Conversation with a Mughal Marvel Photo

Photographer’s Note

If there is one thing I would like do, that is to be lost in Lahore with nothing but a camera around my neck. The city is littered with history and stories from the past.

I have earlier posted a picture of the Emperor's Mosque (Badshahi Masjid) taken at night. Now its turn for a photo by the day.

As soon as you walk through the main door, you can see the main building across 528 ft long courtyard. One of of the first things me and wife could think of was that 'it looks like a painting' the fiery redstone structure topped by domes of white marble, set against the backdrop of the blue sky amply illuminated by the midday summer sun.

The first gaze belittles you, you feel like you're suddenly shrunk against the grandeur of this magnificent structure. Stuck in a time warp, belittled, and in awe. Only when you enter the main building that you realise that the marvel is in the entire existence of the mosque, not just in the first look or in the intricate inlay work inside the walls of the prayer chamber. The mosque talks to you and you can only talk back with silence, immense deep silence while you take in the beauty of its form.

The mosque can hold 100,000 people in the courtyard and 10,000 in the main prayer hall and porticoes. The acoustics are so brilliant that a man reciting the Quran in the main prayer chamber can be heard in the porticoes.

BennyV, holmertz, ManuMay, phwall, touristdidi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

I_WanderingSoul (652) 2009-10-23 4:41

Hi Kamran,
What a fantastic POV!
The sweeping effect is very good and the people show the scale.
Lovely lighting too.
TFS,Neelima.

daddo (11310) 2009-10-23 4:48

Salam Kamran. One feels like a little beetle in all this immensity. Spectacular place that is sublime and earthy at the same time. Regards. Klaudio.

alin-m (947) 2009-10-23 4:48

Great palace and nice picture.Best regards.Alin.

pauloog (6406) 2009-10-23 5:40

Hello Kamram,
A fine view of the mosque, almost lost in the wide open space. Good use of the wide angle to create this impression of space,.
Regards,
Paul

BennyV (4636) 2009-10-23 8:10

Hello Kamran,

Impressive width, basic colours, no shade. An amazing view. The little raster in the corner is a nice touch.

Benny

holmertz (9564) 2009-10-25 3:11

Hello Kamran,
I was here 37 years ago but for strange reasons I left without any good pictures. Your description is a lot more vivid than my memory. This is such an impressive place and you have captured the hugeness very well with your fisheye. Thinking of the easily imaginable heat of these stones on my bare feet makes me even more humble.
Kind regards,
Gert

ManuMay (10672) 2009-10-25 3:42

Hi Kamran!!

Excellent point of view and composition, playing beautifully with space and colours , providing this amazing view...Brilliant!!

Have a nice day...

Manuel

phwall (5542) 2009-10-25 4:39

Hi Kamran,
The wide lens intensifies the enormity of this wonderful mosque perfectly.
The vivid colours are enchanting. I like your composition very much, the diagonal view is well chosen.
A superb capture.
I enjoyed reading your well written note.
Regards
Peter

mozzy27 (267) 2009-10-26 13:58

Hi Kamran
I like this photograph very much, the lines in the pavement lead your eyes straight to the main entrance. wonderful sandstone colours and good POV.
TFS
Cheers Mozzy

alftrek (2783) 2009-10-31 16:38

Hi Kamran,
One can only imagine the scale of this place when we consider how tiny a person appears under the main entrance archway of the mosque. To accommodate over 100,000 people on a horizontal plan, this is far larger than the MCG.

I like your composition, and the earthly colours contrasting well with the sky.

Regards
Alfred

skippy007 (6967) 2009-11-07 20:08

Hello Kamran, I like the contrasting colours in this shot, both pleasant to look at & they compliment each other, I also like the expanse as you described has been well capture, with the aid of wideangle lens. Amazing place, I wonder how often 100,000 people would attend, thats as many people the MCG holds.
Cheers
Santo

dumbo (4352) 2009-11-11 4:06

Hello Kamran,
That Mosque is very beautiful and so impressive. I like the colors of this photo and your way to use a wide angle.

Regards,
Eino

touristdidi (8561) 2009-11-14 16:06 [Comment]