Dawn to Dusk: Captured Moods of the Taj Mahal

There is absolutely no dearth of “beautiful amazing glorious splendid magnificent fantabulous” pictures of the Taj Mahal on the internet. When you got your first glimpse of the Taj on entering its gates, probably all the above adjectives “couldn’t describe the beauty in front of your eyes.” That’s how we all like to describe the wonder that is Taj. I have been to the Taj Mahal thrice over the last 3 years since setting my eyes on it for the first time in October 2012. They say “The Taj changes colour through the day”. Here is a set of pictures of the Taj, captured at different times of the day in different seasons.

Look and behold these pictures of the Indian beauty from dawn to dusk. No filters, zero editing- natural clicks. The Nikon/Canon pictures are by my college friends Kshitiz, Sahil and Shivangi during our first trip to the Taj. Pictures you see me in are clicked either by them or my family members in subsequent trips. All the others are by me. Read through the captions...

6 AM, April 2015, Camera: Apple iPhone 5S
My favourite picture of the Taj. Clicked immediately after the gates were thrown open in the morning.
The sun has probably just risen above the horizon. Not a single soul in sight- hard to believe!
Minutes later, the place was crowded. I felt privileged at being there at the specific time and clicking this picture.

6.15 AM, April 2015, Camera: Apple iPhone 5/5S
Look at the crowd forming up behind me within 15 minutes of the gates being thrown open. 80% of the people entering at the
gate opening time were foreign tourists and photographers.

6.30 AM, April 2015, Camera: Apple iPhone 5S
The overcast sky and the minimal crowd adding essence to the amazing panoramic view.
Imagine a Hindi movie song being shot with a group of dancers in the foreground. Romantic...eh?

8.45 AM, April 2015, Camera: Apple iPhone 5/5S
An almost eye-level view of the Taj from the 5th floor roof of our hotel located 1 km from the Taj's Eastern Gate.
Our usual low-level presence doesn't allow for the viewing of the 'long' neck of the central dome.

2 PM, October 2012, Camera: Canon EOS 1000D
This had been my first ever view of the Taj. Clicked by my friend Kshitiz on the Agra Fort.

2 PM, October 2012, Camera: Canon EOS 1000D
Creativity, hunger and timing! (Wait a sec, we did have lunch just a few minutes before entering the Agra Fort)

3.30 PM, November 2012, Camera: Kodak C195
Soaked in the bright afternoon sun, the iconic view of the Taj. (See the crowd?)

4 PM, October 2012, Camera: Nikon D3100
It's a bright sunny afternoon and I stand still in time seeing people ogle at me over centuries.

4 PM, October 2012, Camera: Nikon D3100
A long shot of the Mughal marvel. I think this is Shivangi's click. And the colours look absolutely beautiful in this.

5 PM, October 2012, Camera: Nikon D3100
Playing with camera angles from different positions. You can never get enough number of photos till you are in the Taj complex.

5 PM, November 2012, Camera: Kodak C195
V or 2? Both. Victory on my 2nd visit to the Taj. (A lamer caption possible?)

6.30 PM, April 2015, Camera: Apple iPhone 5S
On my last visit to Agra, we decided to go to the Mehram Bagh across the Yamuna river to catch the sunset above the Taj.
We missed the sunset due to delay in reaching and the overcast sky, but got this amazing view of the Taj.

6.30 PM, April 2015, Camera: Apple iPhone 5S
A very zoomed in and low-light picture after the sunset. The crowd's still thronging the Taj, as the mausoleum decides to retire for the night!

A visit to the Taj on the full moon night still remains a wish for me. Probably that would show some more moods of the wonder that is Taj Mahal.

Which one is your favourite picture?