I took a risk this time and went to India without my DSLR. I never missed it. The iPhone was enough to capture all the moments for me – some 350 or so of them. That was like 50 good shots per day!! Then we went to the Blue Ridge Mountains and I had thrown in the DSLR in the car. It came back with me without even being touched once. The iPhone was enough.I was starting to wonder whether the investment was wise…

Then yesterday, I really really wished I had the camera with me. I was cruising down I-25 from Denver to Colorado Springs for a meeting when I saw signs of Air Force Academy. Soon, I could see the big building near the mountains – which I assumed is the academy. A little further down, there was a sign for Scenic Overlook. I figured it was one of those spots from where you could see nature in its full splendor. I glanced at my watch – at best I had about 10 minutes to spare. I figured that on my way back, I would stop by and take a few pictures.

A few minutes later, I could see the exit for the Scenic Overlook. There were quite a few cars and people visible there. And yet, there was nothing that scenic on that side. Unless you count the gorgeous Colorado mountains running along the highway. Curiosity got the better of me and I took the exit and pulled over.

Boy, am I glad that I did it. Casually, looking into the distance, I could see nothing but the mountains. And then I looked up in the sky as everybody was doing. That was when I noticed tens of planes doing all sorts of acrobatics and many many more small creatures slowly floating by. A little concentrated look and I realized people practicing parachuting and paragliding from planes and getting trained to land safely in the mountain jungles. That is also when I noticed the runway and the steady stream of various kinds of planes taking off and landing.

The iPhone did not do much of a justice to spot those small objects in the sky. You can see a plane in this one in the distance. There is one parachuter I could detect in this picture. Look to the last peak on your left and look about 2 o’clock from there.

I saw other people bring out their zoom lenses. For once, I wish I had my DSLR with me…



Driving thru desolate rural roads in Illinois last evening, suddenly noticed the setting sun in the horizon.

In my job, we often help our Utilities customers with geospatial analytics on data we collect from airplanes and helicopters. One of those customers had once told me about the fleet of helicopters they keep for maintenance and inspection work on transmission lines. I had never in my life seen a helicopter doing that … till today.

Driving down a highway in Minnesota, I thought I spotted what looked like a dragonfly on the pole. Sure enough! It was exactly what the customer had told me. Pulled over quickly to roll down the window and a take a few snapshots. It was eerie to realize how still the helicopter was!!!

My only option seems to be to coax my Avis car to gently go down the steps… 🙂

Went up the mountain another half a mile to Weisendanger Falls. Now quick climb down, breakfast, shower and back to office…

A little unimpressive from here since you cannot see the water dropping all the way. You can see the bridge and road way below…

There us the old railway libe, I-84 highway, the Columbia River and Washington State on the other side…