12/31/15

258 / vast




Sometimes was reminded of parts of Australia






though not for long






couldn't do much about reflections 
too cold to open windows






it would be magnificent to ride through






 wonder whether nomads talk much?






I felt very quiet there





12/30/15

257 / strong




such strong landscapes, must be heaven for geologists, too






some of it looks like it just happened






found these mud brick ruins rather mysterious






would like to wander more slowly among them






& go slowly through the hardy little towns
with their optimistic decorations



12/28/15

256 / so cold




This was an early morning, to get there before dawn





so very cold! The white is ice & frost






superb mountains 






always love to watch them appear out of nothing



12/27/15

255 / time




This has taken the longest time: went through the photos from Tibet,
to see if I could get a bit more out of them. It was a hot day, 
& the mac got very hot






They were often through glass on a dusty road, at speed,
which is why I want to do a trip that focuses on photography;
to be fair, theres a set time to each next checkpoint, so we 
could not stop much






But then, yesterday, I frittered away hours trying to get into my blog,
my fault, passwords are in a confusing mess.
I like this country very much, though its the big mountains I want to paint






I'd love to see them in different seasons, too






& meet more of the nomads who live in them,
before they're made to settle.



12/14/15

254 / vivid




Its still quite vivid in memory, where most
of these photos were taken. 
The Pushkar mela in Rajasthan was the most amazing 
event I'd seen till then. (about '71 or '72)






a swami in a photo studio in Pushkar






a yogi & teacher, 108 years old, in Pushkar






have always wondered about the story here






its a yearly fair/mela, fabulously colourful 






its possible to know where they come from 
by their clothes






possibly a lot more sophisticated now, 






a chai tent out past the busy areas






pilgrims in Varanasi



12/12/15

253 / remembering



Baba Kausiladas.
a friendly sadhu in Varanasi, I was there for a few months 
in the 70's. I'd watch the sunrise with him, by the Ganga. 
He's no longer there, but I remember him well 
thanks to photographs






& these girls in the Gir Forest






My memory is very visual, wonder if thats the case
everywhere, now? With so many visual aids etc.
Here I drew the father & gave it to him, then it was ok to
photograph. Its the last place with Asian lions.



12/10/15

252 / from back then




from the house I rented in Dalhousie
one year





& another year






boy at a country fair, he's probably a grandfather now







a miller in the mountains






kids in Kashmir when we rented a picnic boat for a week or so






they followed us along the bank of the Jhelum river  






hand coloured this, as the neg was desperately scratched 






shepherds on a short Kashmir trek



12/8/15

251 / further afield




Some mountain boys on a walk near Dalhousie






a Ghaddi shepherd






Ladakhi ladies. All from the 1970's.
Am wondering whether I'll go to Ladakh next year..
It would be so great with a digital camera.






12/3/15

250 / holidays




Really don't like the new OS on my computer - old one
worked fine, now all my slide shows are mixed, without the music
& transitions I'd carefully selected.. as there
are many thousands of photos involved, guess what ..
& why would I want to synchronise all the devices?
Have loads of storage on the computer, & would like to delete
photos off the phone & iPad without losing them on computer. 
It is stormy outside too, though the photo's from another day, at the beach
(Byron Bay) looking towards mount Warning.



11/23/15

249 / trees




First time using my iPhone photos for here, & amazed at their size.
Every year these eucalypts shed their bark in 
interesting ways, I see them when I walk to the Farmers market
early on Thursday mornings






 am very fond of the abstract patterns






after 2-3 weeks these particular trees are a smooth white






each one has individual patterns






I think their position re sun, traffic, wind etc
is part of how it works






& maybe some are older






like all parts of nature, I like to think they
enjoy to be admired






not in any vain way, just naturally






a particularly intricate & subtle one






have photos from several years, (though no record of which tree)
am fairly sure its a unique creation each year.