Durga Puja Parikrama 2015

As I mentioned earlier in my posts that I am a resident of Baishnabghata Patuli Township, which of late has witnessed a number of changes over the past few years. Lying in the southern suburbs of Kolkata, Patuli has seen development in the areas of electrification, provision of water, maintenance of roads and lanes and sewage. All these developments have benefited the inhabitants of the area in a number of ways. As far as festivities and celebrations are concerned, Patuli is not lagging behind either. Durga Puja is observed here with the same pomp and glory as in other parts of Kolkata and West Bengal.

Durga Pujas celebrated in our area have garnered noteworthy recognition and awards in different categories including pratima or idol, pandal decoration, illumination, theme and others. I have been sincerely covering the Durga pujas celebrated in Baishnabghata Patuli Township and the adjacent areas for the last three years (2012, 2013 and 2014), and this year was no different. I picked up my camera to catch some of the moments of this famous Bengali festival.

The following pujas were covered by me: Baishnabghata Patuli Upanagari Sporting Club Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Baishnabghata Patuli Sarbojonin Durgotsab (H Block), Uttar Purba Baishnabghata Patuli Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Patuli Central Club Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Jatrashuru Sangha Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Kendua Shanti Sangha Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Rabindrapally Jubak Sangha Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Patuli Ghoshpara Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Briji Kalyan Samiti Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Srirampur Kalyan Samiti Sarbojonin Durgotsab, Garia Park Sarbojonin Durgotsab and Chaitali Club YMCA Sarbojonin Durgotsab. Besides, I went to SIRSA, the place where I lived from 1985-1995, to take few snaps. It is always a pleasant experience to go out during the Durga Pujas along with your reliable camera. I was surprised to see the zeal of people of all age groups to go out and catch the glimpses of this vibrant festival. I mostly used Canon EOS 1100D, Canon PowerShot SX500 IS, Micromax Canvas Doodle 3 and Nokia X mobile to take these snaps. Next blog coming up soon! See
you till then.

Photo album link: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1059903314042026.1073741894.672990912733270&type=3

Why I chose Nikon Coolpix P600 as my next camera

As I mentioned earlier in my previous blogs that I have three cameras - Sony CyberShot DSC-S3000, Canon PowerShot SX500 IS, and Canon EOS 1100D, the last one being an entry-level DSLR camera. However, I was looking for an ultrazoom bridge camera and some of my photography enthusiast friends told me to go for Nikon. After browsing some of the latest products by Nikon, I decided to go for Nikon Coolpix P600.

So, I went to Harmony House, a well-known consumer electronics showroom near our house in Baishnabghata Patuli Township area. Cameras are available on the first floor. I went there on 12th October, 2015 and it was the auspicious day of Mahalaya. The salesman present there told me that there was a wonderful offer which would help me get a fabulous discount of around INR 3,000 on the price of Nikon Coolpix P600 and it was available for that particular day only. I went for it and bought it on finance. Given below is a sample image captured by this camera.

About Nikon Coolpix P600

Nikon Coolpix P600 is an ultrazoom bridge camera which was launched by Nikon about one and a half years ago. It has a number of similarities with an entry level DSLR camera, which help it put itself in a very high bracket as far as quality and efficiency are concerned. When it comes to the maximum equivalent focal length, P600 was the leader before Sony CyberShot DSC-H400 with 1550 mm MEFL was launched. P600 has a maximum equivalent focal length of 1440 mm. Given below are some other salient features of this outstanding camera:

• Type of image sensor: BSI-CMOS
• Maximum resolution: 16 megapixels (4608 x 3456)
• Image sensor size: 1/2.3 inch type (6.17 x 4.55 mm) 
• Lens: 24-1440 mm equivalent
• Recording medium: SD/SDXC/SDHC
• Shutter speeds: 1/4000s to 15s
• Focus-numbers: f/3.3-f/6.5 at the widest
• Custom White Balance: Yes
• Continuous shooting: Seven frames per second
• Rear LCD monitor: Three inches with 921,000 dots
• Weight: 565 gm inclusive of battery (quite heavy)
• Dimensions: 4.92 x 3.35 x 4.21 inches (125 x 85 x 107 mm)

Excellent image quality, 60x optical zoom, Wi-Fi and ease of use make it one of the most sought-after contemporary bridge cameras. In addition, it features an electronic viewfinder so users have the option to use the EVF or the LCD as per their convenience. You will find the viewfinder button just towards the right of the electronic viewfinder and this enables you to switch to and fro between EVF and LCD. An ideal choice for avid photographers who are looking for a very wide zoom range. Next blog coming up very soon! See you till then.

House sparrow captured at my friend's residence

Nowadays, house sparrows are a rare sight, thanks to the electromagnetic radiation from mobile phones and various other factors. Drastic reduction in the number of house sparrows also resulted from predation, lack of nesting places and illnesses. However, very few birds are still found in Kolkata and adjacent areas.

The scientific name of house sparrow is passer domesticus and it is a tiny bird, living in a large number of countries in the world. It is an indigenous bird to Europe, Asia as well as the Mediterranean area. This bird loves to stay close to human beings and has the ability to inhabit in both city and countryside areas. The bird typically feeds on insects, food grains and seeds but it also eats other varieties of foods. It has many predators such as domestic cats, squirrels, birds of prey including owls, hawks, and other birds.  

House sparrow, also known as চড়াই পাখি. has a strong cultural presence in India. A considerable portion of the Indian population keep it as a pet. The chirping of this bird is short and ceaseless and it is a contact call. As far as its social behavior is concerned, it is quite gregarious in nature.

On July 22, 2015, I went to a friend's house in nearby Patuli J block. He has built a nest box for housing sparrows and regularly feeds them with puffed rice and biscuits. As a consequence, flocking of house sparrows has become a regular affair. I had the opportunity there to click some snaps of this bird. The photo album link is given below. Next blog coming up soon! See you till then.

Photo album link: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1012477248784633.1073741888.672990912733270&type=3 

The various natural wonders of our co-operative society garden

I live in Baishnabghata Patuli Township in the southern suburbs of Kolkata and similar to most other citizens of this picturesque township, I live in a multistoried co-operative housing society. The name of our society is Keramik and it is situated in Patuli J block. There is a garden bordering our co-operative society and it is full of various plants like Rangan (Ixora coccinea), Jaba (Hibiscus, both yellow and red), Telakucha (Coccinia indica or Coccinia grandis), Lily, Nayantara (Catharanthus roseus), Karola (bitter gourd) and so on.

Various birds also visit this garden such as sparrows, Common mynah, Red-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer), Spotted dove (Spilopelia chinensis), and Oriental Magpie-Robin (Copsychus saularis) or Doel.  

Insects and other animals like shield bugs, snails, butterflies, moths, garden lizards, and dragonflies are regular visitors of this garden. On two occasions (August 13 and September 9, 2015), I had the opportunity to take some lovely clicks of butterflies and dragonflies perching on the leaves of the plants of this garden. The photo album links are given below. Next blog coming up very soon! See you for now.

Photo album links: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1041014505930907.1073741891.672990912733270&type=3
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.814907748541585.1073741863.672990912733270&type=3