Travellers visiting Delhi are often surprised to see how late this city starts it’s day. Delhi wakes up early alright, people go for morning walks or yoga practice, but businesses will never open before 10am. If you are up before dawn looking for some adventure, there is very little to do at this early hour. You may want to go for a run in the park, or you could pay a visit to a surprising spot that will not wait for the late morning crowd. India’s biggest wholesale flower market in Connaught Place comes alive at 4 am and disappears without a trace by 9 am.

This morning, instead of coming back home after dropping my daughter to the school bus, I went directly to the huge pavement flower market in front of Hanuman Temple on Baba Kharak Singh Marg. Hundreds of traders set up their temporary shops at this spot every day of the year, displaying flowers and decorative items flown in from all over Asia. The customers are mainly retailers and decorators who come to stock up for their own customers, but some private customers who want flowers for their personal use will always be around.

Some tips for taking travel photographs

I was at the flower market on assignment, shooting for a travel feature on Delhi. The images will not be the main images of the story and I only needed one or two decorative shots to give some color to the story. I needed to get in and out and go on with the day to get the rest of the images. I used three very simple and easy tricks for getting the job done quickly. Getting a busy market image would have taken more time and concentration but I didn’t need it. For a quick morning shoot this is more than enough. The three elements I used are 1. the shallow depth of field with the portrait of the vendor holding the flowers, 2. the close up on dirty hands, 3. The wall. Three elements can be found in any situation and harnessed to produce good images that will make any travel magazine’s photo editor happy. I hope you like them too.