploring on Day 6, and visited Swayambunath (Monkey Temple), the National History Museum and the National Military Museum. I'll process those pictures and post them next. I have taken many, many photos, but am just feeling better now, catching up with processing and posting them. But what a fun adventure!

Day 7, Taking a Break

I'm having a great time in Nepal, not going to lie. On the flip side, the reality of this grand adventure, the air is so dirty that after walking around for a day I have black gunk coming from my nose, out of my ears when I clean them and from my eye goop in the morning. Every time I start hacking I begin to wonder what's made it's way into my lungs. To top that all off, Montezuma is vehemently seeking revenge on me, for whatever reason. I had Nepali tea at one restuarant. Did the water for the tea come from the tap or was it bottled? Or was it the mango juice I got at another restuarant? Or I could have simply touched something when walking around and accidentally touched my mouth when blowing black snot from my nose?

I'm taking the "day off" to recover, never far from a nice, clean bathroom. The temples, shrines, stupas and pokharis can wait for another day. There are literally hundreds of photos waiting to be processed. Hopefully I'll get through a huge enough batch while taking it easy today. I hope to post photos from Days 5 and 6 later. Wish me luck (and health). :)

Nepal Day 3, Part 2: Mike's, Nag Pokhari, Garden

(Remember, you can click on any photos in the post to take you to the flicker pics, or click here to view the entire set from Nepal Day3.)

Well, I made it to Mike’s Breakfast. My first walk out in the city brought me to a familiar place. This outdoor café features mainly American style breakfasts. I think it was originally owned by an American expat, and has been around for many years.

I ordered the vegetarian burrito which came with Nepali tea and cookies. I don’t know what the original cost was, but after I hung around, talked with the staff and took a bunch of photos, they gave me the “friend price” of approximately $4. Didn’t sound like a bad deal to me!

I sat and read the paper about the “bandh”, or strike yesterday, and the governmental changes taking place in Nepal, and caught up on some emails via my Ipod and the café wifi.

I was there between the breakfast and lunch rushes, and had some time to take photos of the place after finishing breakfast. The staff was very interested in what I was doing, so I taught them a little about the photos I was taking. They were especially interested in the infrared filter I was playing with. This was the first time I took the filter out in Nepal, and I didn’t screw it on tight enough. Some light leaked into the exposures, so I’ll probably go back and take more pics on a later date.

 

I also experimented a little with HDR photos. There was a great variety in shadows, flattening out some of my “regular” photos. I wondered how the colors would play out in the photos. The pics were bright, but actually reflect the warmth I felt at Mike’s.

I’ll be back, guys! Soon enough.

Just around the corner is a big open dust field, and a pile of garbage with a crew of garbage pickers making their way through the waste. I don’t remember this much waste at this spot last year, and it looks as if they’ve built up their little place a bit. With those observations made, a big gust of wind picked up a ton of debris and started blowing it my way. THEN the wind turned into a nice little tornado, headed straight for me! I was so interested in taking photos that I hadn’t even noticed the twister was headed right for my camera, until a guy on a motorcycle stopped in front of me and hunkered down. I quickly covered my camera until the biggest of the wind passed. The guy on the motorcycle said, “Good, huh?” My reply, “Yes, good!” He wanted to see the photos. As if crossing the streets in Kathmandu weren’t death defying enough, might as well throw in a mini-tornado to make things even more interesting.

On with my walk. So, just a thought… If you build your house with bricks hand made from dirt/clay/other materials (factories east of the city), then said house eventually falls apart and the bricks break up back into dust, does this make the house a recyclable, “green” facility?

Free range chicken!

More people spotting on my walk…

Not much further and I reached Nag Pokhari, a rectangular pond/lake with a tall snake god figure standing in the middle of it. There was some sort of religious ceremony taking place. I have to claim ignorance, because I have no idea what the people were doing, but I took plenty of photos and video.



The lollipops packed in my bag were well appreciated by the local kiddos. The kids even came back and asked for seconds. I kind of signed to them that they’d get more only if I could take more photos of them (with their mother’s approval). A man in an orange vest jokingly asked for candy, too. I looked at him with a face that read, “Really?” in any language, then joked back, took him photo and gave him a lollipop. He was laughing hard when I left. J

I finally made it to the bank to exchange money. After changing over the cash, I kept a close eye on who might have followed me out of the bank. Then I crossed the street and visited my favorite oasis in Kathmandu, the Garden of Dreams. A big bottle of water there is only NPR 50, or about USD $.65, quite a bargain. I sat and relaxed for a while in the peaceful surroundings, then took my tripod out again, and played around a little more with my IR filter. I haven’t used it much at all yet, so am learning as I go.  Also need to work out post-processing for the IR photos. Here are some of the results…

Serenity…

And some lovely kids who were all dressed up for their last day of college (our high school).

It was a good day, walking down toward Thamel. I was tired, though, and hung around the house with my friend on Day 4. Today is Day 5, and I plan on either walking or taxiing to Swayambunath today. We still don’t have power at the house, so I’m typing my posts in Word, then will post them when I am able. It’s still a strange thought, that I’m sitting here on a Sunday morning, typing out my post, while back home Saturday Night Live is about to begin. The night is probably quiet at home on post, while here I’m listening to horns honking, dogs barking, birds chirping and bells being rung. Well, the camera is cleaned and ready. On with my day! J