It was a cold chilly day and the rain didn’t help one bit. I am very bad with cold, I think I had mentioned that a few too many times and then some. I did google on how to beat the chill and apparently it needs a high amount of red blood cells. I stare over at the burger wrapper from afternoon lunch, just beside the soft drink and in between is obviously the French fries box, which is converting the last of my red and white blood cells to fat capsules, which is quite evidently visible. And then I look over at the search results from good, trying to find some other alternative ways to beat the cold. I am finding it much more difficult at office when the temperature drops below 20 and my hands start to freeze and even if the rest of the body doesn’t seem bothered by the cold, this freezing hand seems to signal my brain that I better start feeling the cold and start shivering. I am trying to find where on earth is that thermostat, if there is even one.  I was almost at the brink of buying insulated hand gloves which can turn up the heat. But then this defeats the whole purpose. I can’t take photos properly which is the whole reason for even going out in the first place. Long story short, I did nothing to help with the problem at hand, you see the pun there?

The time was 6PM and I had just gotten ready to go out to the coffee shop and get some writing done. I checked that the sun sets at around 6:20PM. I discard it, which I usually wouldn’t because I be chasing sunsets like a crazy person. No, I don’t get any good photos. Yes, I just go to one spot time and over again. But I am okay with that since this gives me a chance to do something other than well, you know nothing. And since I had to plans of going for a photo session, I sat back and kept the devices for charging which I would use in a short while. And as I am scrolling through the channels to watch, I look outside through the cracks on my curtain. No, the curtain is not broken or cracked. It was just the gap between two pieces of cloth and lo and behold the sky is crimson, with a nice array of clouds and obviously will yield great photos. It takes me about 5 minutes to snatch everything up, get my bike and I am out. I was mostly certain I would miss the sunset, but what if. I am usually pretty fast on my bike. I am wondering someone is going to complain that I am a very reckless driver, which I think I am. I don’t wear a helmet, I go at high speeds in the busy streets that don’t even have a dedicated bicycle lanes. I kept starting at the horizon which is mostly blocked by all the tall skyscrapers and I felt like I might still have some time by the time I reached a clearing devoid of buildings, or at least a clear shot at the sky. 

I don’t know what kind of photography I am into, but I know for certain that there is no genre. It has to rhyme or reason. I just seem to be clicking whatever I can and where ever, well the later can be debated over, because it just just 2 or 3 usual spots. Anyway, I do reach the location, the 3rd spot that is, lock my bike and go to the clearing. And sigh! The sun is gone, the crimson sky is gone, now it is just a sky slowing turning grey with the sun going down. I missed it. In my mind I could have taken whatever shot I could get from wherever, and by wherever I mean sky covered with the countless buildings and whatnot. But then again, like I said, I have a weird style of taking photos. That is why I don’t really recommend myself t take portraits. I can’t model the people. I will click anyway they are. So, my short concept at photography is that I want to have minimal editing, no retouches, and absolutely no photoshop. What is even the point of taking photos if we are just using photoshop to add whatever we want and changing whatever we want. I don’t find it authentic. I do play around with the colours, trying to bring out the best colours I possibly can, but I don’t like the manipulate photos so much that they appear completely different than the actual photo. I do understand that the photoshopped photos sell, and get all the likes and whatnot, in turn making people famous in social media terms, gaining the influencer status and obviously getting frees stuff as part of product promotion. 

I was approached by a group of people who seemed to have wanted to get some photos taken of them. I usually and most definitely comply with anyone’s request asking for a photo. But I don’t know why but I had made an excuse to get out of it. One person then turned into a few and I believe they were talking about the camera or me, which I didn’t hear, thanks to the headphone plugged in my ears. “No, its just a hobby”, I told them when asked if I was a professional. I understand the dilemma and the obvious misconception that they would think I am a professional. I have a big ass lens, and clearly no good photos to show for it. And on top of that, I have been trying to get a new camera, as if I am a great photographer and this new camera would get me all the greats photos that I have always wanted. Misconception. I did get a few good photos, so in the end it was not at all a bad decision to go out and catch that sunset.

ak | x.xxii.mmxxii