Travel Photography

Doodh Phirni @ Jaisalmer

Doodh Phrini @ Jaisalmer

Kheer (Sanskrit: ?????/Ksheer) (Hindi: ???) is a rice pudding, which is a traditional South Asian sweet dish. It is made by boiling rice or broken wheat with milk and sugar, and flavoured with cardamom, raisins, saffron, cashew nuts, pistachios or almonds. It is typically served during a meal or also consumed alone as a dessert. – WIKI

Starting now and going forward I will once in a while post a random blog which i can call it as a “JTN Recommends” which will primarily focus on on the lesser known aspects of a travel photographer’s life – ie a blog post beyond just place to stay and things to see in a given city. It could be about meeting a person or trying out a local speciality food or even a regional/folk music that has caught my attention during my visit to that place. There might be very good chances that there might be few things which might be better in this region than what is mentioned here – but these as i always say “Is My Opinion”.

Today’s post will talk about something sweet ( desert ) – Doodh Phirni. Prabhu Tea Stall is a small shop which is hidden within the small lanes which lead to the Sonar Kila of Jaisalmer from the main market area which gets very active once the sun sets in this small town. Its basically a tea shop but the speciality of this place being the fresh and hot Doodh Phrini. Ram Choudry is the main man who runs this shop and he is all charm and energy when you point your camera to him to grab few frames. At first he was a bit shy and was questioning me if i was from some press or tv that am taking photos of his shop. Once i introduced about myself and told where am from and where am heading to, he was very comfortable and that also lead him to start becoming more acrobatic in preparing the desert. Priced at 20INR which is less than 50cents for a glass – this got to be one of the most tastiest phirni you can have in this region. A must for getting you back to your groove in the cold freezing Rajasthan weather. Considering that its made up of milk and topped with fresh cream – this is a powerhouse of calories but on the other hand very addictive too which will not make you limit yourself for just one glass. So next time you are in Jaisalmer, and going for a stroll in the evening, watch out for this shop right in the beginning of the market area towards the right. If  any of you are very keen on trying it at home, i found this on the net > Badam Phirni ( via Indian Food Forever ). Jump on for some more images.

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Forget Mugshots, 10 Steps to Better Portraits – @CraftandVision eBook Review

Photograph of a farmer from Rajasthan

The folks over at Craft & Vision have just launched a new addition to their fantastic ebook compilations in the form of “Forget Mugshots – 10 steps to better portraits” authored by David Duchemin. This book offers very handy insights into capturing the best travel portraits with some very easy and intutive tips. Everything from waiting for the right moment before tripping the trigger, to using the available light to the best possible extent or even the significance of eye contact. David goes on to point out some really key things which can make or break an image or make it look like a typical mugshot. When David gives the examples, he speaks words which are backed by his numerous years of experience working and shooting portraits for various organisations and clients. The ebook spanning across 35 pages and 10 chapters not only talks about the gear headed stuff but also points you to some creative exercises which can help grasp the concept faster and help the photographer in long run.

Personally i was never a people/portrait photographer especially with regard to travel photography arena, but over the year and more my liking for the portraits to document the people whom i can associate with the place which i visited has got me addicted to this genre of photography. What i have learnt and also what has been very boldly emphasized in the ebook is the apsect of photographer-subject relation before going for such an image. What is the kind of image you end up making and also how the image ends up eventually on your memory card mainly relies on how good is the aspect of photographer-subject relation and intimacy.

I highly recommend this book from Craft & Vision not for the fact that its very affordable or smaller run size – but for the sheer quality of the content which is so well packed in those 10 chapters which makes you understand the concept very easily.


Click here to view more details

Special Offer on PDFs
For the first five days only, if you use the promotional code MUGSHOTS4 when you checkout, then you can have the PDF version of Forget Mugshots: 10 Steps to Better Portraits for only $4 OR you can use the code MUGSHOTS20 to get 20% off when you buy 5+ PDF eBooks from the Craft & Vision collection. These codes expire at 11:59pm (PST) March 17, 2012.

PS: The link to the ebook purchase above and in the special offer text  are affiliate links, request you to use them in case you are planning to purchase this or any other books from Craft & Vision store.

Some more images after the jump …

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