My 37th Photo to make it in Flickr Explore on June 20, 2011!
No color editing or processing of any kind, no filters. Photo, taken from top deck of moving boat, had to be straightened in Photoshop. Click photo to see detail!
As the humming engines got me underway over the waters of the Long Island Sound, I saw a sole figure in the distance. The odd man out(doors). One man, an odd figure (i.e. not an even number :-) ).
A fisherman, who had braved the waters, slippery rocks, currents and tides for the perfect catch. As the accelerating boat, figure and sun came in line, I held on with one hand on the railing, and got my perfect catch... this photo (except having to straighten it :-( ), taken at a 450mm Zoom, handheld, with only one chance before the moment would be like "the one that got away" in fishermen's stories...
Exposure 0.001 sec (1/1250), Aperture f/18.0, Focal Length 300/450 mm, ISO Speed 320...
I See. Clicker, Tuna/er, Snapper... Caught! The Odd Man And The Sea!
Also view: The Old MEN And The Sea
© 2011 IMRAN™
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Sunday, August 07, 2011
The Odd Man And The Sea - IMRAN™
Friday, August 05, 2011
I Drop To Focus On Drop Focus - IMRAN™
I Drop To Focus On Drop Focus - IMRAN™ — Explored! — (You Have to Click It For A 3D Feeling) — 500+ Views!, a photo by ImranAnwar on Flickr.
My 36th Photo to make it in Flickr Explore on June 14, 2011!
Walking around the house after a mid-May rain shower, I saw these flowers my neighbor planted.
I dropped to my knees, in the wet grass, and focused on getting the drop in focus and the rest out of focus. I did not want to drop my focus on a drop focus effect.
I got it even better than I could imagine. Stare at it, and that drop of water looks like 3D.
Photo is as taken by the Nikon D300, not softened in any computer program.
© 2011 IMRAN™
DSC_7365
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Sky So Solar Red, Or Land O' Orlando - IMRAN™
Sky So Solar Red, Or Land O' Orlando - IMRAN™ ———— (No Editing Or Processing!) — 400+ Views!, a photo by ImranAnwar on Flickr.
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera!! NO editing, tweaking, of ANY kind. 1/320 seconds 450mm handheld photo at f/9 ISO200. Only framed in Photoshop.
A sky so solar blood red, with a melting gold sun melding with the hot earth, or land o' Orlando!
© 2011 IMRAN™
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Thursday, July 28, 2011
Freeze Frame! Boys (of) Summer, Play Ball! - IMRAN™
Freeze Frame! Boys (of) Summer, Play Ball! - IMRAN™ — 300+ Views! (Click Pic To See Ball Midway In Midair), a photo by ImranAnwar on Flickr.
My 35th Photo to make it in Flickr Explore on June 7, 2011!
Baseball. The All-American pastime. A moment frozen in time, as two bitter rivals, like Gangs of New York, vie for victory over each other. This handheld shot caught the ball literally in the air hurling from the pitcher's hand to the strike zone.
An old flame of the time, a big Mets fan, took me to my first baseball game on my birthday in 1993. We had apartments in the beautiful Monterey, and from our apartments we could see Yankee and Mets stadia. Later that year, my old Columbia Business School roommate, Jim Malley, who had moved into another luxury building across the street from mine, took me to a Yankees game.
Generally, I am not a big Baseball fan - still loving Cricket over it. But, I root for NY teams, whoever they play against. Between the Yankees and the Mets, my tendency is to cheer for the Yankees. (Sorry, Beth! LOL)
Then on my birthday in 2002 my THEN lovely girlfriend (and one of the nicest people and prettiest girls I ever met, Catherine) took me to the Mets game, again.
After that I did not go to any more games. Until 2009, that is. At that time, my lovely girlfriend (Kathryn) took me to another Mets game, at the New Mets Stadium. It was fun. (Note to self... what is it with beautiful blonde girlfriends always being Mets fans! LOL).
In May this year, in an unexpected last minute plan with my childhood friends (whom I have a reunion with every year) had us in Manhattan for the weekend of my birthday. Spur of the moment, we decided to go see a Baseball game and got two for the price of one... a Yankees-Mets game at the New Yankee Stadium.
It was a great game. It started at about 6:30PM, with the sky still pale blue. And it ended under the bright lights of the arena. The Yankees won 7-3.
Among several shots, this one was a good representative photograph... of the Boys (of) Summer, (as they) Play Ball...
Now I need to see an extra 2 Yankees games to bring the total number of games of each team I have watched back in balance. :-)
© 2011 IMRAN™
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Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Turn & Bank Over River Banks To Airport, Port & Beach Newport Beach To Port - IMRAN™
Turn & Bank Over River Banks To Airport, Port & Beach Newport Beach To Port - IMRAN™ — 900+ Views!, a photo by ImranAnwar on Flickr.
My 34th Photo to make it in Flickr Explore. Front Page on June 3, 2011!
I love flying. I love yachting & boating. I love the beach. I love travel. I love water. I love California. I love waterfront living. I love marine. I love marinas. I love wordplay. I love banks (along beautiful rivers, NOT financial institutions!).
This photo, taken through an aircraft window with a 5 years old pocket Nikon S6, has all of that - and more.
A banking turn in a plane is changing the direction of the aircraft while also turning by controlling how inclined it is to the horizon. I loved this steep banking turn to port (the left side of a plane or a yacht), as the aircraft banked over the banks of the beautiful riverlike body of water, over a sort of (boating) port and beach, near Balboa Island's Yacht Club and marinas, on the way to the airport at Newport Beach.
© 2010-2011 IMRAN™
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Location
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Three ⚡ Lightning ⚡ Strikes And You're Out(side)! - IMRAN™
Three ⚡ Lightning ⚡ Strikes And You're Out(side)! - IMRAN™ — 650+ Views!, a photo by ImranAnwar on Flickr.
Being blessed to live on the water, away from city lights, the wide expanse of the Great South Bay beyond my home beach is always a source of visual treats.
From dark moonless nights with flying white foam covering roaring waves, to moonlit nights on a silky smooth mass. From No Visible Horizon nights when earth, wind, sky and water merge into one, to the most spectacular displays of lightning, seeming to set alight the aptly named Watch Hill on the also aptly named Fire Island... places I love being by boat, in all kinds of weather, in all seasons, in all stages of life and in all types of light.
But, as I clicked way on my Nikon D300 on this magnficent fireworks filled sky, with the smell of burning Ozone in the air, and the atmosphere rich in sensual moisture and dripping in an almost sexually charged energy. The mood, the scene, were, to say the least, Electric.
As massive thunderbolts and lightning struck across from my home, as I captured this photo, I was reminded of the risks....
Three (Lightning) Strikes And You're Out(side)!? :-)
© 2010-2011 IMRAN
DSC_6728
Camera Nikon D300, Exposure 30, Aperture f/18.0, Focal Length 48 mm
Monday, June 27, 2011
Eye Inbound I - IMRAN™
I set up final approach, destination KISP.
Pink skies filling my eyes, Pink Floyd's words in my mind's ears....
"Can't keep my eyes from the circling sky, Tongue-tied & twisted, Just an earthbound misfit, I"
... my spirit silently calls God in control from heavens above, my senses call Air Traffic Control in towers below.
"New York Approach, Skyhawk November-Two-Four-Three-Eight-Siera inbound for landing, full stop Islip, is at 2000 feet, 8 miles Northeast of you, with information Zulu."
Radio 118.0. Altimeter two-niner-niner-two. Transponder squawk 4377 & ident. ATC controllers Eye Inbound I as I light up their radar scopes.
"Three-Eight Sierra, Radar Contact. Maintain altitude at or below 2000. Number 2 for landing Runway 24 following Southwest 885."
"Three-Eight Sierra is number 2 following Southwest. Traffic in sight."
Before landing checklist. All items check. Reduce airspeed 120 knots to flap deployment range. 110 knots as ground passes below at 120 mph. Mixture Rich. Fuel Tanks Both. Landing lights On. Strobe on. Adjust course to port, correct for wind. Heading south-west, following Southwest.
Start descent. Speed down to 90 knots. Descent rate steady, ground rushing up 500 feet per minute. Apply rudder. Nose pointed to landing spot. Line up Runway 24.... Runway numbers on spot.
Wind updrafts assert themselves. Adjust power. Adjust attitude. Wings level. Stay in control. My plane, I tell the wind. Wind calms. Adjust trim. Looking good. VASI Red Over White; We're Alright.
"Three-Eight Sierra, you are cleared to land. Caution, Wake Turbulence."
Maintain glide slope. All instruments green. Throw in full flaps. Reduce power. Field is made. Pass last obstacle. Power idle. Hand on throttle, ready to go-around.
Right on the numbers. Maintain centerline. Ground effect. Ground effect. Ground effect. Back pressure. Rudder. Centerline. Back pressure.Back pressure. Stall Warning horn whistles. Back pressure. Stall Warning horn louder. Three feet, two feet, one foot… Back pressure. Main gear touch down. Wheels kiss the runway. Bleed speed. Nose wheel is down. Hello, solid ground.
A squeaker! Thank you, God, for the gift of flight and the bounty of a safe return to earth, as stationary runway lights fly past.
Not done yet. Flaps up. Motors whirring. Switch Comms. Strobe Off. Transponder Standby. Pass runway 33L. Expect exit Taxiway Bravo.
"Ground, Three-Eight Sierra is on Two Four, taxi to Mid-Island."
"Three-Eight Sierra, welcome back. No delay. Exit Bravo-Charlie-cross runway 10/28-Sierra-Whiskey to Mid-Island. Southwest 1673 is pulling out and holding for you."
"Three-Eight Sierra, no delay. Bravo-Charlie-cross runway 10/28-Sierra-Whiskey to Mid-Island. Thank you."
New York Home, I'm coming home!
© 2011 IMRAN™
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PS I post very few pictures of myself here. For that I use FaceBook (feel free to connect facebook.com/IMRAN.TV ) but posting this at the insistence of my good friends there that are also friends here on Flickr. I hope you enjoyed this summarized memory of a recent flight.
Friday, June 17, 2011
A Star(Gazer Lily) Is Born - IMRAN™
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera!! No filters. No tricks. NO editing, tweaking, of ANY kind. 14MB original Nikon image only framed in Photoshop and saved at 4.6MB.
StarGazer Lilies have always been one of the most beautiful flowers in the world to me. They were literally the first that I planted when I was blessed to build a home on the South Shore of Long Island.
Not only does the name evoke that romantic fool spirit of childhood innocence and an unbelievable confidence of reaching for, and goind past, the stars... it also has the most stunning set of colors I have seen on a flower.
Here's the cool thing. This photo was shot, with NO filters, with NO backdrop, outdoors in bright sunlight. The black background with spectacular foreground was simply achieved by an unusual set of shutter speed and exposure control. (Note: I do not even own a macro lens).
What takes my breath away is the range of colors, and the breathtaking detail, even in a merely 4.6MB small version. (Click to see it larger and see the universe within one flower, like the galaxy clusters that are the nurseries of stars in the heavens above.
I gaze at these stargazer lilies in the day, until it is night, and I am one withe universe, gazing at the stars from where I came, and to whence I shall one day fly away.
© 2010-2011 IMRAN™
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Monday, June 13, 2011
Bring Kissable Tulips To Lips - IMRAN™
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera!! No filters. No tricks. NO editing, tweaking, of ANY kind. Only framed in Photoshop..
Though most people associate Tulips with Holland, the flower actually originated in Central Asia. A national flower of Turkey, its short lived life is nevertheless one of delicacy, color, splendor and uniqueness.
The bulbs that I planted in a cold winter of 2010 burst forth in bloom in the wet, windy, cold and damp spring of 2011.
The Red-Yellow-Green traffic light colors of the photo are forgotten seeing the luscious pink with speckled white and ivory tones of the subject of this photo.
© 2011 IMRAN™
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Wednesday, June 08, 2011
Cold Beautiful Sky On Fire - IMRAN™
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera!! NO editing, tweaking, of ANY kind. Only framed in Photoshop & saved image as 4.2MB JPG.
The end of April, one of the rainiest I have ever lived, in 2011, possibly the windiest cloudiest year I have lived on Long Island, gave just enough cloud cover to make the sunset, finally visible after dozens of sunsets burnt to dull nothingness by wet dark clouds.
In the words of Jefferson Starship,
Will you light the sky on fire?
Will you light tonight like
You did the night before?
Hey, you could take me higher
Than the diamonds in the sky
As this day was coming to an end in New York, the last day of the life of a once freedom loving later genocide-inspiring terrorist was starting.
Within about 24 hours this photo, Usama Bin Laden, whose desire to teach America a lesson led to the policies that set fire to the Middle East and rained death over Afghanistan, whose henchmen and hell-bound dogs of urban war unleashed the fiery torrents of suicide bombings on innocent Muslims, Christians, Hindus, and Jews everywhere....
As Bin Laden's last 24 hours of raining death on fellow Muslims in the name of Islam, and on democracy lovers in the name of freedom, started, .... I saw the promise of a cloudy night of uncertainty, and, before a bright new dawn could rise, the symbolism of this peaceful, cool, beautiful Sky On Fire.
May Peace Be With You.
© 2011 IMRAN
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Untouched, unedited, unmodified Nikon D300 photo ISO200, 300-450mm, f/5.6. 2.3eV, 1/125 second to compensate for nasty Nikon bug that makes Nikon's own lenses show up as "Non-CPU" unrecognized lenses with no way to change aperture. Nikon makes great cameras that always have manufacturing defects. Shame!
Saturday, June 04, 2011
Blessed, Beach - IMRAN™
I could not resist tapping this out to my friends and followers from my iPhone on a (chilly) night, standing at the beach of my blessed home at Heron Pointe, New York....
Walking along the rippling waterline on my beach. Definitely not T-shirt temperature. New Moon a thin orange sliver, perched atop the horizon, wants to get cozy under the (cloud) covers - but they're nowhere to be found. Shiny stars glint in the night's cold eye, as dark skies silently hear the wind's sighs. I stand still, on my own will, humbled, as I realize again - How Blessed Am I !
June 4, 2011 − 1145 PM via iPhone
© Imran Anwar
Technorati Tags: Beach, IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Life, Long Island, New York, Night, Philosophy, Poetry, Prose, USA, Moon, Blessings
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Field & Stream (& Streaks) Of Gold - IMRAN™
My 33rd Photo to make it in Flickr Explore on April 25, 2011!
A late November cloudy day in 2010 still turned into a golden moment when I looked out from my home. Field & Stream magazine would love the streaks of Gold, running through the sunset-lit reeds, rippliing waves reflecting light and the clouds with their blonde highlights on deeper reds.
The title is a wordplay on the magazine name, Field & Stream; Fields of Gold; Streaks of Gold; etc. :-)
© 2010-2011 IMRAN™
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Monday, May 30, 2011
Memories And Memorial Days - IMRAN™
19 Years And A Million Tears Ago. Mother's Memory 2/2 - IMRAN™ _____(Kindly Read) — 1400+ Views!, originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
May you all have an awesome, safe, happy Memorial Day, and every day you take time to honor the memory of the fallen, the departed.
May those who died fighting to protect us live on forever in our memories.
May today mark the start of a new chapter, a new life, a new set of memories, for the best that lies ahead beyond tomorrow.
May we share the time and experiences in giving birth to those memories, together.
And, may we remember each other when time is an echo, love is a heaven, and life is a memory.
Please click the photo to read Mother, Memory.
Technorati Tags: Family, IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Life, Nikon, Philosophy, Photography, Sunset
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Pray, Japan : Heian Shrine, Kyoto - IMRAN™
The Heian Shrine, in Kyoto, Japan was a place I visited only once, during a memorable nearly 2 month long stay in Japan. It is a busy place, with lots of visitors. I had to be very patient, and click in perfect timing, to get this shot with not a soul in the photo frame.
How time flies.
Built in 1895, on the 1100th anniversary of the founding of Kyoto, it was nearing it's own 100th anniversary when I arrived there. And that was nearly 20 years ago.
How time flies. How life flows, until we are nothing but a dim afterglow, in the corridors of history, long forgotten even as the places we tread, as emperors or visitors, live on forever.
May the clouds of radiation dissipate from the skies of Japan, and may it again shine in its glory as a home to one of the finest people in the world.
With memories of this temple, a place to Pray, Japan and people long gone or recently lost, in my heart and on my mind...
© 1995-2011 IMRAN™
Minolta 7000i Photo Scan
Technorati Tags: History, IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Minolta, Photography, Red, Travel, Travelogue, Japan, Kyoto
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Monday, Tuesday; Just Another BluesDay In Paradise - IMRAN™
Monday, Tuesday; Just Another BluesDay In Paradise - IMRAN™ __ Explored! — 500+ Views!, originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
My 32nd Photo to make it in Flickr Explore on April 11, 2011!
I love the water, and I love red sunsets and blue waters. But, there are few places on earth where I have enjoyed singing seeing the blues on any Monday or Tuesday, than any BluesDay in the British Virgin Islands's heavenly beaches. The Baths, at Virgin Gorda, are a MUST SEE in your lifetme.
© 2008-2011 IMRAN
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Technorati Tags: Caribbean, IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Nature, Nikon, Paradise, Photography, Travel, Water
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Joy Of Flight (Even On A Cloudy Day) - IMRAN™
No reason not to fly away.
Runway lined with aviators,
Modern airborne gladiators.
Total calm, no fear, no fright,
My spirit already taking flight.
Farewell ground, Hello sky,
Joy of flight makes me cry!
Monday, May 09, 2011
Brand New Day, Bold New World, Of Global Brands Popularity
These most definitely were Coke and Mercedes Benz, and perhaps a handful of others. In the 1970s and 1980s Levi's and Pepsi, started showing up. Even though some technology companies like IBM were doing business globally, they were unknown or irrelevant to the masses.
That is not the case today. As I tweeted today:
World Top 10 Brands: Apple top, Google, IBM follow - http://bit.ly/iRdI5Z
Not only is a technology (and increasingly consumer electronics now) company, Apple, the world's most valuable brand, it displaced another technology company, Google. To show the trend even more clearly, IBM actually rose up, to become number 3.
Other global brand stalwarts like McDonald's, and especially Coke, have fallen.
They remain in the Top 10, but it is amazing to see the impact technology has had on the global society in just a few years. Don't forget, it was literally 10 years ago that Apple, coming back from near death in the late 1990s with the Return Of Jobs, launched the iPod and MacOS X.
Ten to twenty years ago most people in the world would not know the difference between Unix and other similar sounding words. Today, the world's most valued brand is based on Unix, a variant of MacOS X running on Mac, iPad, iPhone, and counting.
Today we may think that Cloud Computing (or the impact it has) is limited to big corporations. I daresay, there is nothing stopping Cloud vendors of today from being the Apple of tomorrow.
Steve Jobs, and Apple, see that, as we know from their acquisition ($4.5 million!) of the icloud.com domain name. But, surely there will be many more new entrants of today that could be on that Top 10 List in 2020, if they have the vision.
What do you think? Will your brand be one of them? And, what are you doing today to make it happen?
© Imran Anwar
Technorati Tags: Cloud, Cloud Computing, IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Marketing, Strategy, Branding, Brands, Apple, IBM, Google, Coke, McDonalds, Steve Jobs
Sunday, May 08, 2011
On Mother's Day, Honor Mother's Memory - IMRAN™
19 Years And A Million Tears Ago. Mother's Memory 2/2 - IMRAN™ _____(Kindly Read), originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
Happy Mother's Day to those blessed to be Mothers, and those lucky enough to have their parents, especially their mothers, with them. For those of us who lost the single most important human relationship God created... please honor, Mother, Memory.
2/2. The saddest day of my life, 19 years and a million tears ago.
I flew out of JFK the night of February 1, 1992, headed to Pakistan - where it was already 2/2/1992. I was going to see my beloved parents in Lahore. But, I was en route via Karachi. My Mom had insisted I stop there to condole the death of a relative and a friend's father there, the previous week.
The powerful PIA Boeing 747 jet engines hurtled me across the North Atlantic Ocean, erasing 600 miles per hour between my mother and me. But, there was an invisible infinite eternal distance of space and time growing silently, a cosmic chasm that no theory of relativity and no known power in the universe could shorten.
As the plane was flying towards Europe, life was flying away. As the aircraft was coming in for a landing, unknown to me, my mother's soul was taking off into the heavens beyond this world.
Landing in Karachi, I was smiling and happy, when I disembarked, clueless about what tragedy had struck me but I was unaware of. At my cousin's insistence (who was at the airport waiting for me) I went to the airline counter to check the status of my connecting flight to Lahore that was supposed to be for a few days later.
I was charming the young lady checking my reservation, asking her for a front window seat. She looked at me in a puzzled manner that I did not understand then. As she quietly typed on the keyboard my curious eye made me read a telex message on her desk, facing her.
As I read the upside down text, my breath left me, my heart stopped. I felt the hand of death clutch my heart...
"Please give priority seating...
Passenger Imran Anwar needs to be on next flight....
Has to attend Mother's funeral."
That is how I found out that my mother had died while I was on my way to her. She was just over 50 years old.
Instead of seeing my Mom to open the bags of gifts I was carrying for her and everyone, I would barely get home in time to carry her body for burial. Instead of her pinching my cheeks as she loved to do, all I got to do was touch her cheek one final time. As I had fallen on my knees next to her, she seemed just to have fallen asleep, forever.
18 years later today, to the day, not a day goes by when I do not shed a tear for my beloved mother. Tears roll down my cheeks as I write these words, and every time I relive that moment.
Ami, I will love you forever, even after I die.
© IMRAN
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Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Need Lots Of Green For Diamond Encrusted Gold — IMRAN™
Need Lots Of Green For Diamond Encrusted Gold — IMRAN™ ---(Click To View Detail), originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
My 31st Photo to make it in Flickr Explore on April 6, 2011!
This mid-June photo on a fairly hot day was suprising to me in many ways. One was how bright and clear that day was at a time of year when hazy and humid is more common.
Next was how much of the dew was still on the flowers in direct sunlight despite it being nearly Noon.
Lastly, what was amazing was the tiny diamond like specks of water droplet reflections shimmering and shining like jewles encrusted in a gold leaf.
As you know, you need lots of green (money) to buy so many diamonds encrusted in Gold. But, this moment was free by the blessings of God, despite it being the toughest ever financial phase of my life.
Even if you have nothing, or are about to lose everything, take a walk - and see the wealth, the jewels, the treasures God still blesses you, and us, with that we are lucky enough to be alive to enjoy.
© 2010-2011 IMRAN
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Monday, April 25, 2011
Sun (Street) Light - IMRAN™
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera!! No filters. No tricks. NO editing, tweaking, of ANY kind. Only framed in Photoshop..
I caught this beautiful sunset from my hotel window in Orlando, Florida during a recent trip there to give a speech at the HIMMS 2011 conference.
I was able to balance the Sun right above the little structure visible under it.
The sun silhouetted the street lamp shade and the castle like outline of the buildin go the left.
© 2011 IMRAN
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Sunday, April 24, 2011
G(l)O(w) GREEN! - IMRAN™
This is one of the most unnatural looking yet completely natural colors I can recall capturing. This non-HDR shot shows stunningly high dynamic range of my neighbor's highly Neon bright Hydrangea to the side of my house at high noon.
It was nearing mid-day when I stepped out of the house to take some pictures on an especially vivid, blindingly bright, Summer day in June.
Usually the weather at my home at that time can be somewhat hazy from humidity and heat on Long Island, New York.
This day it was definitely glowing warm and the sun was almost vertically above. These plants are at the corner of my neighbor's house, and partly shaded - but the grassy grounds that stretch behind the house were awash in the bright hot light of the sun.
I cannot take credit for the spectacular colors the Nikon D300 captured at ISO280. I was simply shooting in Program mode - while bending over backwards (literally) to frame the three depths of flowers aligned but visible for a bokeh effect and playing with the 100-300 (450mm eq) lens.
I hope you too can feel the heat and afterglow from this image.
© 2010 IMRAN
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Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Bursting Heart On Fire - IMRAN™
4th of July Fireworks at Watch Hill & Davis Park, opposite my beach on the Great South Bay, Heron Pointe, East Patchogue, New York. I am sure the plan was not to have these fireworks (shot over 15 seconds) to make the shape of a heart like this photo, but this is what it came out as.
Technorati Tags: Fireworks, IMRAN, ImranAnwar, New York, Photography
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Eye's Iris Pierced By Ultra Violet (Day) Light Iris - IMRAN™
My 29th Photo to make it in Flickr Explore at #44 March 16, 2011
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera. Stunning Nikon D300 RAW image simply framed in Photoshop with *NO* editing or processing of any kind. Framed & saved as 4.7MB JPG from 14MB original.
This was a particularly blindlingly bright day of the Summer of 2010. My life was still in turmoil, in a seemingly endless downward spiral. I still jauntily walked around my house, soaking in the sun, and the blessings God still bestowed me with.
Nikon in hand, I clicked on many of the flowers around my home that were in full bloom.
I did not know how much longer I would live in that dream home, had no way of stopping the total nuclear meltdown like stage that my life had gone through, financially and emotionally, from being away to Pakistan for most of the year after my Father's sudden death.
Walking by the flowerbeds he had seen many of the same bulbs bloom during his stay here in 1996, I let the bright white light of the sun and the ultra-violet, indigo, dark orchid range of colors the iris flowers fired melt into the irises of my eyes. And my camera.
Here is a flood of colors, with green blades, like light sabers battling the violet laser light of the flowers.
© 2010-2011 IMRAN
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Thursday, April 07, 2011
Sun D(r)own(s) In Loving Lava Of Volcano Sky - IMRAN™
SOOC Image Straight Out Of Camera!! NO editing, tweaking, of ANY kind. Only framed in Photoshop & saved image as 7MB JPG.
I've been living and boating on the Great South Bay, between Patchogue, Bellport, Fire Island and many of the amazing Long Island inlets for 16 years.
Every Eastbound cruise has me hooking around the channels from the Great South Bay into Bellport Bay, near the shallows of Howell's Point.
Finally, on February 27, 2011, as I was running an errand, I realized that the sun covered by layers of clouds would create a spectacular sumst. I rushed home, grabbed the Nikon bag, and on a whim headed to find my way to Howell's Point.
Taking the meandering roads off of South Country Road, I finally arrived at my destination.... only to find the road so flooded that there was water up to the doorsills a quarter mile up the road.
Risking stalling the engine, I slowly drove through that water until the front wheels of the car were up high enough on the sand which had washed on to the road so I could actually get out, twist and stretch my leg out to not disembark into the flooded street.
I then made my way to the point I had seen for 16 years - and gazed upon this magnificent sunset.
The Nikon did it's thing. I was only there to bemesmerized by the lava color filled sky, from a muted sun feeding a volcanic eruption of passionate colors into the moist cloudy embraces of the sky....
What a way for the day to climax into the depth of night.
© 2011 IMRAN
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Saturday, April 02, 2011
Sure Rocky Shore Rocks For Sure - IMRAN™
This is one of the most interesting, spectacular and delightful places I have ever traveled to. The Baths, at Virgin Gorda, in the British Virgin Islands are a wonder of nature. What was likely an eruption of red molten rock from the earth, is one of the bluest of blue places I have ever seen.
The rocks, like pebbles strewn in sand, line this area of caves, nooks and crannies, to steal a kiss, or more in, for lovers seeking virgin spots to leave their mark.
The rocks in the middle of the picture almost made me title this photo in memory of the statutes of Easter Island and the rocks at Stonehenge -- StonesUnHinged. I'll hang on to that title in my mind for another photo more suitable for it.
I hope you get to savor some of these sweet spots made for lovers, for love, for passion, without ration.
Let's rock on, my beautiful friends and lovers past, present, and near future.
© 2008-2011 IMRAN
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Monday, March 28, 2011
Reddish, (Sun)Set, G(l)o(w)! - IMRAN™
This picture, taken on the Western side of my home community, shows one of my favorite colors in the world filling the sky.
The sailboat masts and the dying last leaves on trees bowing to the coldness of impending winter are silhouetted by the fiery sun that feeds our planet energy.
A Reddish Ready Sunset is Set to Go Glow!
© 2009-2011 IMRAN™
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PS Sorry, haven't posted pics since Feb 7. Been traveling for work non-stop. Posted this from Orlando where I came to make some speeches at HIMMS.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Can't See The Forest For The Trees. ForesTree - IMRAN™
Driving from Long Island, New York, to Hopkinton and Southborough, in Massachusetts, in late October, 2010, I saw one of the most vivid clear blue skies above me.
Zipping along on I-495 (which is numbered the same but completely separate from the I-495 Long Island Expressway that I use to get to my home in Long Island), in the Bellingham and Franklin areas, I saw an approaching clearing to the right of the road.
Though the side of the road was rutted from rains and wheels of trucks that may have passed over it, I was smoothly able to pull over.
This picture reminded me of the beauty one can find even in the stark days of Fall and approaching Winter.
And, it made me wonder, if a tree falls in a forest in Fall,..... but then I wondered, if I was looking at a scene of forestry, or ForesTree, or just a densely packed series of dull wood and bright reds and greens, which the Nikon D300 (with eq. 450mm handheld zoom) captured.
But, it did make it hard to see the forest for the trees.
© 2010-2011 IMRAN
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Monday, February 28, 2011
Lava Sky On Fire, Birds - IMRAN™
In late chilly fall,
Falls early night.
My eyes rise,
To fiery skies,
Of legend & lore,
Making spirit soar.
Heeding my call,
Birds take flight.
© 2010-2011 IMRAN
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PS Forgive me, friends, 18 hours days and nonstop work travel is making me remiss in leaving comments but I do view your photos on iPhone on the road, just hard to leave comments. Thanks for your continued visits.
Technorati Tags: IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Nature, Nikon, Photography, Poetry
Sunday, February 06, 2011
Budding Gen(i)us - IMRAN™
Though I do not know the name of this flower bud's genus, I just know that the soft , luscious, suggestively inviting textures of pink on it could make any budding genius rise to the occassion - of taking a stunning, unedited, image as this came out. The silky wall of pink of an already blooming flower and the bokeh with green higlights in sharp and soft relief completed the effect.
Can you see what turned the camera on so much?
© 2010-2011 IMRAN
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Technorati Tags: IMRAN, ImranAnwar, Nature, Photography, Pink
Monday, January 17, 2011
Sitting. Bricks! - IMRAN™
This is just being posted for entertainment, not photographic excellence or stunning displays of nature as I love to do.
I was being driven from Sargodha, in Punjab, Pakistan to my home in Lahore. As the car zoomed by the dusty plains and fields, passing through tiny towns and barely visible villages, I was shooting pictures with the Nikon D300 through the car window.
It was too hot to open the window, so I just took the chance of possible window reflections appearing in the photo. You can see some of the motion blur on the bricks and the man's headgear. The unedited photo still ended up looking well structured by the rule of thirds. But, what I enjoyed was the subtle gray sky, the brilliant green leaves, the rich fire orange red bricks lighter colored than the almost red tinged skin tones of the had working laborer, radiated by decades of manual labor beneath a non-sheltering, sweltering sky.
This scene was shot literally at 60mph or more, at 1/1000th of a second, while also slightly turning my body to capture it as the car went by this scene. I laughed thinking about the title that had already popped in my mind as I was taking the picture. I didn't know how well-placed the bricks and the squatting man would be in the resulting photo.
Here in America, even when people don't fully observe posted speed limits in work zones, where sometimes there are more people in hard hats standing holding up signs to SLOW down traffic than are actually doing the work, we are are more considerate than drivers in developing countries like Pakistan.
The speeds with which traffic zooms through work area made me think of what bodily reactions of people here would be.
They would definitely be doing more than... Sitting, Bricks. ;-)
© 2010 IMRAN
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Tuesday, January 04, 2011
2011 Reflections - IMRAN™
1/1/11. All ones.
One more opportunity to focus on the number One priorities in life. To be the One you wanted to be. To live to the fullest the one life you've been given.
Mark my words. This year is over.
No, I am not kidding. It was hardly a few days ago when I was wishing you a Happy New Year 2010. Even though it was a difficult, in some ways tortuous, tumultuous and terrible year, it too flew by, like the many years of life.
Despite the challenges, the pain, the sorrows, the shocks, the twists of irony it smashed into life, it was one more blessed year of life, of health, of ambition, of strength, of courage, of resilience, of overcoming. And, it went by far too fast.
Don't let this new year do the same.
2011 is here. It started with 1/1/11 and gives you, me, all of us, every single opportunity to be all that we want to be, to achieve all we want to achieve, to live all we want to live.
Take One moment, to dwell on these reflections, 2011. Make it the brightest new day of the brightest life you can live.
© 2011 IMRAN
Monday, January 03, 2011
Liquid Diamonds And Gold Leaf On Green Velvet
Although it was nearly mid-day on June 15th, 2010, the bright almost-Noon sun above had not yet managed to sizzle off the moisture from early morning's dew drops on these flowers at the entrance near my home.
The Nikon D300 did a great job capturing what caught my eye in the first place... the needle sharp reflections of moisture were shining like tiny crystals and diamonds embedded in petals that looked like pure Gold Leaf, positively glowing above the bokeh background of dark leaves, like a fine jeweler's velvet green display to melt a viewer's heart and turn it to solid resolve of a buyer.
A golden moment, a jewel in time, in every sense of the word. What do you think?
© 2010 IMRAN
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Technorati Tags: Imran Anwar, Nature, Photography
Saturday, January 01, 2011
Cat's In The (Rocky) Cradle. Catamaran & Sailboats At Baths, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands - IMRAN™
Cat's In The (Rocky) Cradle. 2010's Grown Into A Year In History. Catamaran & Sailboats At Baths, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands - IMRAN™, originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
The Baths location at Virgin Gorda, in the British Virgin Islands, is one of my favorite places in the world. I had a most amazing trip there not too long ago, as part of a 7 day Caribbean cruise. But it is definitely one place I would love to go by my own boat.
I have a sailboat (but never learned to sail!) but just enjoy motor yachting and boating far too much. So, God Willing, I hope to visit there one day again.
This was just a spectacular day, with the most magical blue colors captured by the pocket Nikon. The shallow waters surrounding the rocks are full of colorful fish you can walk among. Like the words of the great song, Cat's In The Cradle, your Catamaran, or Cat, can be safely cradled near the rock clusters.
A boating paradise, a lover's delight, a God worshippers place to just be in awe of his bounty.
As 2010 comes to a close today, as you make new year's resolutions, make yourself a promise that you will try to visit this, or places like this, in your lifetime, that make you love spending time with the ones you love, love the planet we are on, love the time we are given here, and the majesty and love of our Creator.
© 2010 IMRAN
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Friday, December 31, 2010
Christmas. Trees. Stunning Sunset Sky Long Island New York
Though it becomes harder to navigate iced over boardwalks or trudge through snow covered sand, winters also provide some incredibly clear atmospheric conditions.
Even with cloudy skies, the low humidity makes the air crackle with energy, sizzle with color, especially as it comes time for Christmas. Trees, at the Southwest side of the marina at my home, silhouetted against the majestically cold fiery sky complete the Holiday mood. Untouched, unedited photo.
Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, Happy Holidays to everyone.
© 2010 IMRAN
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Tuesday, December 21, 2010
In Loving Memory Of My Beloved Father, Anwaruddin. Last Man, At Land's End.
In Loving Memory Of My Beloved Father, Anwaruddin. Last Man, At Land's End - IMRAN™, originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
Today is the 2nd death anniversary of my beloved father. It was literally at this hour, when I was expecting a phone call from him. The phone rang. I answered, "Hello, Abu (Dad)!". Instead, it was my brother in law saying my Father had just taken his last breath.
This photo, taken at one of the darkest times in my life, was poignant in many ways.
It was coming close to my beloved father's first death anniversary last year when I stood at my beach at home, alone, gazing into the distance, thinking of him, my Mother long gone, life, and the end that one day comes too soon.
The spot I stood at, when I took the photo on October 20, 2009, was where he and I had stood to watch a sunset exactly 13 years before that day, when he visited me in the Fall of 1996.
In a twist of fate, he had come to be by my side at a time of turmoil in my life. He literally cashed in his life's savings and brought them over to give everything to me, to tide over even a few months in that rough patch.
Things improved, great times came about, and I was able to repay him with gratitude for being the greatest father ever.
Last October, as I stood on the beach, the crisis I faced was 100 times worse than 1996. I was on the verge of losing everything I had built with 21 years of hard work in America.
But, what was most difficult was not the material loss, but knowing, I was so completely alone, now that he was gone for one year. I knew I would recover financially, if not here, somewhere else, if not now, someday in the future. But, I would never overcome the loss of both my beloved parents.
As these thoughts washed over me, I looked in the distance and the lone man standing at the end of a dilapidated pier, like a last man, at land's end, felt so symbolic of my state of affairs, and my state of mind.
Even as I saw myself in this picture, I was struck by the contrasts and the dichotomy that is so like our lives. Dark clouds on one side, with bright pink sunset light on the other, lighting the sky.
Here's to us always being true to ourselves, even when we're the last ones standing at the land's end of our own lives.
© 2009-2010 IMRAN
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Monday, December 20, 2010
Microsoft's "All In" Journey "To The Cloud", Full Of Hot Air & All Out Of Gas OR Azure Blue Skies Ahead?
Today I read an article by Jeff Kaplan, one of my fellow contributors to the very respected INTERNET EVOLUTION media site. Jeff's piece was titled: "What Microsoft's 'To the Cloud' Ads Really Promote".
He is right that the definition of Cloud can still be considered somewhat fluid. But, quite frankly, among actual cloud buyers and vendors, there is enough general understanding and agreement of it, that Microsoft's ads cannot use a vast, errrr, umbrella definition, where everything can be stuck with the Cloud tag.
I ask: If McDonald's burgers can be promoted by a coupon in an iPhone app, is suddenly Hamburger the latest "solution" going "to the cloud"?
I agree with Jeff about how various consumer-driven technology companies' (like Amazon, Apple) great success with cloud based solutions has been a huge driver for the corporate acceptance of the concept. Nothing in these Microsoft ads makes a Cloud Computing industry or corporate buyer think of Azure, their cloud platform offering, which I see having immense potential. So, one assumes the target audience for the ads is consumers.
I think Jeff gives too much credit to Microsoft, thanking them for giving everyday meaning to users to make cloud a tangible benefit providing service. But, that is counter to the already stated fact that Apple, Amazon, FaceBook, etc. were what even Salesforce's go-to-market approach was driven by. So, in that case, Microsoft is offering too little, too late for the consumer cloud services business.
Almost nothing I see in the Microsoft cloud ads shows anything that is a specific service or feature or offering or value added solution from Microsoft. Or something they are not already familiar with. That is why I think Microsoft is doing itself a great disservice.
But, that is typical of Microsoft. When you don't understand something well enough, try to confuse everyone else. Maybe it is not intentional in the case of cloud. At least Microsoft did not completely miss the boat and then try to jump on board trying to become skipper of the cloud ship, like Larry Elison of Oracle.
Even AT&T's decade-old ads of "putting your kid to bed from a world away...." and "the company that will bring it to you, AT&T..." clearly showed the vision, and their attempt to stake a claim in the then-budding network based services future. They were touchy feely, but showed specific use-cases in a not-so-distant future. And they showed how the telecom network (a primary business of AT&T at that time) would be the carrier of such services. Not that I would trust AT&T (that shows Call Failed on my iPhone far too many time, even in areas showing full signal strength!).
Microsoft's ads for Cloud are not as lame as the Windows 7 ads I could not stand, where a dweeb (I hope that is not a dirty word) walks around the house describing things in Windows 7 that were "his idea" — yet were doable in Macs and even Windows PCs for years. But they neither serve the business audience with a clear compelling story, nor show anything that consumers can't already do.
So, what do I make of these Microsoft ads? Even while I am working at a cloud computing vendor focusing on private cloud, I feel Microsoft has huge potential to be a strong force in Cloud Computing with its Azure platform. But, it seems for now they have not completely figured out what to do, and how to do it. In the meantime, the poor marketing folks likely are under pressure to do something, air something, that shows Microsoft is committed to the cloud. Sorry guys, hate the ads, but, I've been through similar situations as you probably are in.
Even as a frequent Windows critic, I have to say the company is getting much better. Windows 7 is the first Windows OS I purchased with my own money even to run on my VMware Fusion and Parallels emulators as virtual machines rather than XP that I already had. While I could not stop laughing at the Zune, I marvel at how amazing Xbox is as a platform -- and how far behind Microsoft current consumer gadgetry king Apple is on the TV front.
I can curse at PowerPoint but I bought and love having the latest versions of Office on my Macs and Windows machines. If Apple ever thinks it can make a real play for the enterprise, all Microsoft has to do is pull the plug on Office for Mac. And, much that I love my MacBook Pros, Macs and OS X, the first thing I insisted on deploying in my CIO role was Microsoft's SharePoint --- when even the PC using techies reporting to me did not think it was a good platform. It really goes to show that Microsoft is starting to get it, and hence will be a strong competitor to any current leader. Just give it two or three years.
But here is the downside that I think Microsoft needs to be aware of. In typical fashion like many big companies with shallow understanding of disruptive market forces but deep pockets, their ads annoy those who know what Cloud is about, confuse those who don't know what Cloud is, and just enrich TV channels and an ad agency — with touchy-feely ads which mean nothing, today, or in the future.
That is just In My Humble Opinion.
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Crossing The Bridge, Without Hitting Rock Bottom - IMRAN™
I am writing these words, and posting this photo, while visiting San Francisco, California.
This photo was taken just about 2 years ago, just 3 weeks before the passing away of my beloved Father in Pakistan.
A lot of difficult things were going on in my life, but I was not worried. I have always remembered the advice he gave me.
Prepare for the worst, but always Hope for the best.
I have therefore always believed in "crossing that bridge when I get to it" and knowing that life can always surprise you.
Even then, I had no idea on that day, as I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset, that my life would so quickly unravel.
A few weeks later, my Father was dead, gone forever, but living forever in my heart and memory. People who had seemed to be a part of my life showed their true colors, in my time of direst need, when an economic downturn led me to lose almost everything I had worked 21 years to get. But, other human beings, some good people, and some angels in disguise, continued to hover nearby with their love and support.
The next nearly 18 months were a surreal experience. I could be tempted to say, "It was a living hell"... but it was not.
Every day, every loss, every negative news, every lost opportunity, every closing door, every humbling experience, made me realize how very lucky I was, and am.
I realized that the worst day of that life was better than not being alive. The most difficult situation I faced was nothing compared to not having my health and abilities.
And, the roads were narrow and long, the lonely walks even to go get food, in snow and rain, were cold and brutal.
And the shaky, fog covered, rickety bridges, kept on appearing in the road ahead...
And I kept on.... as my father would have wanted.... as I knew no other way, and there was no other path, but ahead.
I kept crossing the bridge, but believing in God, even more, every passing day, that he would never let me ever experience, or feel, like I had hit Rock Bottom.
These rocks at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge are a poignant reminder of where I was and where I passed.
Te dark alleys of life I passed through in the last 2 years in the time after this photo was taken, the journey I am still on, and, at every step, confidently and boldly looking up at new horizons.... with my head bowed down in complete surrdener and gratitude. Thank You, God.
© 2008-2010 IMRAN
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Saturday, December 11, 2010
Sea(rch) Light, See Bright Sea Of Light, On Ocean Of Time Slipping By
Sea(rch) Light, See Bright Sea Of Light, On Ocean Of Time Slipping By - IMRAN™, originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
Thank you all. My 26th Explore! October 29, 2010.
It appers no sooner has the morning sun appeared when we find out we have rushed through to the end of another magnificent day.
No sonner has a new year risen, that it is time to start preparing to bid it adieu.
This bright sea of light under a darkening but joyous red sky, at my home beach, on Long Island, NY, was taken on January 10, 2010. And, today, it is already coming to the end of October, 2010.
A bright, silent moment to reflect upon the silent majesty of our humble lives.
To step back, feeling the sand in our feet and sands of time sliding through our fingers.
To see how the cycle of a day that flashes by so quickly, suddenly becomes the passing of a lifetime.
Make the best of every minute, every moment.
Live every breath with every depth of soul you can muster.
See the bright sea of light that reminds us of todays gone and tomorrow around the horizon.
Until, if we are blessed, the last vision we have is a bright sea of light, a golden pathway opening before us, beckoning us, our souls, over the horizon, into the promise of the great unknown.
May we do the best we can when we are here. May God Bless our souls when we are gone.
© 2010 IMRAN
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Monday, November 29, 2010
On Securely Making Cloudy Claims About Cloud Security
Imran Anwar is founder of Internet email in Pakistan, co-founder and co-owner of the .PK ccTLD of Pakistan, and founder of the credit card industry there. As a New York based technology, cloud computing, strategy, marketing, media and business professional he is often seen and heard on global media like CNN, Fox News, Express TV, WWRL and many others. These are Imran's personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect those of any employer, parent company, client, family member or other persons or organizations. Phew!
Technorati Tags: cloud, computing, Imran Anwar, technology, Cloud Computing, IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Security, Technology, Strategy
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Orion's Belt And Ocean's Beach
by Imran Anwar
Standing, in time, vast Ocean's Beach,
Towering over tiny grains of sand,
Some dark, wet, others pale and dry.
Gazing up, hours, at blue moonlit sky,
Sparkling stardust, ours, waiting at hand.
Orion's Belt, my spirit pants to reach.
One day, I'll be among those stars,
Smiling at beautiful life from afar!
© 2010 Imran Anwar
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Governing Governance, Risking Risky Analysis Paralysis & Complying With Compliance In Successful Cloud Computing Initiatives
I consider this welcome news, from two perspectives - as an individual professional opinion; and as the opinion of someone leading vertical solutions and service provider offers planning & management, at an industry-leader cloud technology company.
Cloud Computing has been fortunate that its hype only slightly exceeded the real world benefits it provides, and its ad-hoc, vendors and clients deciding what's best for them, implementation of governance, risk and compliance management were "just good enough" to keep the ball rolling. For early adopters, and for those seeking immediate TCO (Total Cost of Ownership) and ROI (Return On Investment) value of next generation data center models, with highly converged virtualized infrastructure, this was not a show stopper.
But, for the Cloud industry to evolve to the next stage, where it literally can explode to the stage, which would make the latest set of analyst predictions, such as those quoted in the article above, actually likely to come true, governance, risk and compliance issues had to be addressed sooner rather than later.
The challenge in every new paradigm (or even what some consider a repackaged old paradigm enabled by technology capabilities that enable the concept to take off this time) is to balance between extremes along those three lines of concerns.
I have called attention to these topics in the past in print and online. My concern has been that overly excited buyers, and sell-at-all-costs vendors could lead to risky behavior on one side of the spectrum, while analysis paralysis would keep a huge majority from losing out on the benefits of cloud computing.
What is needed, as I have said before, is a pragmatic and practical approach; rather than utopian and impossible drives for perfection, that cannot be achieved in one, much less, three areas of importance like GRC. Add to that the complexity and impossibility of agreement, a situation in which every stakeholder brings their own colored and colorful viewpoint.
The need is for comprehensive, but not onerous, approaches to governance; risk management without seeking absolute, "perfect", impossible to achieve, levels of "zero risk"; and compliance standards that enable enterprise and service provider moves to cloud models, rather than being roadblocks. These are are all essential steps without tripping up clients or vendors.
The CSA's latest contribution to successfully achieving these is a free GRC stack, a set of toolkits, for enterprise customers, vendors of cloud & security solutions, as well as those tasked with auditing IT. The toolkits are, Cloud Audit, Cloud Controls Matrix and the Consensus Assessments Initiative Questionnaire (Apparently they did not spend much time on coming up with a better name for this last one!). You can download the GRC stack free.
This is not, by any stretch of the imagination, GRC nirvana. There will be many significant areas, from Department of Defense related federal requirements, to the extremely granular levels of security an increasingly networked global financial system requires, and many others.
But, I hope, and remain confident, that this will be the first in an ongoing series of steps towards ever-improving quality of governance, risk management and compliance standards, which will help cloud vendors and users alike.
—
Technorati Tags: IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Technology, Cloud, Cloud Computing, Compliance, Risk, Governance
Monday, November 15, 2010
Non-HDR Unnaturally Natural High Dynamic Range High Neon Hydrangea At High Noon
Non-HDR Unnaturally Natural High Dynamic Range High Neon Hydrangea At High Noon - IMRAN™, originally uploaded by ImranAnwar.
This is one of the most unnatural looking yet completely natural colors I can recall capturing. This non-HDR shot shows stunningly high dynamic range of my neighbor's highly Neon bright Hydrangea to the side of my house at high noon.
It was nearing mid-day when I stepped out of the house to take some pictures on an especially vivid, blindingly bright, Summer day in June.
Usually the weather at my home at that time can be somewhat hazy from humidity and heat on Long Island, New York.
This day it was definitely glowing warm and the sun was almost vertically above. These plants are at the corner of my neighbor's house, and partly shaded - but the grassy grounds that stretch behind the house were awash in the bright hot light of the sun.
I cannot take credit for the spectacular colors the Nikon D300 captured at ISO280. I was simply shooting in Program mode - while bending over backwards (literally) to frame the three depths of flowers aligned but visible for a bokeh effect and playing with the 100-300 (450mm eq) lens.
I hope you too can feel the heat and afterglow from this image.
© 2010 IMRAN
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Technorati Tags: IMRAN, Imran Anwar, Nature, Nikon, Photography
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Mast(er)s Of The Sea
As a late Fall sun started to set on the golden hills along the Golden Gate Bridge, still relatively late compared to New York's earlier forays into winter darkness, at 7:45 PM, I braved the breeze and decided to walk across the length of the bridge.
Along the way, I managed to shoot some pretty spectacular sunsets you have seen here earlier, made special by my managing to catch scenes without the ongoing rush of traffic spoiling the shot.
With the Pacific Ocean beckoning the sun into it's calming lap to the right of me, I looked down to my left and saw the idyllic scene of sailboats, masters of the sea, sitting in silence, as cosmic winds of photons swept by them to crash glowingly into the amber green earth behind them. A golden moment to remember, from whereever I see, to shining sea.
© 2008-2010 IMRAN
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