the desert dunes of UAE

The United Arab Emirates, a nation made up of seven kingdoms deep in the desertland of the Arabian Peninsula, must be as hot as it is reputed to be. Summer, which is from July to August, yields temperatures near 40 Celsius, but midday in the desert, the heat meter could rise as high as 45 degrees. Unsurprisingly, there is very little rainfall making the weather arid and dry.





the blue sky contrasts sharply against the orange sand
Canon EOS 350D, 1/30s, f/5.6, 22mm, ISO 100


The northeast features the Al Hajar Mountains with no notable rivers or lakes. The coast facing the Persian Gulf in the east is flat. What dominates its landscape is sand and there is lots of it. Much of UAE is part of the Rub' Al Khali Desert, one of the largest sand deserts in the world.


the mountain ridges appear as barren as the desert
Canon EOS 350D, 1/800s, f/5.6, 22mm, ISO 100




the parabolic sand dunes look red 30,000 feet above sea level
Canon EOS 350D, 1/800s, f/5.6, 22mm, ISO 100


Sometimes described as some kind of wasteland, the desert has stretches of rolling sand dunes in varying shades of yellow and ochre and at certain times of the day, even red. The marriage of the wind, the sun and the sand creates landscapes that could make you think of a beautiful red planet. On earth.


more surreal dunescapes in carmine hues
Canon EOS 350D, 1/1000s, f/5.6, 22mm, ISO 100



the desert exhibits lunar patterns
Canon EOS 350D, 1/800s, f/5.6, 21mm, ISO 100

10 tips in Aerial Photography, part 2

continued from 10 tips in aerial photography, part 1 in colloidfarl.blogspot.com


6. International flights often have TV screens for entertainment. When available, I always set mine to the flight channel which charts the progress of the flight against a map. I regularly take a snapshot of the channel screen so that I can place the location of my photographs at the later time.

7. Use your sharpest lens. Long lens are fine but only if they are sharp, otherwise you have a lot of post-processing to do. My favorite lens in most of my aerial photographs is my 18-55mm kit lens. I have a 70-300mm lens but it is soft and sensitive to camera shake.

8. Photography inside a plane is much like action photography. I often set my camera at the widest aperture or adjust the ISO so that a proper exposure of at 1/500s or faster can be achieved. The plane moves in such speed that is magnified at lower altitudes.

9. When the wide world below becomes your photographic canvas, always remember the fundamentals in composition. Think before you shoot. You may not be able to pass that way again.

10. Cut out glare. Depending on the light conditions, this may mean keeping the lens as close to the window as much as possible. Sometimes the shirt you’re wearing, even when it is all white, could get reflected on the glass and come out in the exposure. A plain dark shirt, especially black, works best for me.


more aerial photographs


Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/800s, f/5.6, 55mm, ISO 100, -1/3EV
a highly populated island near Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, July 31, 2008



Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/800s, f/5.6, 55mm, ISO 100, -2/3EV
an island in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, July 31, 2008
an unpopulated island off Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, July 31, 2008



Canon EOS 350D, 1/640s, f/6.3, 54mm, ISO 100
Tawi-Tawi, the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, Sulu archipelago, the Philippines, March 27, 2006



Canon EOS 350D, 0.005s, f/8, 55mm, ISO100, -1/3EV
Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, September 13, 2006



Canon EOS 350D, 1/800s, f/8, 55mm, ISO 200, -1/3EV
Laguna de Bay (?), Manila, the Philippines, September 12, 2006



Canon EOS 350D, 1/250s, f/10, 55mm, ISO 100
over Myanmar, SE Asia, November 18, 2005



Canon EOS 350D, 1/80s, f/6.3, 55mm, ISO 100
35,000 feet over Dhaka, Bangladesh, November 18, 2005



Canon EOS 350D, 1/250s, f/11, 55mm, ISO 100
the dunes near Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, East Africa, November 10, 2005



Canon EOS 350D, 0.031s, f/5.6, 22mm, ISO 100
the desert dunes of Dubai, UAE, November 7, 2005



Canon EOS 350D, 1/160s, f/5.6, 55mm, ISO 100
Lantau Island, Hong Kong, January 8, 2006



Canon EOS 350D Digital, 1/800s, f/9, 55mm, ISO 100
West Madagascar, East Africa, November 16, 2005