Whimsy

Jul 30, 2005 | Halebidu, Karnataka (India).

I traveled to Hassan on a bus early in the morning with my girlfriend and one of my best friends. From there we hired a vehicle to visit the temples at Belur and Halebidu. At the temples using a tripod or flash for photography was prohibited unless you acquired special permission for them beforehand. I hadn't done that, which meant once inside the temple I had to rely only my hands for steadiness, and long exposures to capture pictures with more detail. Handheld long exposure photography was a recipe for some poorly timed blurry photographs and some interesingly whimsical ones.

Note: I was tempted to add some light streaks to the above photograph using Gimp, and perhaps a mask on the man to make him look like the comic book character 'Flash', but decided to share it untouched. If you as a reader feel like doing so or have a different idea, please make it happen and share in the comments below.

Info

Halebidu (literally "old city") is located in Hassan District, Karnataka, India. Halebidu (which used to be called Dorasamudra or Dwarasamudra) was the regal capital of the Hoysala Empire in the 12th century. It is home to some of the best examples of Hoysala architecture. Most notable are the ornate Hoysaleswara and Kedareswara temples. The city got the name "Halebidu" because it was ransacked two times during the invasion of Malik Kafur. [Source: Wikipedia]