Glossy Door Handle

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

As you must have observed in many of my Photographs, I prefer shooting a lot from the Side. It gives a unique perspective and most importantly adds certain depth to the frame. That just doesn't happen when shooting dead front. 

The above shot of the Glossy Door Handle, too has been shot from the side angle.

I moved this much this time around, to include the red area of the wall which you can see on the extreme right.

The Reason: well, Color Palette. Yes, I do balance the color palette of the frame and that influences my compositions a lot. 

Shooting from the side also helped me incorporate a lot of negative space (to the right of the frame) which is another basic element of Minimalist Photography. 

This shot is again one of those, where an evident subject was not available as such, and therefore I crafted my own subject via my physical movement. 

Hope you enjoyed the shot. :)

Black Crow

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai

Buy Now

Here we have a Black Crow sitting on top of a Street Lamp.

This is the second shot from the same place i.e Albert Hall Jaipur, that I am posting here. 

The earlier posted shot was in the landscape format. 

The other difference between the two Minimalist shots is that here the Bird / Black Crow is sitting on top of the Street Lamp, whereas in the other shot, the Bird is seen flying across the Street Lamp. 

Here is the link to the shot that I had posted earlier: 

• Bird Vs Street Lamp

Please Note: Both Shots Fall under the Minimalism as Less Elements Category.

The Photo Settings, editing style is nearly the same, even the Exif Data is very similar.

Let me know in the comments below, which one of the Two Minimalist Photographs / Shots did you find better and Why?

Rusted Barb Wire

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

Macro Minimalism is pretty different from the Long Range Street Minimalism that I mostly shoot. 

This Minimalist Photo is one from the Close Range Minimal shots category.

I used the Canon 100mm prime Macro F 2.8 L Series Lens here. 

Settings: Taken on Manual Focus of Both the Camera and Lens.

What prompted me to take this shot was the Rust in the Barb Wire.

The subject is kept a touch off-center on purpose.

The Blurry Background / Bokeh is a result of shooting this photograph at F 2.8 aperture. 

And Finally, The Photo falls under the Minimalism as Less Elements Category. 

Hope you enjoyed the Shot. 

Have a Great Day / Evening.

Thank You.

Reflection of Two Pigeons in a Water Puddle

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

Looks like this is shot on the beach right? 

Well, there is no beach in my City, Jaipur. Its just that one can pull off such shots by finding puddles of water post rains. That is exactly what I did. 

I found this large puddle of water at SMS Stadium, Jaipur. 

There was a lot of clutter being reflected in the puddle. I took a full 360 degree view and walked around the entire puddle to find interesting reflections. 

I spotted a reflection of a Street Lamp to begin with and within in a few seconds, these two Love Birds/Pigeons Flew onto the Water Puddle. 

There is an Old Zen Saying that says "When the student is ready, the master appears."

If one relates that to Photography it could mean "When the Photographer is ready, the subject appears."

Yes, indeed The Subject appeared when I was ready. It has happened with me a lot of times before.

Once I had my subject ready, I decided to shoot this in the Vertical/ Portrait mode. That helped me remove some unwanted elements from the frame. I also cropped this photograph to further reduce clutter. 

Why I liked the subject despite being very common? was because these birds signify Relationship /Companionship / Love. That was the first appeal. The second was their reflection in water. 

In the Minimalist Composition above, I have also left a lot of Negative Space and followed the obvious Rule of Thirds. 

One important point to note is that, here we have 3 shades or 3 tones of color i.e Light / Medium / Dark. That really pops a Black and White Photograph.

The same principle is followed in Pencil Shading.

The 3 Light/ Medium and Dark tones are the basics of Pencil Shading. I did learn a bit about it last year.

Hope that you enjoyed the Black and White Minimalist Photograph of the Reflection of Two Pigeons above :)

...and the Minimalist or rather maybe not so Minimalist Description.

See you next time. 

Bye !

Twisted Coffee Glass Straw

Minimalism as Parts of the Whole

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

This image is from the "Taruveda" Cafe in Jaipur. I frequently visit different Coffee outlets in town and Taruveda is one place that I really like. 

I likes the vibes there, artsy and spiritual. When you enter, you also have a Buddha Statue at the stairs and inside you have a lot of work created by the local artists on display. The artists work primarily consists of home decor and paintings. 

I usually take the balcony seat as from there I can see the sun going down. No, I do not take the seat to shoot the sunset. I like the rising sun instead. 

So one Sunday, I was at Taruveda Cafe sitting at my balcony seat with my Camera. I ordered a Cold Coffee and some Garlic Pizza Bread. I love Garlic and yes Garlic deserves a capital "G" whereas sunset doesn't deserve a capital "S" for I don't like things that are nearing their end. 

I was having a hard day as it was a Sunday and that's my photo shooting day. I had not got any worthwhile shot since morning. 

I have this habit of picking up my camera and pointing it randomly at places looking through the viewfinder. 

When I was just about to keep my Camera down and put the lend lid back on the lens, I got a glimpse of this Twisted Blue Straw popping out from my Empty Cold Coffee Glass. 

Yes, it was Blue and that caught my attention. What also caught my eye were the curls/ curves or the twirl or twist in the straw, whatever you may call it. 

So, once the Twisted Coffee Glass Straw got my attention, I decided to click some shots. I quickly remembered the "Parts of the Whole Minimalism Type" from the Minimalist Photography classifications and tried to incorporate that in my Shot. 

To execute "Parts of the Whole Minimalism", I shot only the top rim of the Coffee Glass (a part of the whole), with the straw going to the top left on the frame. Later, during editing I converted the photo into black and white. PS: even the straw is not shown completely, so that is also a "Part of the Whole".

Parts of the Whole Minimalism creates a sense of Mystery and make the viewer complete the Subject/Object in his/her imagination. That's the beauty of this Type of Minimalism.

Hope you liked the Shot above. 

Do leave feedback/ your views if any about the Photograph.

Thank you and Have a nice Day.

• See Colored Version Below:
  

  Twisted Coffee Glass Straw - Colored Version

Red Orange Wall With Simple Geometric Shapes

Minimalism as Simple Geometry

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

• A Simple Lookup Minimal Shot of a Red Orange Wall of a Kindergarten School

• Equipment Used: Canon 600D + Canon 100mm Prime Macro L Series F2.8 Lens
  
• Location: Bani Park, Jaipur (India)
  
  
• The Violet Slab and the Orange Box, both have been carefully placed following the Rule of Thirds
  
• Minimalism Type: Simple Geometry i.e Lines and Basic Shapes Like Rectangles, Circle.

- More shots from the same place in previous posts:

• Colorful Rectangles
  

• Dark Violet Green And Blues

Lines Galore

Minimalism as Simple Geometry

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

I spotted this at the backyard area of "Ravindra Manch, Jaipur" last Sunday. 

Of course it was very clear to me that I would be shooting Minimalism as Simple Geometry or Lines. 

The Lines were all over the place, because 

a) This gray wall had so many Raw Iron Bars in it 

b) The overhead Sun was creating long shadow Lines from these bars as well.

I shooting in the landscape or horizontal mode and the photos that were coming out were full of clutter. 

So I decided to shoot this in the Vertical mode or the portrait mode. That helped me to do away with a lot of clutter and I could now also add some Negative Space.

Another challenge was how to apply the Rule of Thirds. 

I pushed myself further away from the wall, that created some distance and made the bars appear smaller in size, adding to the Minimalism feel. 

Then, I placed the One Set of the Random Iron Bars arrangement along with it shadows, at the bottom of the frame applying the Rule of Thirds 

Later, I added a complimentary subject to the frame, i.e the shadows of the other set of Raw Iron Bar arrangement, just above my primary subject at the bottom.

By Not including the Actual Raw Iron bar set on the top, rather including just its shadows, I left a lot of room for imagination for the viewer. He will look at the bars at the Bottom of the frame and try and imagine a similar set of bars on top of the frame, creating the very long shadow lines.

That's pretty much how I composed this shot. 

Hope you enjoyed it. 

Stay tuned for more. 

Have a nice Day / Evening.

Two Triangles Vs Lines

Minimalism as Simple Geometry

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

This Sunday I was invited by my photographer friend Manav, to Jawahar Kala Kendra for a Photowalk.

Initially I refused, because I had already taken many shots at that place. But because I was feeling tired to go out to a far off place, I agreed.

When I reached Jawahar Kala Kendra, my friend was already sitting with another acquaintance enjoying a cup of coffee.

Before I greeted and joined him, I took about 15 minutes of solo time searching for subjects.

It was a challenge for me, as I had already shot most part of the building. After 10 minutes I realized that I could not find anything worthwhile to frame.

So I tried going in for "creating my own subject" via "visual layering" or "overlapping of surfaces" method. Never heard of these terms before? Never mind, these are my own terms.

I stood right under the structure that had two identical floors with attached balconies, one to my left and one to my right. I started to look up and I kept moving to my right until I had Two Triangles being made by the cut/opening in the wall structure of the floor on the right.

Now, Lets look at the lines on the left. These lines were created by a similar opening in the wall of the floor on the left. If I had moved forward, then Two more similar Triangles would have been created.

Well, I let these lines just take their place in the frame. Didn't fiddle much there. 

I basically worked on the size and placement of the Two Triangles on the right, primarily by my physical movement. My movement included all four ways i.e forward, backwards, to my left and to my right.

After about 4 shots, I got the frame that I wanted. 

The Photo falls under the Minimalism Type: Simple Geometry. The Simple Geometric shapes being Triangles and Lines. 

The lens used here is Canon 100mm Prime L Series Macro Lens.

Camera Used is Canon 600D Crop Sensor. 

Hope you enjoyed the shot.

Have a nice day.

Another Shot from the same angle 

• 10 Squares 2 Triangles

Zebra Crossing

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

Alright, so this shot was very tough to take. 

Although I wanted a Man to pass by the Zebra Crossing with an Umbrella in his hand during a rain shower, instead I was happy to keep this shot of a Man riding the bicycle.

Monsoons have arrived in India early and I had already planned to take a few shots of people walking in the rain with an umbrella in their hands. 

Therefore, I first looked for a Coffee Shop at the first floor of a building. So that I can shoot these people "Top-down" from height.

Soon, I found such a Coffee Shop and it was quite near to my office. 

In the morning, it was cloudy and so I decided to take my camera with me to work. I planned that I would sneak out of my office (not photography related) for about an hour, shoot and get back. 

I even had my own umbrella ready, in case it started to rain before I reached that Coffee Shop.

The time was 4 pm and that's exactly the time I take a break from work for about 45 minutes to have my coffee in peace everyday. I walked out from my office. It had started to drizzle a bit and I was OK to walk in that. 

I reached the Coffee Shop and ordered my Coffee. I told the waiter to deliver my order to the first floor where I would be taking a seat. 

This Coffee Shop has huge glass windows. Through one of the windows, I could see a traffic signal and the Zebra Crossing near it. 

I Was on my 50mm prime lens and my Crop Sensor Canon 600D Camera. 

I was still waiting for it to rain heavily. But the opposite happened instead. It stopped drizzling. So I thought let me just wait a little.

But to my surprise, I saw the clouds disperse. 

I told myself never mind, you can click those umbrella shots some other day. 

I started to practice framing for my next visit to the Coffee Shop. In one of my practice frames, I placed these Zebra Lines diagonally, just as you see in the photograph above.

I was pretty happy with the angle, the distance. I clicked a few empty frames with just the zebra lines in it. 

Later I waited for unique subjects to pass by. The most common subjects passing by frequently were Cars, Bikes, some Tuk-tuks and of course people walking by. 

A lot of Bicycles also passed by. Since I have a thing for bicycles, I decided to use that as a subject in my shot. I was just practicing.

In one of my shots, I happen to get this man riding the bicycle on the bottom right of the frame. He was exactly on the rule of thirds area of the frame. I also avoided the street traffic here. So, No clutter as well. 

I told myself, Yes, you got one. This is very Minimalistic.

But again this shot wasn't my first priority, as I told you before. 

This photograph, made it to the blog post only when:

a) I converted the it into black and white and

b) created a silhouette of the man by adjusting "Levels" in editing. 

Now, the man is neither too close nor too far in distance. The overall size of the mans shape is also not too big or small enough. 

The original shot was taken colored. And the shot was falling under the Street Photography category and not Minimalism as Such.

So I had to do away with the Identity of the man by converting him into a silhouette, to get this photo fall into the Minimalism as Less Elements Category of Minimalist Photography

On the other hand. If the shot stayed colored, but the Distance in the shot was more or the man on his bicycle looked very small in the frame, then even the colored photograph would have fallen into the Minimalism Category (would still have been street photography as well though).

I hope you got the point I am trying to make.

I had no idea that I would be writing a Maximalist Blog Post like this to explain this Minimalist Photograph. Anyways let me stop right here and take your leave. 

Hope that you enjoyed the behind the scenes action/story.

Have a nice day.evening. 

White Staircase

Minimalism as Simple Geometry

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

Staircases are one of my Favorite Subjects when it comes to Minimalist Photography. 

 

This White Staircase I found at the "Jharkhand Mahadev Temple" located at Vaishali Nagar, Jaipur, India. 

Apart from the above shot, I have clicked many other Minimalist Photographs from this place. The architecture of the Temple is very simple  and geometric.

I guess in old times, people understood the value of Simplicity and Utility. And of course, since this is temple area, it need not be very modern. 

I like going to this place often, for the vibes are amazing. You must visit this small Temple for sure when you land up in Jaipur sometime for a vacation.

Coming back to the composition, the Minimalist Photograph of the White Staircase above, falls nicely under the Minimalism as Simple Geometry Category of Minimalist Photography / Minimalism. 

The Simple Geometry being Lines and its combinations. The subtle texture and dirt on the staircase and the White wall, creates  a nice artsy feel.

I took this shot a little from the side, to create a sense of depth. I have kept everything basic and simple this time.

Hope you enjoyed the shot. 

Stay tuned for more.

Three Earthen Clay Vessels

Minimalism as in Repeating Shapes

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

I found these Three Earthen Clay Vessels lying on the ground in front of Albert Hall Museum, Jaipur. 

One finds a lot of pigeons on the ground there. Visitors to the museum, generally buy food from the pigeon food sellers and feed the birds. 

These empty clay vessels were kept for the birds to drink water from. But, because of the Summer Heat, all the drinking water for the birds dried up. 

... And they forgot to refill it. 

Maybe the food sellers were too busy making the money.

Photo Details:

• Minimalism Type: Repeating Shapes
• Camera: Canon 600D
• F Stop: f/3.5
• ISO: 100
• Exposure Time: 1/200 sec

Blue Lines and Waves

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

The Subject, Blue Metal Sheet with Lines and a Wavy Strip going across, was actually placed in front of a Construction Site. 

I decided to shoot this, because of the Blue Color and the Wavy Lines. Initially I took at shot from the front, of just the lines. That looked very boring and flat. 

So, in my next shot I tried to add some variety and therefore I added the wavy vertical strip to the frame.

I took one more shot from the front and this time too, I did not like the final image. So, I decided to take a 3rd shot from the side. 

Shooting from the side, helped me to add some depth in the shot and to uplift the overall artistic feel.

I always strive to shoot unique subjects using newer angles. This is just another attempt at it. 

Hope you like my little effort.

Thank You !

Parked Bicycle

Minimalism as Less Elements

Photo By © Prakash Ghai
Buy Now

• Location: Jaleb Chowk, Jaipur (India)
• Camera: Canon 600 D
• Lens Used: Canon 50 mm F1.4 Prime
• Minimalism Type: Less Elements
• F-Stop: f/4
• ISO: 100
• Exposure Time: 1/160 sec.