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Sunset silhouette
Sunset silhouette Plants, stones, an Indian cow, drawn in sharp outlines against a clear evening sky.I don’t think I ever consciously noticed the forms of these plants – stems, flowers, leaves – in such amazing detail as on this silhouette picture. Photo of the week: Orchha, Madhya Pradesh, India 2017
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Looking at you!
Looking at you! I felt as if somebody was looking at me. I turned round and noticed this little owl with big eyes. We looked at each other for a while and I took a picture.Now, looking at the picture, I realize that most if not all other birds have one eye on the left…
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Onigawara
Onigawara The scary creature on the roof is an ‘oni’, a Japanese ogre. Temple roofs are often ornamented with these ogre tiles (onigawara) and also with small round hanagawara, i.e. tiles with floral designs. The roofs of Japanese temples are intricate works of very fine craftsmanship. See for example the small roof on the photo…
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Okame
Okame Okame is the name for the mask of a young woman with a small upturned nose and big round cheeks. It is also the name of the wife of the master carpenter who built the large hall of the Senbon Shakado temple in Kyoto where I saw this nicely illuminated mask. The story goes…
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Noh apparition
Noh apparition In a Noh museum one can expect to see Noh masks. With their painted high eyebrows (hikimayu) and other typical features, Noh masks often have a striking appearance. But this mask, emerging from the dark, looks more like a phantom, with elements of the background faintly shining through its face.Do we see here…
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The man of her heart?
The man of her heart? Dark clouds over the IJsselmeer (Lake IJssel). An expanse of water shining brightly with a silvery lustre caused by the light of a sun that’s nowhere to be seen.A woman stands on the shore, a man approaches on his kiteboard. Does she patiently stand by and watch, full of admiration…
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Rash e Jannat
Rash e Jannat Light reflections brighten the dark teak arches and ceilings of Tipu Sultan’s palace where he used to reside in summer with his royal women. Maybe that’s why it was known as the Envy of Heaven. Photo of the week: Tipu Sultan’s summer palace (1791), Bangalore, Karnataka, India 2019
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Palm pond
Palm pond I passed a pond and saw the leaves of a dark green palm inside. This made me pause and wonder. A dark plastic lined pond, filled with water, light brown rippled sand at the bottom, a thin wire grid on the surface. All this mixed with dark palm leaves and stem, and a…
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A drunk’s dream
A drunk’s dream Had the bottles been full this would have been a drunk’s paradise. Empty they’re his worst nightmare. Photo of the week: Bottle room, Mythri Manasa Sangama, near Bangalore, Karnataka, India 2019
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Admiring Chamundi
Admiring Chamundi Chamundi angrily chasing Kalabhairava is a high point during the mid-December festival at Kakotuparambu in Coorg. Chamundi is the frightening form of the Divine Mother, so we can also identify her as Kali or Durga. As is often the case when stories of the gods are enacted, female roles are performed by males.…
καιρός remembered
… the right moment, position chosen, shoot …
καιρός remembered 