“Adventures in India” – Travel Photography Show

Posted by Asher Fergusson on Apr 17, 2012 in Blog, Featured, India | 10 comments

At the April 6th, 2012 Fairfield Artwalk I did my first ever photography show at the Jamuna Craft Collections store on Main St. The title of the show was “Adventures in India” and was a selection of ten photos taken in 2009 and 2010. I absolutely love India and have lived there for almost 1 year over the past 4 years. It was really fulfilling to finally show some of my work to the hundreds of viewers who stopped by on that night.

Click any photo below to ENLARGE.

“What’s News?”

In 2009 I spent around 10 days in Allahabad for the anniversary of Maharishi’s Mahasamadhi. I traveled throughout the town in taxis and took many pictures from the window. This shot was achieved by panning the camera to be fixated on the man reading the newspaper at the same speed as the car. I love the green color and the swirling motion.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/15
Aperture: f22
ISO: 100
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2009

“River of Roses”

In 2009 I was in Allahabad for the 1 year anniversary ceremony for Maharishi’s Mahasamadhi. Early in the morning I bargained for 3 pounds of rose petals and carried them around in a large box all day. There were some dramas where the box disappeared but then miraculously reappeared 2 hours later. That evening we were on the Sangam (confluence of 3 holy rivers) and the time came for offering the flowers. These roses were thrown in the Ganges by Dr. Tony Nader (Rajaraam) from the large yellow boat on right side of this pic. I love the color and the three dimensional feeling created in this photograph.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1 second
Aperture: f4
ISO: 400
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2009

“Rowing through the mist”

Early in the morning we set out through the mist to have an auspicious bath at the Sangam (confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and Saraswati rivers in Allahabad). These boys were really excited to be rowing for us Westerners and it was quite magical to go out through the mist not knowing where we were going. I later found out that on this day there were almost 10 million people who took a bath at Allahabad!

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/180
Aperture: f6.7
ISO: 100
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2009

“Mahalakshmi Temple, Vindhyachal”

This photo was taken at a Mahalakshmi temple in Vindhyachal, half way between Allahabad and Varanasi. I noticed this shaft of light streaming in after I finished my lunch. The saintly Maharishi Pandit pictured at the front left was one of our guides and just happened to be standing in the perfect spot for my picture. I love the rich, red colors of this scene which is the color of Lakshmi. Also Maharishi wants there to be 50,000 pandits at this town performing a daily yagya called Lakshchandi to secure limitless wealth for the world.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/20
Aperture: f4.0
ISO: 200
Focal Length: 30mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2009

“Gandalf the Pink”

This picture was taken from a moving jeep near the Brahmasthan (Central point) of India. I saw the scene approaching in the distance, grabbed my camera, quickly wound down the jeep window and snapped away without much time to adjust my camera settings. I love the light and the timelessness of this transcendental moment. The pink shirt is priceless! Also I recently posted this photo on Reddit.com and received over 200,000 hits and this is what inspired me to do the show.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/250
Aperture: f4.0
ISO: 200
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2009

“Blue Sky School”

In 2010 I lived and worked from the Maharishi School campus in Bhopal, India with two friends/colleagues – Joey Del Re and Eric Carter. The campus has seven gigantic Vastu buildings and we were treated like kings. One night around dusk (my favorite time to take photos) I set up my camera on a tripod and exposed this photo for over 2 minutes while we chatted with the locals. I feel there is some mystery in this scene and I love the blue and purple colors.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 135 seconds
Aperture: f22
ISO: 200
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: Yes
Year: 2010

“Morning Motorbike Adventures”

Early one morning I was on the back of a motorbike riding back home from staying the night at a friend’s house. I got to see the town of Bhopal at a magical time where everything is waking up and preparing for the bustling day. I snapped many pictures that morning but I particularly like this one because of the long shadow of my friend and I as we cruise through town on his bike. I also like the rustic colors of this scene.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/750
Aperture: f3.5
ISO: 400
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2010

“Midday Play”

Here is an example of my habit of taking photos out the window of a moving car. I really like the candidness of this moment where these young girls are playing on a fine winters day. The seeming movement of the trees yet focused light on the girls creates a playful and fun feeling. I was surprised how well this picture turned out considering it was taken around midday which is usually not a good time for photography.

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/180
Aperture: f9.5
ISO: 200
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2010

“Dhuandhar Falls at Dusk”

Near Jabalpur, Central India there is the holy Narmada river. It is a beautiful, silent river with amazing, white marble rocks. At a certain part there is this huge waterfall called Dhuandhar Falls. We arrived at dusk and luckily I had my tripod. My favorite type of photography is long exposures and I have had quite a lot of experience taking photos in this style. The man who was standing next to me at the time said, “It’s too dark to take pictures now.” I said, “No it isn’t.” At that moment my shutter closed and this image came on the screen! So I turned to the guy and said, “See.”

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 20 seconds
Aperture: f8.0
ISO: 100
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: Yes
Year: 2010

“Stopped by the train”

On our way back from a visit to Ujjain we were stopped for about 10 minutes because of an approaching passenger train speeding on its way. In my opinion the Indian train system is definitely the best thing left behind by the British Raj. The vibrant hand painted boom gate, train and other objects in the scene somehow just bring a smile to my face. I love traveling on Indian trains – I sleep like a baby!

Camera Settings:

Shutter: 1/15
Aperture: f22
ISO: 100
Focal Length: 18mm
Tripod: No
Year: 2010

Want to order some prints?

If you would like any of these prints in any size I would be happy to have them printed and shipped to you where ever you may be in the world… To order simply go to my Contact Page and write me a note.

If you are in Fairfield the artwork will be on display until the end of May 2012 and you can still purchase any remaining work. The gallery is located at “Jamuna Crafts Collection” 108 N Main St, Fairfield, IA, 52556.

Special Thanks

Jamuna Crafts Collection – Saraswati and Biba Dangol, Christine Mosse, Elea Cohen, Fran & Ian Fergusson and Tegan Perry.