Me don't need no tagline!
Archive for February, 2010
The photographer awakes from his slumber
Feb 16th
Photography has been one of my hobbies ever since I got my first cameraphone – the SE W700i. I’ve shot quite a few amazing (according to me, anyways) photographs using that device since 2007. I parted with my W700i towards the end of 2009 and got the Nokia N79 with its 5MP camera and other bells and whistles. With the upgraded camera, I imagined myself breaking free of the limitations imposed by my old cameraphone. But the lack of time didn’t allow me to pursue my hobby any more.
As I checked my Flickr account, I noticed that the last time I uploaded a photograph was way back in May 2009! Something needed to be done. Something has been done. Since the past few weeks I’ve been spending a lot of time outdoors, which gave me an opportunity to revive the old shutterbug inside. From now on, every photograph in my Flickr account will be shot with the goodness of a 5MP Carl Zeiss lens, just like the 14 photos that I’ve uploaded today. These photos were taken in places like Pondicherry, Hogenakkal, Coorg and Shivsamudram.
Do check ‘em out by clicking on the Flickr link at the top of this page or by clicking here. Feel free to comment on, criticize, sneer at or admire my work. 
For old times’ sake
Feb 16th
Have you ever wondered how much you’ve changed over the years? Ever realized how much your tastes, likes, dislikes and preferences have matured (or in some cases, become more childish) since the time you were in your early teens?
While aspects such as your choice of apparel, cuisine etc can be attributed to the maturity you gain over the years, I don’t think any such explanation exists for a person’s musical taste. Or at least, there is none that I know of.
Since the time I first gained exposure to music, I’ve listened to numerous artistes. Some of them became instant favourites while the others faded away from my memory instantly. Today, I find that my choice in music has evolved (or devolved, depending on your point of view) to such an extent that I can hardly imagine myself listening to artistes that used to be my idols only a few years ago.
I’m not ashamed to admit that I used to be a huge fan of boy-bands such as Boyzone, Backstreet Boys, Blue and Westlife, back when they were all the rage. That was largely due to the airtime provided to these bands by the music channels on TV. Owning a cassette (yup, CDs were way too expensive then) of these bands used to be a sort of status symbol and ensured that you were always in demand. Those were the days…
Then, I moved on to Linkin Park, whose mania lasted for a little over 3 years. After that, came the lostprophets, Green Day, Franz Ferdinand et al. The next phase in my musical journey saw A Static Lullaby, As I Lay Dying and Finch take over my headphones. And right now, I’m mostly listening to Daughtry and Fightstar.
So what makes me reminisce over these things now?
The reason is, the Backstreet Boys are gonna be performing live in Bangalore on the 21st of this month. This could be my only opportunity to see my one-time favourite band in person, on stage. So now I’m mulling over whether to attend the gig or not, considering that I’ll probably have to go alone since most of us have spunked our cash on our weekend trip to Coorg. The tickets are not exactly dirt-cheap at Rs.1000 apiece, but that is a fair price to pay to see your boyhood favourites, right?
I’ll see if I can entice someone to part with his dough, and if I can’t get someone to take along, I’ll probably go solo (or not go at all, depending on what my mind tells me then).
So if you’re in Bangalore/Delhi and have fond memories of the band, do go and watch them live. It’ll surely be ‘larger then life’.
