POTD: St. Paul's Dome

1. Original Version

(taken with Canon IXUS 310HS) (Courtesy: Ian Woodberry for the idea of taking this picture from 6^th floor of One New Change)

2. Old Photo Version

(edited in Dynamic Light app and then converted into an Old Photo in PicFX app)

3. Triptych Version

(converted into monochromes (blue, gray and green colour filters) in Noir Photo app and then collaged in Photo Wall app)

4. Shining Dome Version

(edited in Bleach Bypass app – applied Muted Monochrome filter)

POTD: Shadows on the Bridge

(taken with Canon IXUS 310 HS and converted into a blue filter monochrome in Noir Photo app)

Tuesday Thunder - St. Paul's and Gherkin

I have a bonanza of FIVE pictures today, albeit of the same place, but in different shades. The setting is South Bank view of St. Paul's and Gherkin. I love this view – am not sure if it was better without the cranes that seem to be omnipresent throughout London nowadays, but nevertheless, I have used them to my advantage in some of these pictures.

Firstly, I should thank Ian and Carolyne for waiting patiently while I took this picture in their company. Next, lets put the feast on the table. J

1. Unedited version. It was dusk time with clear sky and good natural magic hour lighting.

(taken with Canon IXUS 310HS)

2. Monochrome. There was drama in the scene with both water and sky in ample abundance in the frame; also, the tall cranes accentuated the dramatic story. All these elements are compelling enough to convert this picture into a Monochrome.

(converted in Noir Photo app)

3. Cinematic. The shot looked fit to be part of a Hollywood movie – so, I added some cinematic effect to it.

(applied Drama filter in Snapseed and thick vignettes in Bleach Bypass to give the spotlight effect)

4. Artistic. No explanation required here. The photo effused so much of artistic flare that I felt it natural to apply an artistic filter to it.

(applied Clarity and Magic Hour filters in Camera+; added some sharpness in PS Express; concluded by adding a gritty black border in Camera+)

5. Sunset Enhanced. I used Sunset Taker app to enhance the evening colour in this version of the photograph.

I hope you like today's post and there is at least one version which manages to hold your attention – tell me which one!

St. Paul's Panoramas

Continuing with the past two day's theme, we have some more of St. Paul's today – this time in the shape of Panoramic pictures. I haven't dabbled with this part of photography before, and have started experimenting it recently.

On this occasion, I took some pictures from the terrace of the One New Change mall – on recommendation from Ian (you get the credit again J). Basically, I took some 16 pictures spanning from Shard to St. Paul's part of the view and then stitched them together in Autostitch app. I loved the result and hope you like it as well. Then, I took a second panorama of the front side of St. Paul's, which has come out more like a fisheye picture but that's the best I could create from such a short distance.

(taken with Canon IXUS 310HS and stitched together in Autostitch)

(taken with iPhone and collated in Autostitch)

P.S.: Yesterday's voting result: Cinematic version (#3) won hands down, closely followed by the Monochrome version (#2).

South Quay Footbridge 2

South Quay Footbridge 2, a photo by girish_nayyar on Flickr.

Second pic of South Quay pedestrian bridge that connects South Quay to Heron Quays. Taken with IXUS 310HS and then converted into a simple monochrome in Snapseed.

South Quay Footbridge

If you have been on the DLR, you will notice that the stations are just minutes apart, and I used to often wonder why have they unnecessarily built so many. By lengthening the distance between stations they could have made the journey time quicker. But then, one day my friend enlightened me. It is the layout of the terrain that has forced the stations to be so close by. All the numerous small quays and wharfs in Docklands are separated by water and are connected by bridges or tunnels. if you were to cross from one to the other by foot, it takes a considerable amount of time. The railway stations are built at each intersection of two quays or wharfs to make it easier to board from any quay. That's the reason why there are so many of them separated by minimal distance.

I took this picture on Saturday while crossing from South Quay to Heron Quays on foot. This footbridge is 180m long and was completed in 1997 by the architect company, Wilkinson Eyre. It is a S shaped bridge with half of it being fixed and the other half opens up for shipping purposes.

South Quay Footbridge, a photo by girish_nayyar on Flickr.

Taken with IXUS 310 HS and then edited in Sunset Taker app for lens flare. I loved the effects produced by this app.