In March 2004 I made a business trip to India and managed to arrange a few days to see some of the key sites in new Delhi, Jaipur and Agra along with our good friends Jim and Emily.. This is now an opportunity to reprocess some of those old images shot on a Canon 10D camera and bring them into the light.
We drove from New Delhi to Jaipur and then to Agra and finally back to New Delhi completing a small triangle.
We travelled from Jaipur to Agra with the sole purpose of visiting the Taj Mahal. We stayed at the The Oberoi Amarvilas Hotel which was very close to the Taj Mahal therefore giving us early access to the site before it got too busy. On reaching the hotel we had some tantalising views of the Taj Mahal over the trees in the distance.
That first evening after we arrived we took a brief visit to see the Taj Mahal from a slightly different angle – from the Yamuna River at the rear of the site. This gave a somewhat different perspective in the failing light.
The next morning we headed out early and managed to view the wonderful monument with relatively few people around.
The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the south bank of the Yamuna river in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan, to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan, the builder.
The Taj Mahal was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for being “the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world’s heritage”. It is regarded by many as the best example ofMughal architecture and a symbol of India’s rich history. The Taj Mahal attracts 7–8 million visitors a year and in 2007, it was declared a winner of the New 7Wonders of the World (2000–2007) initiative.
The views over this magnificent monument were simple spectacular and I could not stop taking photographs.
The tomb is the central focus of the entire complex of the Taj Mahal. It is a large, white marble structure standing on a square plinthand consists of a symmetrical building with an iwan (an arch-shaped doorway) topped by a large dome and finial. Like most Mughal tombs, the basic elements are Persian in origin.
The base structure is a large multi-chambered cube with chamfered corners forming an unequal eight-sided structure that is approximately 55 metres (180 ft) on each of the four long sides. Each side of the iwan is framed with a huge pishtaq or vaulted archway with two similarly shaped arched balconies stacked on either side. This motif of stacked pishtaqs is replicated on the chamfered corner areas, making the design completely symmetrical on all sides of the building. Four minarets frame the tomb, one at each corner of the plinth facing the chamfered corners. The main chamber houses the false sarcophagi of Mumtaz Mahal and Shah Jahan; the actual graves are at a lower level.
Passionate Photographer …. Lost in Asia
Stuart Taylor of HighlanderImages Photography has been making images for over 30 years and can offer a diverse range of photo imaging services with a focus on Asia and a documentary/photojournalistic style. These services include planning and executing a photo shoot on location but importantly all the post-processing and image preparation needed for the specific finished media format required by the customer. Stuart’s experience and knowledge in all of these aspects make HighlanderImages Photography a one-stop-shop for a comprehensive and professional image production service.
Stuart can be available for a variety individual assignments or projects and he specialises in areas such as photojournalism, commercial, architectural, real estate, industrial, interior design, corporate, urbex, adventure, wilderness, and travel photography.
Final image products can be delivered as high resolution images, prints, books, multimedia slideshows, videos, and DVDs. Images from this website can be purchased as prints in a variety of sizes and media, as gift items or as digital downloads.
E-Mail : staylor@highlanderimages.com