The renowned Goan cartoonist and illustrator Mario Miranda passed away today in his village of Loutulim, Goa.

Mario-bab was an old world Goan and had in him that inestimable quality of graciousness. He was known best for his brilliant depiction of Goa and his political satire. His canvas was often ‘busy’ but insofar as Goa is concerned, it reflected Mario‘s deep love for his Goan homeland, his insight into its culture, and his attention to detail.

One morning in 2007 when my wife and I dropped by unannounced at his house in Loutolim, he was kind enough to spend time with us, and presented us a signed copy of his book, GOA with love.

Mario Miranda
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Mario Miranda in his study at Loutolim, Goa
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

GOA with love (our signed copy)

Rao re! Rao re! (Stop! Stop!)

Greetings to all on the occasion of Diwali. This year the Hindu Festival of Lights falls on October 26.

Hindu tradition admits several interpretations of Diwali. All of them project a unified theme, one of renewal and optimism, symbolizing the triumph of the human spirit over the forces of darkness. In Goa, we have historically adopted the retelling of Lord Krishna‘s slaying of the demon-king Narkasur as our motif for the occasion. See this blog entry from 2009.

These images, taken in the streets of Panjim during Narkasur Nite 2006, are among my earliest photographs as a serious photographer. Although shot at ISO 1600, they are effectively noise-free at these sizes. (The Canon EOS 5D was a landmark body in the low noise department.)

PS: My informal account of the Narkasur celebrations of my young days is recorded in this old post from Goanet.

Effigy of the demon Narkasur (Panjim, Goa, 2006)
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Lord Krishna and Narkasur in battle (Panjim, Goa, 2006)
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Let There Be Light!
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Happy Easter to all!

The Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Imaculada Conceição (1541) is among Panjim‘s signature sights, an obligatory photo stop for every visitor to the city. It was not long ago (when Panjim was still a world-class city) that the Church Square and its surrounds were a pedestrian’s delight, a vibrant evening hangout for Panjimites, young and old. Today it is like any other cacophonous, chaotic, unpleasant Indian city square. Which is to say, Goa has now fully embraced India.

Photographing the Church early in the morning or at night is a challenge. The artificial lighting blows out the features of the façade directly in front of the lights, and resulting dynamic range overpowers the capabilities of today’s camera sensors. An earlier attempt of mine highlights (pun intended) the issue.

This time I tried to work around the problem by placing a Singh-Ray 2-stop reverse grad filter ahead of the lens to hold back the brightest band within the frame. The results were much better, thanks in no small measure to the fantastic Canon Tilt-Shift 24mm f/3.5 II lens, which, unlike its optical peer TS-E 17L, admits filter holders.

The conditions that lead to the second image below were fortuitous. With daylight fast approaching, the lights automatically turned off about 1 sec into the 4 sec exposure.

16th C. Panjim Church at dawn
5D Mark II, TS-E 24L II + Singh-Ray 2-Stop Reverse GND Filter

Daybreak
5D Mark II, TS-E 24L II + Singh-Ray 2-Stop Reverse GND Filter

The next two images were made in 2007 and 2008, respectively.

Late evening
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Another late evening view
5D, 24-105L

The final three images are photographs of old photographs.

Church Square c. 1900, Central Library Archives
5D, 24-105L

Panjim Church c. 1920 (?), © Souza & Paul, Central Library Archives
5D, 24-105L

View of Panjim and the church c. 1900, Central Library Archives
5D, 24-105L

For earlier installments of Panjim Promenade, click here.

A candid taken late evening at Mehrangarh in Jodhpur, Rajasthan. The Jaswant Thada is seen to the left of the frame.

At Mehrangarh in Jodhpur
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

I have a good recollection of the Goan gentry of my young days, of their modes of dress, speech and mannerisms, of the old world charm, adapted from the Portuguese and synthesized into a uniquely Goan composite. That kind of codger is today a rare sight in Panjim. Likewise, the hardy Goan of the working class has been transformed by the times although a few still cling to the old ways – but surely not for long – even as their grandchildren conquer the new worlds of Facebook and Twitter.

These images were made while waiting for a sunset shoot in the village of Saligao. The 300mm telephoto lens enabled enough separation from the men for a candid shot. The mellow orange of the late evening sun was a bonus. As is my wont, I try to engage my subjects once the photographs are secure in my bag.

Julio Rodrigues wearing his loincloth (in Goa, called the caxtti) was returning with bags of livestock feed. For a tinge of nostalgia, notice the Hercules logo on his old bicycle. In the second image we see Jagannath Morajkar trudging home after an honest day’s work. There is something very Goan to their look, and soon sights like these will exist only in our memory.

On the way home: Julio Rodrigues
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS

Day's end: Jagannath Morajkar
5D Mark II, 300L f/4 IS

Jagannath Morajkar
5D Mark II, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

This image was made on a still, misty morning standing in the salt pans of Curca and looking over Batim, both tiny villages in Goa.

Misty morning in Batim, Goa
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

A recent column by Rajeev Srinivasan brought back memories of my photo expedition through coastal Kerala during the 2007 monsoon season. As we neared the settlement of Payyoli, on a lark I decided to call on P.T. Usha, the local heroine and the greatest athlete India has produced in recent memory. [Memo to Indians: Give your bozo worship of sissy boy Sachin Tendulkar a rest.]

Just as I got to her door, it swung open and there was Usha herself, lamp in hand, immersed in the rhythm of her daily evening pooja. There was no time to adjust my camera settings much less think of compositional nuance if I was going to capture the spontaneity of the moment. I quickly dialed in a high ISO number and took the shot in fading light. It remains one of my prized photos.

P.T. Usha lights a lamp at her doorstep in Payyoli, Kerala
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Usha and her husband were warm and welcoming, and a quick portrait session followed. I prefer to shoot portraits in natural light, but it was dark outside and the dim interior lighting didn’t help either. Direct flash had to be deployed which meant it would reflect off Usha’s skin. Well, we photographers learn to quickly accept the cards we are dealt. Although I have tried to mitigate the harsh footprint left by the flash in post-processing, the end product is not entirely to my satisfaction.

P.T. Usha
5D, 135L

Romance flowers undeterred by an approaching southwest monsoon storm in Kozhikode (aka Calicut) on the Malabar coast of northern Kerala.

In Calicut, Kerala
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Monsoon storm brewing in Calicut, Kerala
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

I was having breakfast in the alfresco restaurant at Umaid Bhawan Palace in Jodhpur when I caught sight of this amorous couple a few feet away on the steps of the palace. Fortunately, I had my camera with me with the appropriate lens already mounted.

Love in Jodhpur, Rajasthan
5D, 70-200L f/2.8 IS

Awhile back I posted photographs of the cemetery cross in the Goan village of Saligao framed against the setting sun. As mentioned there, I had to stake out the location for a number of days before I scored that shot. On one of the earlier ‘unsuccessful’ evenings, Nature flashed an unexpected spectacle. I call it The Flaming Cross, seen below.

Note: I have cloned out the intruding power lines in this image.

'The Flaming Cross' in Saligao, Goa
5D Mark II, 70-200L f/2.8 IS