DJMPC 2015 Annual Photography Contest. Revisiting Coimbatore as one of the contest judges.

DJ memorial photography contest (DJMPC) is an annual photography contest organized by Lakshmi Machine Works Limited since 2012 to commemorate its past Chairman and Managing Director, Dr D Jayavarthanavelu who was a keen photographer. I was invited as one of the judges for the DJMPC 2015 Annual Photography Contest along with :

Dr B.K. Sinha MFIAP, ARPS Hon FIP
Sri M.N. Jayakumar, IFS (Retd), FRPS, MFIAP.

Three of us and other organizing committee members lead by Kris Maruthachalam spent two days in city of Coimbatore screening through all the 3500 images submitted from all over India. With iPad in our hand we kept score of every image we viewed.

Kris, Jayakumar, myself and Dr Sinha screening through the 3500 images in Coimbator — DJMPC 2015 Annual Photography Contest. Revisiting Coimbatore as one of the contest judges From left to right: Kris Maruthachalam, Sri M.N. Jayakumar, IFS (Retd), FRPS, MFIAP, myself and Dr B.K. Sinha MFIAP, ARPS Hon FIP ,screening through the 3500 images in Coimbatore

To pick the winners, we considered various components of the image such as

the moment and timing,
the lighting,
the composition,
the behaviors and
the technical quality.

I throughly enjoyed the discussions that we had among the judges to pick and rank the winners.

DJMPC 2015 Annual Photography Contest. Revisiting Coimbatore as one of the contest judges Dinner hosted by Mr Sanjay Jayavarthanavelu in Coimbatore

Once judging was done, I had the chance to visit Eravikulam National Park with fellow judge M.N. Jayakumar to photograph the Nilgiri tahr. When the weather was not too cooperative due to the monsoon, we took a detour for some authentic Southern Indian food in Munar. It was there that we located a neat eating place tucked in the small street where we visited a few times for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I had my best “ Onion Dosai” on banana leaves. Crispy on the outside, soft and very buttery inside. The taste of the onion exploded once I sank my teeth into it. The place is also famous for its coffee for just 25 rupee (S$ 0.50) served in the small stainless steel cup.

My best Onion Dosai. — My best Onion Dosai in Munar. Saravana Bhavan in Munar

Coffee served southern Indian style in Munar. Saravana Bhavan in Munar

Flower shop in Munar very similar to Singapore at Little india except they opened very early in the morning till dark. — Flower shop in Munar is very similar to the one in Singapore at Little india except they opened very early in the morning and closed late in the evening.

Saravana Bhavan in Munar. DJMPC 2015 Annual Photography Contest. Revisiting Coimbatore as one of the contest judges

My wife, Anna and I first visited Coimbatore12 years ago on our maiden trip to India. Since then, we have made multiple trips to different parts of India to photograph wildlife. The judging not only gave me the opportunity to see some of the finest wildlife images and locations in India firsthand, but also a chance to meet up with friends. At a sharing session with the local photography club, I touched upon the beauty of “Birds and wildlife from the rain forest of Southeast Asia”.

Mango season in southern India — Look at her sweet smile. Mangoes are everywhere even along the road.

I have fond memories of Coimbatore. I recall having tea with Mr V. Ganesan who was the Forest Ranger in Anamalai then in 2002 at Topslip. It was he who introduced me to a Krishna sweet which is a special sweet from Coimbatore. I went back to checked out the same sweet in town. Our visit this time came at the peak of mango season in Coimbatore where mangoes piled high on the roadside and we managed to have a taste of different species of mangoes.The last trip brought back so much memory about the charm and hospitality of Coimbatore. The winning photos of DJ memorial photography contest 2015 (DJMPC) and other details can be found on the link here : http://djmpc.in/winners_2015.php