miCRoSCoPiC^eaRthLinG 0 Report post Posted August 9, 2005 Hi guys, Am on a long well-deserved vacation back home in India after 3 years. As soon as I landed here, I was whisked off to a high-altitude trek around 15,000ft (half the height of Mt. Everest) up in the norther mountains in India - the Himalayan Range, of which Mt. Everest, K2 etc. are a part. The places we visited are parts of the state known as Jammu & Kashmir very close to the Indo-Pakistan border. The trek took us over massive ice-fields and glaciers and pristine valleys way high up on the mountains. Felt nothing short of awesome/awestruck to be back in the lap of Mama Nature. In some places the roads were terribly bad as no proper roads can be constructed due to continuous landslides. These stretches mostly were covered with 8ft thick glaciers which have flowed down and covered most of the road before spilling into the ravine right next to it. Extremely treacherous - a slight mistake meant you'd land up right at the bottom of the ravine some 14-15,000 ft down. But all in all it was the most thrilling & breathtaking journey I've ever undertaken. It also took us over the Higest Golf Course in the world as well as the highest Tee-off point in the same - in a place called Gulmarg in Kashmir. Unfortunately, I was armed with very limited resources - i.e., a measly Sony cybershot, which nonetheless came up with some really cool snaps. But not what I'd expect out of my own SLR or some high-end SLR digicam. Still.. here are the snaps. ENJOY A couple of sneak peeks Full Gallery https://imageshack.com/ Comments in my photoblog much appreciated. More to come soon... Regards, m^e Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
evion 0 Report post Posted August 9, 2005 Stunning pictures! Love'em! I just changed my wallpaper to the second sneak peak because it's so mellow yet..how do i put it? Artistic?. Of course i edited off the center tree because its really ruining the sight but i kept the original because the edited one doesn't seem as natural.I've never been to India but the mountain trek must've been pretty worth it judging by the pictures (and the fact that you used a cybershot but still get the resolution right =)). The closest I've been to a mountain trek is like - the Appalachians. I went up there horseback riding once and we sorta went around the hill/mountain instead of going on top of it. But its still pretty great. I went in the morning so there is just the touch of hanging mist in the air which is just beautiful to go with the view! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hatim 0 Report post Posted August 10, 2005 Nice , i bet you would also like Northen Pakistan , especially the region of Baltistan, its the same region ..just divided by borders.In the south eastern border of these mountains (Himalyas and Karakoram) you can find alot of histricla places, like where Alexander's army crossed into India and Old Buddissth Monistries ..and ruins of ancient cities.nice pics btw. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
abhiram 0 Report post Posted August 10, 2005 Oh man, these pics are simply amazing. It must feel great to take pics like these with your own camera instead of buying them. Of all your pics, I just love this one:This oneI'm using this as a wallpaper and think I will for some time to come. btw... there isn't any copyright on these photos right ? hehe...not that it'll stop me but just curious.I'll have to go there trekking sometime myself. I'm way down in the South. Too damn hot right now. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miCRoSCoPiC^eaRthLinG 0 Report post Posted August 10, 2005 Glad that you guys liked 'em. Indeed it's one of the best pleasures of life to actually be there and shoot 'em rather than just viewing them off the pages of some glossy magazine. But what's even more enchanting is being right there and immersing all your senses into the beauty of the whole thing. That I'm sure - no camera can ever capture. Hehe - don't worry about copyright.. I don't believe in holding back onto them. These are for sharing - coz that simply increases the joy of the occasion. The whole Himlayan belt - whichever side you go to - India, Pakistan, Nepal, Tibet - are filled with breathtaking places like these. You could spend your whole lifetime travelling around there and never be bored for a single moment. The cybershot I was using gave me far better results than I expected - coz the apperture was pretty limited (only upto 5.2). Although it's a 7.2 megapixel camera, for most part i didn't use more than 5megapix as I was running short on my supply of memory sticks. The only good part about is it's lens - which is an authentic Carl-Zeiss ED.. although the zoom is rather disappointing (only 3X optical).. So I couldn't get very clear closeups of some extremely stunning ice-capped peaks. Wish this one had lower apperture ratings as that'd have given me crystal clear visuals of the distant terrain - if you notice carefully, in most of the pictures the mountains far off didn't come out very clear. But whatever came out was quite satisfying nonetheless :PMore to come soon as soon as I manage to shake off the laziness and resize them. These pics came out around 2.8Megs apiece. :DRegards,m^e Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Monkeymagic 0 Report post Posted August 10, 2005 nice photos. i went to the North West in December last year. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Neverseen 0 Report post Posted August 10, 2005 wow! the pictures are really top notch! when I look at them I almost imagine myself there. so good the space is represented. Loving lonely trees here and there Damn, this must be really awesome to be there... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miCRoSCoPiC^eaRthLinG 0 Report post Posted August 10, 2005 All right - you guys have charged me up majorly and now you're going to suffer.. haha.. wait up for a coupla days while I get some more of those snaps up in my photoblog.Thanks for visiting it though.Regards,m^e Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cyborgxxi 0 Report post Posted August 11, 2005 All right - you guys have charged me up majorly and now you're going to suffer.. haha.. wait up for a coupla days while I get some more of those snaps up in my photoblog.Oooooh... I'm trembling!! We're sowwy LOLAlright then, sir. I'll be waiting for more pictures!! And again, compliments. Those are really good pictures!! I have a Sony Cybershot but like others said, it's not a very good digital camera. I prefer Canon above all others... What you really need are field cameras or photography cameras. Those are awfully nice but awfully expensive. However, the resolution is good and the sharpness is great.Well, I never expected those place to be in India. Honestly, I thought India would be something like Iraq with grassy plains here and there, but mostly a dusty place. Heh, I have a lot to learn, yes, I know. Hehehe...Keep it up!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
abhiram 0 Report post Posted August 18, 2005 Well, I never expected those place to be in India. Honestly, I thought India would be something like Iraq with grassy plains here and there, but mostly a dusty placehehe... did you also think there would be snake charmers and flying ropes in every nook and corner? Saw something of that sort in a couple of cartoons (yes I do watch cartoons if you don't mind ). Mind you they weren't even old! Quite recent cartoons... 'Duck Tales' and 'The Real Adventures of Johnny Quest'....just goes to show how much research some people do before they embark on portraying India. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
solankyno1 0 Report post Posted August 18, 2005 Thanks M^E for sharing such a nice snaps with asta host community. The images are really really very good. I always like nature and in your photographs the nature is in full swing. Well, I never expected those place to be in India. Honestly, I thought India would be something like Iraq with grassy plains here and there, but mostly a dusty place. Heh, I have a lot to learn, yes, I know. :D Hehehe...dear cyborgxxi,when comes to natural beauty india is a versatile country. You will find here everything hills, sea, desert, plains etc... .Don't believe on me come and see it live. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
organicbmx 0 Report post Posted August 26, 2005 What a beautiful country. I'd love to visit. Also very nice photographs. Amazing photo of all the people coming out of the hole in the mountain with all the colourful banners. What sixe are the images as id love to see a close crop in of the people just coming out and nice high contrast on the banner colour and the black of the hole. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miCRoSCoPiC^eaRthLinG 0 Report post Posted October 21, 2005 What a beautiful country. I'd love to visit. Also very nice photographs. Amazing photo of all the people coming out of the hole in the mountain with all the colourful banners. What sixe are the images as id love to see a close crop in of the people just coming out and nice high contrast on the banner colour and the black of the hole. 1064320035[/snapback] Errrr.. you'd rather not name it a "HOLE" .. lol.. I ain't the overly religious kind, but there are plenty of people in India who'd be after you with a battle-axe if you called that cave a hole. Dude, you should be at that hole in person to realize how BIG a hole it is.. it's just not possible to estimate it's immensity from those snaps. It's by far the largest and mindboggling-est hole.. err... cave I've ever seen in my life so far. Standing right at the edge of it (accompanied by that never-ending swarm of billions of people pouring out of it) will make you feel utterly insignificant in the grander scheme of things... You feel awestruck and stragely helpless all under the same breath.. hehe.. you gotta be there in person to realize what I'm trying to say. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
foolakadugie 0 Report post Posted December 15, 2006 I don't know why I never replied to this, but I am now. I remember looking at the photos long time ago when they were first posted and it looks like it was a beautiful trip with plenty of very nice scenery. Love the images. I really hope that one day I could explore that part of the world. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
richierich1m 0 Report post Posted December 16, 2006 really cool pics,this is my first post and i am watching these amazing pics ,though i live in india i have never visited jammu & kashmir but planning to visit soon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
