Taj Mahal From the Outside

by Jamie Rhein on

Another World Heritage Site that was rated in the National Geographic Traveler article that Erik Olsen mentioned in an earlier post is the Taj Mahal. If you ever get a chance, go. It is a truly stunning piece of architecture that the Indian government knows full well it needs to protect. Of course, there is the slew of folks who clamor to sell stuff to you from the time you hit the parking lot until you get inside, but it’s not the worst experience.

Here is a video from veras films shot outside the Taj Mahal. This is a glimpse of one of the most famous places in the world from a very different angle. The interviews with the kids and the music are wonderful touches.

Traffic Manipulation with a Huge Hand

by Justin Glow on

Today is art day, I guess, and I’ve got another unique exhibition to show you (along side my Kevin Cooley post from earlier today): This one is from June Bum Park and Pascual Sisto called III Crossing, which features “real-world events on the street at an intersection [that] appear to be manipulated by an enormous hand.” The end result is projected on to the gallery floor.

Once again, if you’re in New York City (where the art comes from, presumably), stop by Bitforms Gallery before April 7th, when it ends its month-long run. Otherwise, if you’re somewhere in Nebraska, check out the video after the jump:

Make Video Panoramas from Your Digital Camera’s Video Clips

by Justin Glow on

Looking for an easy way to spice up your travel photos? Check out this tutorial on how to make video panoramas with your digital camera. You’ll need to have either Final Cut Pro or Flash to make them (though I’m sure other video editors can do it as well), but the results are astounding.

“When shooting, we recommend using a tripod for best results. Simply point at a scene, record some video, then rotate the tripod a bit – overlapping slightly with your previous shot – and record another cip.”

Check out Photojojo for the full tutorial.

Video: France Breaks World Rail Speed Record

by Justin Glow on


A French train, stocked with an unreal 25,000 horsepower engine, broke the world rail speed record on Tuesday reaching 357.2 mph. The train was traveling from Strasbourg to Paris when it broke the record. It’s pretty cool, but what I don’t get is this article says that it did break the world rail speed record, it fell short of Japan’s magnetically-lifted bullet train, which went 361 mph in 2003. Perhaps it has something to do with magnetics versus real wheels (which the French train had). Regardless, the video is cool.

Silk Road in Less than Four Minutes

by Jamie Rhein on

After the 10 rolls of film I took on a trek in Ladakh were overexposed by the professional developer I took them to, and after my camera was stolen out of my apartment in Albuquerque–twice (not the same camera, different cameras on two different occassions) and after leaving one camera in the trunk of a taxi in Hanoi, Vietnam when we were dropped off at the airport, I don’t take pictures all that often anymore. That’s why I am doubly impressed by travel videos. Not only did someone manage to hold onto a video camera long enough to have loads of footage by the end of the trip, the person managed to not get the video camera lifted or forgotten. Then there is the editing afterwards.

Here is a video of a Silk Road tour by Ameriklik that moves at a fast clip through East and Central Asia. I particularly like this one because of the added music, the performances and the photos of the people who were on this trip interspersed with the culture and the scenery. This makes me want to rethink my camera neglect–and head out on a Silk Road journey. There is a lot packed in here in under four minutes.