Canal Grocery Store
Fuji x100f, 35mm, f/8, 1/250s, ISO 500
There’s a whole parallel economy going on on the canals of Bangkok. More often than not it seems you’re not going to the grocery store, the grocery store is coming to you. But they’ve got to stock up somewhere…
Mekong Rush
Fuji x100s, 35mm, f/4, 1/500s, ISO 320
To be entirely frank, our time in the Mekong doesn’t carry with it so many good memories. The weather was awful (despite this being the dry season), two of my kids were ill most of the trip… It wasn’t great. But looking back at the photos, I feel like I captured a little of the spirit of the place (and yes, I realise this woman is ferrying sunhats for the tourists, but at least she’s doing it in a traditional-ish way…)
Monks at the Souvenir Store
Fuji x100s, 35mm, f/4, 1/1200s, ISO 800
I only stayed a few days in Bhutan and it was for work, but I would dearly love to go again, so entranced was I by the little sights I managed to get. One of the things that you see more than anywhere there is Bhuddist Monks. Even in front of souvenir shops.
Entering Humayun’s Tomb
Canon 7D, 80mm, f/7.1, 1/800s, ISO 400
The only time I had the leisure of visiting a bit of Dehli, I went to Humayun’s Tomb and spent a good amount of time there. It’s a marvelous place, and one of the things I loved was these alignments of portals, identically shaped. I need to go back to India…
Bali Fisherman
Fuji Xpro-2, 50mm, f/4, 1/3000s, ISO 200
Truth be told, it’s hard to find anything authentic in Bali, especially in or around Kuta. The area is so devoted to tourism that it feels like very little remains of what Bali must have been originally. And yet I spotted this rare local fisherman pulling his net in. He was definitely not there for tourists.
Gnawa Street Musician
Canon 7D, 80mm, f/2.8, 1/1250s, ISO 400
There are street musicians you just want to give money to. This guy had such a smile that you couldn’t resist him. I don’t remember how the music was, but it’s one of the only things in Marrakech that I really liked (the rest of Morocco was much more interesting).
Yao Grandmother
Fuji x100s, 35mm, f/2.8, 1/125s, ISO 200
The second ethnic minority in the Longsheng area, after the Zhuang, is the Yao minority. The Yao women have a complex and intricate relationship to their hair. They only cut their hair three times in their lives: when they turn 18, when they are wedded and when they are 36. The keep the braids they cut and integrate then into their daily bun. How much hair is apparent also says something about marital status and the number of children. When we met this Yao grandmother, she agreed to show us how she does her hair, and it was quite fascinating.
The Chinese Sweets
x100s, 35mm, f/87, 1/60s, ISO 2000
On the long walk down from Ping An we stumbled upon these craftsmen. The woman is baking chili oil, but the men are slamming down on sweets with their mallets to mix them with nuts. Quite an amazing sight for our sadly too industrialized eyes. We bought some sweets, it was a kind of nougat, flavoured with osmanthus and it was quite good although it stayed stuck in your teeth for a long time. Just like French nougat.
Zhuang Woman
Fuji x100s, 35mm, f/11, 1/60s, ISO 400
Ethnic minorities are a big thing in China even though they only represent 8% of the overall population. During our trip in Guangxi, we encountered members of two ethnic minorities that coexist there, the Zhuang and the Yao. We didn’t see any men wearing traditional costumes, but the women did. Along the path to Ping’An (about two hours walk in the mountains) we saw many food sellers like this Zhuang woman. She sells (from left to right) dried bamboo, chilies, mushrooms (also in plastic bags), eggs and passion fruit. The passion fruit grow in the mountains, and in this season they are fresh and unbelievably good.
Grand Canal
Fuji x100s, 35mm, f/8, 1/120s, ISO 400
The theme for this week’s photos is Venice. I was lucky enough to have to spend three days in Venice for work last year and spent all of my free time walking the streets and losing myself in the labyrinth. I feel like I haven’t scratched the surface, so the selection this week will be only a little bit of what I think I could shoot if I went back. Anyway, here’s the first shot, a view of the Grand Canal from the Rialto Bridge, with the obligatory gondola. I wasn’t exactly plagued with beautiful weather, but there was enough texture in the sky at most times that it didn’t look completely bland.
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