Early morning train


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I took this picture by placing the lens against a small hole in the fence on the bridge, it was a really foggy morning and time was a few minutes after sunrise.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/30/2004 11:56:00 AM 5 comments

Setting sail


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I'm homesick, feel like I should set sail now and go home.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/29/2004 08:52:00 AM 3 comments

Raindrops keep falling on my head


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It has been raining since yesterday, and everything is wet! :(
update: San Francisco has issued a flood warning for this week because this rain has broken the city's record from previous years

I took this picture by standing as close to the water drops as I possibly could without getting my camera wet. It turns out that with a high shutter speed, this position gives you enough time to capture the falling drops.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/28/2004 05:28:00 AM 3 comments

Breathing life into stone


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The fountain outside my office has some big rocks in it for aesthetics, and this one rock has a plant growing out of its cracks. Life is full of miracles :)
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Posted by Faraz at 12/27/2004 07:15:00 AM 0 comments

Broken


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I was in downtown San Jose when I saw these petals on the sidewalk in front of the Hong Kong bank building. The petals must have come from the flowerpot on the side; It was kind of sad to see a young vibrant flower lying there lifeless, torn to pieces on the sidewalk like that.

Looks like a crime scene, doesn't it? Or may be I've been watching too much Court TV lately :)
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Posted by Faraz at 12/26/2004 04:51:00 AM 0 comments

Merry Christmas


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Posted by Faraz at 12/25/2004 06:03:00 AM 0 comments

Memories


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Posted by Faraz at 12/24/2004 10:51:00 AM 2 comments

The laundry room window


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I love Christmas, even the simplest of things looks so beautiful this time around.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/23/2004 08:39:00 AM 0 comments

Rockin' around the Christmas tree


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Another San Jose tradition along with "Christmas in the Park" is this singer who sits outside at the corner of the Fairmont Hotel in downtown San Jose facing Christmas in the Park; I have been seeing him at the same spot every year. People really enjoy him, they dance and sing along with him :)
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Posted by Faraz at 12/22/2004 01:00:00 AM 3 comments

The Christmas Star


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The Christmas star symbolizes high hopes and high ideals - hope for good fortune, hope for reaching above oneself. For all human beings, regardless of religion, stars have special meaning for all share the heavens, no matter what barriers keep them apart on earth.

I took this picture at a small park in the middle of downtown San Jose, surrounded by the Tech Museum of Innovation and the San Jose Museum of Art. San Jose has a tradition of putting up a small christmas display in that park every year, its called "Christmas in the Park".
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Posted by Faraz at 12/21/2004 09:47:00 AM 0 comments

Pigeons


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Pigeons sleep under bridges laying next to a wall at night but they fly to the tallest place every morning to see the sunrise.
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Some say that Pigeons gather around to praise God, the creator of sunrise.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/20/2004 03:44:00 AM 9 comments

Wooden wall


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An appartment complex in Sunnyvale is built like a deck, this is a picture of the back wall of one of the appartments.

Here's a little trick:
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2) Start from the bottom and move your eyes looking up
3) By the time you reach the top of the image you will feel as if the bottom tiles are blurred just like if they were in motion
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Posted by Faraz at 12/19/2004 04:33:00 AM 3 comments

Love is in the Air


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Yep, tis that time of year again and Love is in the air.

Pier 39 is a very famous tourist attraction in San Francisco, it usually has at least one Navy ship docked in all the time (you can see that ship through the arch). It's also a great place to shop for souvenirs for friends and family back home; In fact I took this picture while I was with a friend helping him shop for his trip back home.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/18/2004 06:04:00 AM 3 comments

Wheel-o-lights


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There is a mini carnival going on in Downtown San Jose because of Christmas these days, with trains, merry go rounds and many other rides for children.

I discovered a neat trick for taking pictures at night without a tripod, it really helps if you breath out slowly instead of holding your breath while you take a picture at night. It will keep the camera steadier than if you hold your breath to avoid camera shake.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/17/2004 10:17:00 AM 2 comments

Ho! Ho! Ho!!


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Santa greets people at the gate of Debi Phelp's 4-plex.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/16/2004 06:32:00 AM 0 comments

Morning dew


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Posted by Faraz at 12/15/2004 03:59:00 AM 3 comments

Jingle all the way ...


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One of the Crystal Bell ornaments on Debi Phelps Christmas tree

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Posted by Faraz at 12/14/2004 01:35:00 AM 2 comments

Mary had a little lamb


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One of the ornaments at Debi Phelps Christmas display

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Posted by Faraz at 12/13/2004 07:44:00 AM 1 comments

Debi Phelps


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Debi Phelps, a resident of Campbel city has been featured in Newspapers and tv for her Christmas display. I found her house by accident while coming out of a movie theater last night, the two-story four-plex at 595 Nido Drive in Campbell is covered with about 30,000 Christmas lights, ornaments and countless blessings.
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Debi started her display in 1998 as a tribute to her aunt who was killed in a bank robbery. "During the eulogy for my aunt, her best friend talked about how she loved Christmas, and there we have it: This is my calling." she said.

The residents of the appartment complex help her with the decor and Debi has spent almost 60 hours to decorate her little piece of heaven on earth.
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Posted by Faraz at 12/12/2004 01:36:00 AM 2 comments

The Ladies in red


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San Jose Holiday Parade (Sunday December 6th, 2004)

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Posted by Faraz at 12/11/2004 06:08:00 AM 3 comments

The Boys are back in town


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Guess who just got back today?
Those wild-eyed boys that had been away
Haven't changed, haven't much to say
              - Thin Lizzy

San Jose Holiday Parade (Sunday December 6th, 2004)

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Posted by Faraz at 12/10/2004 01:21:00 AM 3 comments

Hitler lives!


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Is it just me or is that a Nazi symbol on this Chineese flag? :)
Falun Dafa float at the San Jose Holiday Parade (Sunday December 6th, 2004)

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Posted by Faraz at 12/09/2004 06:31:00 AM 4 comments

Dragon on Market street


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Traditional Chineese dragon at the San Jose Holiday Parade (Sunday December 6th, 2004)
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Posted by Faraz at 12/08/2004 06:48:00 PM 2 comments

Olympians at the Parade


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Bay Area Olympians at the San Jose Holiday Parade (Sunday December 6th, 2004)

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Posted by Faraz at 12/07/2004 11:24:00 AM 4 comments

'tis the season to be jolly lalalalala ...


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Christmas in the Park is a San Jose tradition, there is a little park in Downtown San Jose infront of the Fairmont Hotel, Museum of Fine Arts and the Tech Museum of Innovation where the San Jose community celebrates the Holiday spirit this time of year.

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Posted by Faraz at 12/06/2004 08:20:00 AM 1 comments

How did kitty cross the road?









I took these pictures without a tripod at night so they are not very clear and have motion blur in them.
Posted by Faraz at 12/05/2004 03:45:00 PM 7 comments

Baby white daisy


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Aren't all babies cute and innocent? take for instance this baby white daisy yawning in its crib first thing in the morning :)

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Posted by Faraz at 12/04/2004 04:59:00 PM 3 comments

Suspending time in mid air


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Ali gave me this clock on my birthday, it has an oscillating wand with lights that goes back and forth to display messages and time in mid air.

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Posted by Faraz at 12/02/2004 01:16:00 PM 7 comments

Water droplets


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If you leave your half filled water bottle in your car for a day or two, tiny water droplets form at the top of the bottle near the cap.

Here's a dumb question: How come droplets hold a circular shape and not a triangular, rectangular or any other shape?

Answer lies in Surface tension

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Posted by Faraz at 12/01/2004 02:40:00 PM 7 comments

Eucalyptus seeds


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Eucalyptus seeds at sunset, the green background is from the grass glowing in sunlight.

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Posted by Faraz at 11/30/2004 06:39:00 AM 4 comments

Dream requirements


In a perfect world, Programmers would have the freedom not to implement every bizzare business requirement and still get paid :)

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Posted by Faraz at 11/29/2004 05:41:00 AM 3 comments

Power couples


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There is something about the symmetry of Power lines that fascinates me, especially when its leading up to the top of the mountains


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I have always seen the towers in pairs, I don't know the reason for it though. Wierd isn't it? they almost look like couples

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Posted by Faraz at 11/28/2004 12:00:00 PM 4 comments

Last breaths of a setting sun


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This picture was taken a few minutes after the sunset; as the last few rays of sunlight bounces off the clouds like the last breaths of a setting sun.

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Posted by Faraz at 11/27/2004 04:43:00 AM 5 comments

Day after Thanksgiving sale


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The Thanksgiving holiday comes on the fourth thursday of November, the following Friday is called the Black Friday and its the biggest sales event of the year. Since christmas is close most people buy their christmas gifts around this time and the retailers heavily advertise discounts to attract the crowd. It's sort of a mad gold rush where people line up infront of stores since 4 am and the stores open at 6 am.

I took this picture around 5:00 am in the morning infront of Circuit city, the line trippled when I passed the store again at 5:45 am


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Best Buy store had by far the biggest line I saw today, this picture was taken around 5:20 am and there was already a quarter mile long line infront of the store.


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I felt sorry for Office Depot, they are really close to my appartment and at 6:00 am when they opened their doors there were hardly 14 people standing in the line. I went inside too but didn't find anything worth buying :)

Note: These pictures were taken in quite a hap-hazard way without a tripod. I had to digitally alter them to improve picture quality, therefore i am not including the camera settings I used here.
Posted by Faraz at 11/26/2004 06:15:00 PM 8 comments

Thanksgiving in fall colors


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Norwalk drive in fall colors, it leads to my appartment.

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Posted by Faraz at 11/25/2004 02:39:00 PM 3 comments

15 Minutes of fame


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The sign seemed pretty appropriate for a backstage door

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Posted by Faraz at 11/24/2004 09:45:00 AM 4 comments

Playtime


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Good old days, not a care in the world!

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Posted by Faraz at 11/23/2004 09:08:00 PM 0 comments