Cotton Pickin'

Reel-Life Situations Can Be Fun To Photograph

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

I guess you have to thank the UK-based blogger Maggie May for this post, because it was inspired by a comment she left on my blog a few days ago.

Perceptive as ever, she was the first (but not the last) to ask me whether I ever get lost when I'm overseas, due to my habit of wandering down strange streets, camera in hand, simply looking for great sights to photograph.

It's a very interesting question. The answer, quite truthfully, is no. I have never got lost overseas, perhaps because I keep a close eye on my bearings and on cross-streets. But let's just say when I'm driving here in Melbourne and I don't have Mrs Authorblog navigating, I have a reputation for, um, not finding the quickest way to my destination.

Let's just leave it at that. If you want any clarifications on this situation, you will simply have to ask Mrs Authorblog. I refuse to enter into any debate on this question!

This shot was taken in Singapore, ten months ago. I was just wandering around the nooks and crannies of Little India, fascinated by the visual treasures in each shop. And no, I didn't get lost.

But there's always a first time, hey?

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Simon Towel

Isn't He A Judge On American Idol?

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

This shot was taken in Singapore last December. I've always found that the best way a photographer can really soak up a new place is to walk everywhere. Yes, taking public transport or driving a rental car is a convenient way to get around quickly, but there's nothing like walking briskly around and giving yourself the chance to look, observe and examine - as you stop at your leisure to photograph images that captivate you for a variety of reasons.

One of the places I wanted to check out in Singapore was Little India. Strangely enough, I'd never been there before and I have to say it was a great experience. I reckon I shot more than a hundred images under the huge roof of the complex, because the colours that confronted me were so rich, the fabrics were so stunning and the sights were so redolent of my own childhood years.

Do you ever find that you "see" more when you have a camera in your hands? Had I been browsing without a camera slung around my neck, chances are I would not have given this neat pile of towels a second glance. But I reckon they caught my eye because they were slightly askew and not in military-like order - and because of the way they were placed on the shelf of the store, which meant they were angled away from me.

New visitors to this blog might wonder if this photograph has been digitally enhanced in any way. The answer is no, because I never manipulate my images. These exquisitely soft cotton towels, manufactured in India, were simply vibrant in their coloour and contrast. I could not walk past them without asking permission to shoot them where they lay.

Nope, I've never been one to throw in the towel.

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Sole Searching

Okay, Mate, Just Come Straight To The Point

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

This week's theme is shoes, so I was wondering if I should post shots of cowboy boots, or soccer boots, or cricket boots, or even a pair of flippers by the pool. Just something unusual. Maybe even a pair of R. M. Williams boots, the quintessential Outback footwear.

Then, while I mulled over the many possibilities, I remembered these shots I took during a 36-hour stopover in Singapore in December.

I was walking through an area popularly known as Little India. The sights and sounds and aromas reminded me instantly of India, the country where I was born and educated. I could hear Bollywood film music, I could smell Indian spices and I could see the brilliant, bright colours of Indian sweets.

Then I spotted this display of ceremonial sandals, called "mojaris". They are very popular in the Punjab, in the country's north. As a child, I would probably not have given them a second glance, because they were such an everyday sight.

But when I have a camera in my hands, nothing is commonplace. So I asked the shopkeeper's permission and I was delighted by the fact that he seemed amazed that anyone would want to photograph footwear.

No, I didn't feel like a heel!

Flush Gordon

Twenty Thousand Leaks Under The Sea

Sign in "Little India", Singapore. Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Joy Hind

Weather Forecast For Today? Very Mishti

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

No, these pictures were not taken on Indian soil. They were taken a few days ago, in Dandenong, a suburb in the south-east of Melbourne. You want Bollywood DVDs? This is the place. Indian gossip magazines? Ditto. Indian sweets, classic Bengali "mishti". Ditto again. Bangles? Ditto. An Indian meal? Mate, you've come to the right place. There's everything here except an Indian government and an Indian cricket team.

TRANSLATION: ``Mishti'' literally means sweet in Bengali. ``Mishti doi'' is sweet yoghurt, and ``mishti'' is a generic term for finger-lickin' Indian sweets.