A closer look at the structure of the exterior of the Jaipur City Palace

A photo of the exterior of the city palace in Jaipur, along with the entry gate. It is a thriving, living place (and this thriving place is what made the place such an attractive target for terrorists who hated such thriving places).

Tip (Triod during panorama shooting): A sturdy tripod is essential for shooting good (not even great) panoramas. If you handhold your camera, there is a very high chance that you will shake the camera and you’ll have a difficult time matching up the shots later – the changes in camera position due to shaking can cause skews and make it more difficult to stich the photos together.

View of an entry into Jaipur's City Palace

Jaipur's (wikipedia) City Palace (wikipedia) is a major tourist location inside the city of Jaipur. It is a large, well maintained fort complex in the heart of the older sections of Jaipur, right next to the main markets. This is a view of one of the entry points to the City Palace, taken from inside a car.

Tip (Good time to shoot panoramas): Midday isn’t a good time to shoot because it produces harsh shadows, bleached-out highlights and fl at colours.

A view of the Yamuna river right next to the Taj Mahal

This is a view of the Yamuna river right next to the Taj Mahal. The river has moved over the centuries, but still remains close to the Taj. However, with industrialization, the river has got more polluted and shrunk in size.

Tip (Landscape): When you are trying to take a photo of a landscape with a distant horizon, place the horizon a third of the way down from the top or bottom of the frame rather than at the center of the photo. Doing this normally presents a much better composition effect to the photo.

Sunlight twinkling around the edge of the Taj Mahal

This is another photo of the twinkle of the sun around the side of the structure of the Taj Mahal. In this case, it was more difficult to take the photo since the portion in front of me was dark, and there was no way to get a good clear view, while also getting the twinkle. Ultimately I sacrificed getting a clear view in order to capture the twinkle.

Tip (Taking photos in the glare of the sun): Taking a photo when you are shooting a subject that is in the full glare of the sun, and your camera is also pointed in such a way that the sun is directly visible from the lens means that you are taking a huge risk that the light of the sun would cast a shadow over everything else, and features of the other objects may not be visible. See whether you can take the photo from an angle.

View of one of the minarets of the Taj Mahal

The Taj Mahal has 4 minarets on all 4 corners. These minarets are beautiful like the Taj Mahal, and are designed to lean slightly outside so that in the event of a severe earthquake, they do not fall on the structure of the Taj Mahal but fall out. In this photo, you can see the minaret in light and shadow.

Tip (Letting an object fit the frame fully): When taking a photo of a striking object, sometimes it makes sense to let the object fill the frame, seemingly appearing as a massive object. Such a photo can make the object look even more grander.

Twinkle of the sun around the structure of the Taj Mahal

I have always liked taking photos where there is a twinkling of the sun around buildings, through fences, through trees. This one is one that I particularly like, where the sun appears to twinkle around the edge of the Taj Mahal. You also get to see a minaret.

Tip (Capturing the twinkle of the sun): Getting a photo of the sun twinkling through a structure (through a tree, around the side of a building, over the edge of a hill, etc) can give a very good effect. However, getting a good view of an exact twinkle requires precise positioning.

Side view of the Taj Mahal compound gives an idea of the size

This side view of the walkway in front of the Taj Mahal gives an idea of the size of the Taj compound; it is a fairly large compound and is very well maintained. Even with these number of tourists, most of them do not walk on the grass, otherwise it would get trampled under-foot.

Tip (Lighting in a landscape): Getting the quality of lighting right in a landscape photo can make the difference between whether it is a great photo or a good photo (or even a poor photo). To repeat, lighting is perhaps the most influential attribute of a successful landscape. If you have the patience or the sense of timing to wait for lighting that is soft, or dramatic, or slightly diffused, or very sharp, it usually pays off in a memorable photograph.

Section of the Taj Mahal and a minaret

This is a photo of a section of the Taj Mahal with a minaret in the background. The Taj Mahal has 4 marble minarets in all the 4 corners, but with this small sectional photo, you can just see. What you can see is a sample of the huge number of tourists who visit the place.

Tip: When taking a photo where there are a number of tourists, be sure to take a number of photos at separate time intervals. Some softwares give the feature of tourist remover, for which you need a number of photos. A person in one photo may not be there in another photo, and comparing these 2 photos, you can get rid of the tourist.

View of the garden right in front of the Taj

This is a view of the long walkway in front of the Taj Mahal. The walkway has water fountains and gardens, and looks very beautiful. The actual platform of the Taj Mahal is raised, and hence the view looks like it is taken from a height.

Tip (Symmetry while taking a photo): When taking a view of a structure, be sure to maintain a proper symmetry in the framing of the photo. If the photo comes out unsymmetrical without a compelling reason, it can look awkward.

Angular view of the Taj from a corner

This is a photo of the Taj when taken from just near one of the minarets. The Taj has 4 minarets at all 4 corners of the compound, and the photo was taken from just next to the minaret. This was taken with a normal camera, but somehow the photo seems to give the appearance of a wide angle.

Tip (Taking photos from different angles): Always explore the angles from which you can take a photo of beautiful structures. It is not always necessary that you take a regular photo like everyone else does, explore a bit, look at the various side including from the bottom, and see whether you can get a good (as well as a unique) view.