POV: The Gulf Between Us?

Photo © Charlotte Rush-Bailey -All Rights Reserved
Oh, how our eyes can deceive us sometimes..and how easily photographs captured in a split-second can convey a very different story from reality.

Here's a photograph of me while at the Jama Masjid in Ahmedabad during prayers (called namaz in India), in which I look wary of the man who's crossing my path. Our body language and side glances seem to convey a mutual distrust, with the space between us accentuating that wariness.

But nothing could be further from the truth. A second later I greeted him with the traditional Muslim al-salam aleikum, unmistakably pronounced in Arabic. Surprised, his face immediately softened as he recognized a fellow Muslim, and he responded, with warmth in his voice. We shook hands, then he brought his hand to his heart, and I did the same. I forget his name, but I remember his kind eyes, and that he spoke a halting Arabic (which he later told me he learned while working long and hard hours in Jeddah). He suddenly asked me if I was Sunni. The question threw me off-balance for a moment, but when I replied affirmatively, he once again violently pumped my hand. I was now part of the Umah. If only he knew what my real beliefs were. Perhaps he wouldn't care...to him, the bottom line is that a Muslim born in the faith is always a Muslim, no matter what.

During The Tribes of Rajasthan & Gujarat Photo~Expedition, we visited many villages and a number of tribes of Muslim persuasion. We were frequently asked where we were from, and were greeted with smiles when we replied "Amereeka". Despite obvious poverty, we were welcomed in homes, offered fresh milk, chai and roti , and were considered honored visitors. I wonder how we -in "Amereeka"- would treat these villagers if they dropped by our homes...just like that, to take pictures and to gawk. No, that's not true. I don't wonder. I know.

These are the memories which stay with me for a long time...memories of instances when the walls of mistrust, ignorance and bigotry (on both sides) dissolve because a genuine -and basic- human connection is made. These memories remain with me more so than my photographs of the decisive moments, or photographs with layers or photographs that tell stories.

Beyond The Frame: Vedic Master

©Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
I'm resuscitating the Beyond The Frame feature on The Travel Photographer blog, which today shows-off one of my favorite photographs from my February photo-expedition in Kerala. One of photo shoots was inside an ancient Vedic 'gurukul' (or training/boarding school, and very similar to the Buddhist monasteries for novitiates), where we were treated to a demonstration of this way of teaching sacred Vedic scriptures.

It is an ancient Indian educational system, which is currently being rejuvenated with the assistance of the Indian government. The young boys who populate the Vedic school usually belong to a caste of Keralan Brahmins, and are responsible to carry on the age-old tradition of chanting Vedas during religious rituals or functions. The chanting is learned by practice, and nothing is written down.

The rhythm of the Vedic chants is followed by the young boys' moving their bodies in cadence to the verses, which reminded me how the Buddhist novices recite their mantras, or how the Islamic students recite the Qur'an at their madrasas.

The photograph is of one of the Vedic masters keeping a watchful eye over the youths, while they're chanting the verses.

Beyond The Frame: Coney Island's Barkers

Photograph © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
On the corner of West 12th Street and Surf Avenue is the eye-catching Coney Island Museum and the Side-Show by The Sea. Its facade is decorated with colorful artwork depicting the Side-Show's features, such as Donny Vomit the death defying performer, Angelica the fire dancer, Heather Holliday, the sword swallower and Serpentina the Snake Charmer. This is one of the photographs of the Side-Show's barker....a dandyfied gentleman who encourages the public to pay the $7.50 entry fee to watch the so-called freak shows.

Photograph © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
The area's seediness and its current decay has a charming aesthetic to it, and a hot dog eaten on Coney Island's boardwalk tastes better than anywhere else!

Beyond The Frame: Stilt Fishermen

Image © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
It's been a while since I posted an image in a Beyond The Frame context, so here's one of the famed stilt fishermen in Sri Lanka. Stilt fishing is a strange technique of fishing where fishermen wade out to poles embedded in the seabed. The origins of this unusual technique (I don't think it's used anywhere else in the world) are unknown, but it certainly works. While photographing them, I saw the fishermen haul in their catch quite easily.

Near Welligama in the south of the island, these fishermen are a fixture during the early morning and at sunset. Each fisherman has a long pole fashioned like a sort of cross stuck in the seabed about 50 yards from the shore. They wade to the poles at times when the tide and fish are moving in the right direction, they sit on the poles' horizontal bars and start fishing. I was told that each stilt position is handed down from father to son.

I photographed these fishermen for quite a while and can vouch for their success in catching small fish. To this day though, I can't understand why a German tourist -when seeing me- and on his way to another beach kept laughing hysterically. Perhaps the sight of me with seawater almost to my knees caused the hilarity?

Beyond The Frame: Bhutanese Granny

Image Copyright © Ralph N. Childs-All Rights Reserved
This image of me chatting up a Bhutanese grandmother was photographed by Ralph Childs, a friend and participant in my Bhutan Photo-Expedition.

We were walking towards the Jambay Lakhang monastery before the start of the annual tsechu, and I was trying to convince the grandmother to allow me to photograph her...but with no success. It was in good humor, and we had many laughs as I conveyed to her that I would marry her and she'd fly back to New York City with me. I guess she understood my meaning but kept gesturing me away with flicks of her hand...naturally, to the great hilarity of her companions, who had urged her to take me up on my offer....but she wouldn't budge. Not terribly uplifting for my ego, but occasional rejection does teach one humility.

Our exceptional guide/fixer, Sagar can be seen walking behind us, keeping a wary eye on the going-ons, and wearing his traditional orange cho, the typical garb worn by most Bhutanese.

I use this photograph to make the point that travel photographers know well: to make good photographs one must make contact...establish a dialog and make friends. I saw many tourists at these festivals, photographing away from a distance...mostly standing back and unwilling/unable/not thinking of engaging the local spectators. Had they chatted with the locals, exchanging good humored banter and even hand gestures, their photographs would reflect that 'relationship', and would've come alive.

Beyond The Frame: Varanasi Widow

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
While in Varanasi photographing the extraordinary Sufi rituals at the Bahadur Shaheed shrine, I encountered this centenarian who was sheltered in a decrepit building overlooking the Manikarnika ghat, where most of the cremations are performed. Through an interpreter, I learned that Bai Dehi was a widow from Bihar, who lived in the building awaiting her death. She, as other Hindus, believes that if she died in Varanasi she would achieve 'moksha' and freed from the cycle of reincarnation.

Her voice was barely audible, not more than a hoarse whisper, and I seriously thought her to be near death, but I was told she was relatively active, and had lived for years in her small area with her meager possessions. While I photographed her, she sat there patiently as if she had seen it all before...I wouldn't be surprised if she had.

Beyond The Frame: Puspa Wresti

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
This Beyond The Frame post features Puspa Wresti dancers applying their makeup, and readying themselves for a photo-shoot in Kerobokan in Bali.

I arranged a photo-shoot with Puspa Wresti dancers during my Bali: Island of Gods photo-expedition by locating a classical dance school, and convincing its head teacher to make available these young women to photograph in a Hindu temple.

As I wrote elsewhere in this blog, the Balinese people's belief in animism and ancestor worship, in addition to Hindu traditions, governs their everyday life and actions. This was demonstrated to us when -in the middle of the photo-shoot at the temple- one of the dancers suddenly became lightheaded, and had to stop dancing.

During the ensuing discussion with the teacher, I learned that her dancers were reluctant to resume dancing because of their belief that they had offended the temple's spirits...which caused one of them to feel unwell. Here, the sekala niskala was amply in evidence, with the spirit world affecting the physical world, and we had to move the whole troupe to another location.

It is a wise photographer who accepts with respect, humility and understanding other people's belief systems and works within its parameters.

Beyond The Frame: Bhutanese Novices

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
During my 2006 Bhutan Photo-Expedition, I was photographing at the Jambey Lhakhang, one of the oldest monasteries in the country, a few hours before its annual festive tshechu, and came across these two novices horsing around with toy-guns. I guess boys will be boys, but seeing two Budhhist novices possessing such toys was still a surprise....after all, Buddhism teaches non-violence, no? I took some solace in the presumption that when these toy guns were found by their teachers, they'd be confiscated.

After decades of fighting off outside technological influences like television, the King of Bhutan allowed transmissions to commence in the Kingdom for the first time in June of 1999. This has had a fundamental change over the people of Bhutan. To me, it's clear from the pose taken by the novice on the right that he's imitating something he's seen on television.

Another noticeable change in Bhutan is in women's hairstyles. Before the advent of television in 1999, the majority of Bhutanese women had their hair in pageboy style (I was told then that Bhutan was the only Asian country where this was the norm)...however, women are now influenced by Indian Bollywood stars, and wear their hair long.

You may think this is a rant...but it's not, honest. It's just an observation. I'll use my rant quota at a later date when I write about the "toxic" side effects of globalism on travel photography...such as the Balinese rice-farmers who wear NY baseball caps...or Virginia Is For Lovers T-shirts.

Beyond The Frame: Orang Asli

It's been a while since I've written up a Beyond The Frame post for TTP, so here's one.

On my way to the Cameron Highlands in the heart of peninsular Malaysia, I chanced upon an orang asli, an aborigine, who was quite amenable to my photographing him near his hut. He was a hunter, showed off his traditional blowpipe, and demonstrated his skills by blowing a dart at a small target about 50 feet away. Although he wasn't far from the main road, he gave me the impression that he had little contact with the modern world... it may have been an act and he actually went to his real home at the end of the day to watch television...but we communicated in sign language during our encounter.

The term "orang asli" signifies "original people" or "first people" in Malaysia, where there are about about 60.000 orang asli , most of whom still live in the rain forest. Some of the northern orang asli groups speak languages suggestimg a links with the indigenous peoples in Burma, Thailand and Indo-China.

The aborigine I met is in all probability a member of the Negrito group or possibly a Senoi. They live in the jungle and rain forests of the Malaysian peninsula, and are thought to have arrived some 8000 years ago. They hunt with bamboo blowpipes for birds and little monkeys. The darts which I saw are made from the leaf-stalks of palm cones, and are coated with a lethal concoction made from the sap of toxic trees. Fear of the spirits of dead ancestors and hunted animals is very strong among them, and it is an unwritten law that all animals caught in the forests suffer no pain.

Beyond The Frame: Kecak Dance

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy -All Rights Reserved
Kecak or Ketchak is a dance usually performed at night, surrounding a bonfire. Tourists generally refer to it as The Monkey Dance. There can literally be upwards of a hundred or more bare chested men, sitting down on the ground surrounding the bonfire, led by a priest in the middle. The only music to accompany them are the beats of their palms hitting their bodies, or their claps, rhythmically accompanied by shouting and chanting.

I've seen it performed at the spectacular temple of Ulluwatu overlooking the sea, and at Pura Dalem in Ubud. The above photograph was made at the latter temple, and I found that the Ubud performance was more authentic that the the one in Ulluwatu.

This photograph reminds me of an artist's rendition of Hell...The dance was very atmospheric with the bonfire lighting the dancers' moves, and their rhythmic sounds suddenly rising to crescendos. Photographing the Kecak dance at the Pura Dalem was not easy with the stage lights and bonfire in the scene, and one has to find an appropriate angle.

The story behind Kecak is taken from the Hindu epic Ramayana, and it recounts the tale of Prince Rama who rescues Princess Sita, kidnapped by the evil King of Lanka.

Despite it being based on the Ramayan epic, Kecak is a modern creation (ca 1930) by Wayan Limbak and the German painter Walter Spies to create the dance movements and themes in the traditional sanghyang exorcism ritual and portions of the Ramayana.

Beyond The Frame: Nepali Circus Workers

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
Samantha Appleton's work on the Nepali circus girls which I featured on TTP a few days ago (link) reminded me of my unannounced visit to an Indian circus in Chhattisgarh during a solo photo expedition.

I recall that my fixer Babu had a difficult time persuading the circus manager to allow me in and photograph. He didn't mind me spending as much time as I needed to photograph the clowns putting their makeup, or the mangy lions (covered with tumeric powder to heal their sores), or any of the stagehands...but he was adamant that I could not photograph the Nepali acrobat girls unless he was present. He claimed -with a straight face- that it was to ensure that I didn't ask them to pose in ways that would "embarass" them.

I photographed the young women with the manager hovering nearby, muttering directions as to how they ought to stand and telling Babu that the shoot was taking too long. The Nepali young women were uncomfortable despite their nervous giggling, and my entreaties that they ought to relax. Realizing that the shoot was pretty much useless, I stopped and moved to another area of the circus. Babu told me that the manager had used crude language when instructing the women and that they feared him. I could not then, nor do I now, judge whether that particular manager was physically abusive...but what I sensed was these women were frightened of him. Interestingly, the acrobat in the middle made sure that the cross around her neck was visible when I started to photograph them.

What I didn't know then was that traffickers, both Indian and Nepalese, who are in constant touch with Indian circus management, have a thriving business of procuring girls from in and around certain specific Nepali regions by convincing the parents and the families to send their young daughters to circus industry by making false promises and distorted claims of fortune, and especially by bribing them. These children are brought under a contract for 3-10 years and once signed they became bound. Their meagre salaries are collected by parents and they remain trapped forever and are unable to leave the circus even if they want.

A number of NGOs are fighting this sad problem, and some have succeeded in rescuing many Nepalis from these circuses. One of these NGOs and charities is the Esther Benjamins Trust whose worthwhile work is detailed on its website.

Esther Benjamins Trust

Beyond The Frame: Bali Matriarch

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy- All Rights Reserved
I'm not exactly sure why, but I like this photograph a lot. It was taken near Canggu in Bali of an elderly woman walking to her house among the lush vegetation of her family's garden. In common with other Asian nationalities, Balinese families have considerable respect and affection for their elderly. Grandparents are cared for by their extended families, and this woman lives either with or near her children and grandchildren.

Traditional Balinese family compounds have a system of design that is in accordance with adat (traditional law and custom), and it is the norm to have three generations living together in one compound. Moreoever, the alignment of the 4-5 separate buildings and shrines within the family compound must follow strict rules involving the direction of Gunung Agung, the largest peak (the most sacred place on the island) and the ocean. Priests as well as master builders are consulted to pick the correct positions of each of these buildings....almost like feng shui.

For more photographs of Bali, check out my new multimedia gallery Bali: Odalans & Melastis....and details of my forthcoming Bali photo expedition.

Beyond The Frame: Balinese Bicycle

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy _ All Rights Reserved
Pekak Jiwa is 75, and has lived in a village near Tandeng for at least 60 years. As pemangku, he officiated in countless temple anniversaries or odalan. The pemangku are temple priests who are recruited from the lower castes in Bali. They maintain temples with the help of villagers, but are generally regarded by the higher priests, or pedanda, not much more than cleaners and sweepers in the temples. However, the pemangku are more accessible, live near their temples and live ordinary lives.

Pekak has difficulty walking because of arthritis, so used his creaky old bicycle as a walker. It seems he never actually rode the bicycle but just pushes it along the way, also finding it useful to carry his scythe and an old Puma tennis racket cover (as a bag) on its handlebars. Notice his conical hat (red in the original photograph) denoting that he was a farmer, still working in his small rice field every day. He readily admitted to gambling (perhaps on cock fights?) and to an addiction to arak, Bali's dangerous moonshine, traditionally made from coconut and essentially equivalent to the well-known 'toddy'. Interestingly, arak is used as an offering in religious ceremonies, perhaps explaining the reason for his continuing to work as a a lay priest for so long. I can easily visualize Pekak surreptitiously drinking the arak offerings when he has the chance.

One of my objectives from setting up and leading my Bali photo expedition is to photograph people such as Pekak...authentic, photogenic and with life stories. Bali is replete with such opportunities, its smiling people more than willing to be photographed, and its culture incredibly welcoming.

Beyond The Frame: Theyyam

Theyyam Dancer - Image Copyright Tewfic El-Sawy
Traveling in the south of India, I stopped in a small village not far from Kannur, where I was told that a Theyyam performance would soon take place in a temple. The Theyyam ritual is unlike any celebration held in any part of India, and the colorful costumes and makeup used by the dancers are part of the ritual's mystique, if not its core. It is said that the ritual goes back to two thousand years, and the Theyyam deities have their origin in the Dravidian culture and indigenous customs and rituals. I joined a large group of devotees from all walks of life, and met some who had traveled from Calcutta on the other side of India to attend the ritual.

The belief is that the costumes and painted mask-like makeup is the substance of Theyyam, and that the performer is the vehicle that carries it and the dance. Once the dancers dress into the costume, they are in contact with the God, the Theyyam. I was told that it took up to 3 days to create an elaborate costume, while the make-up and other preparations can take up to 5 hours.

People go to a Theyyam in temples such as the one I visited, and inquire about family and social problems, health issues, business ventures, etc. and they are provided guidance by the main dancer. The men from Calcutta had questions about a forthcoming business transaction involving the sale of fabric, and from their facial expressions on receiving the advice, I understood that they had been satisfied. One of them spoke some English and confirmed that they routinely made the long trip to seek business counsel at a Theyyam.

The interesting aspect of the ritual is that the Theyyam dancers are frequently imbibing thimble-fulls of palm toddy, and seem none the worse for it.

Beyond The Frame: Narga Selassie

Traveling by boat from Gondar to Bahir Dar after a rather stormy passage, I stopped at Dek Island to explore Narga Selassie, one of the most important monasteries in northern Ethiopia. The island is the middle of Lake Tana, the great body of water in the centre of the Ethiopian plateau. Founded in 1748, Narga Selassie is one of the many monasteries on the lake's islands. The monasteries are the expression of a Ethiopian Christian identity and civilization.

This ancient Ethiopian silver cross held high by a hermit priest was photographed at the gate of the monastery. The monastery church of Narga Selassie is on Dek Island There is no country in the world that matches Ethiopia in the number of forms and types of its crosses. Ever since Ethiopia's conversion to Christianity, the cross has appeared almost universally, not only as a liturgical instrument in churches and monasteries, but also in common devotion and in daily life. The original Ethiopian Crosses are derived from the Egyptian Ankh and have intricate interwoven and crossed designs worn primarily by African Christians.

Most of the hermit priests live on these monastery islands all their lives, and survive by cultivating sorghum, and on donations given by tourists infrequently stopping to admire the Narga Sellasie concentric church.

This photograph was published full page length by Outdoor Photography magazine to feature its Travel section

Beyond The Frame: Balian Tenung

From A Balinese Canang-Copyright Tewfic El-Sawy
One of my assignments in Bali was documenting balians, the traditional healers. Before resorting to Western medicine, the Balinese consult a balian, a traditional healer. These men and women work in different ways: some mix herbal remedies; some create drawings of magical symbols to protect the wearer; and some, while in trance, communicate messages from the Balinese Hindu deities and ancestors. The best known balians heal by limb manipulation and massage, while others request the help of divinities.

One such healer is Betty Jan-Paul, who is a balian tenung, or a diviner faith healer. I met her at her modest home near Denpasar, at the suggestion of my fixer. Betty was amenable to being photographed and interviewed, provided that I had a pack or two of Marlboro cigarettes for her. Local cigarettes or any other brand would not do, my fixer assured me. She only accepted Marlboros.

The daughter of a Dutch soldier and a Balinese woman, Betty was a nondescript housewife until she had a life-altering dream in which Moses, Jesus, Muhammad and Ghandi came by her bedside and commanded her to become a healer. Her husband being ill at the time, she took this dream to mean that she could heal him...which she did. She's well-known in the Denpasar area, and she had quite a number of patients waiting for her. One of these patients was an Indian gentleman who worked in the hotel industry in Rajasthan, and who had come here on vacation and was waiting for her advice.

Betty graciously allowed me to stay while she administered her craft to her patients, including this woman with her young child. I couldn't tell what was the particular ailment or affliction, but Betty eventually gave the woman a small plastic bag filled with water, in which she had puffed smoke.

During all her sessions, she went into a trance for a few moments, presumably to communicate with the spirits as to the condition of her patients. She used an altar (to the left of the above photograph) where she placed small offerings of fruit and water.

Before we dismiss these rituals offhand, here's something which may change our minds. A photographer, staying at the same hotel as I did, suffered considerable trauma to his shoulder in a motorcycle accident during his stay in Bali. He had gone to the hospital for treatment, and was all bandaged...and in considerable pain. He visited a nearby well-known balian for massages and manipulation, and was amazed at the resulting improvement.

Beyond The Frame: Gondar Maiden

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy - All Rights Reserved
Having photographed the Timket festival and its processions in both Lalibela and Adwe, I stopped in the city of Gondar. Gondar was founded by the Ethiopian emperor Fasilidas around 1635, and is famous for its many medieval castles and the design and decoration of its churches.

The car stopped at the outskirts of the city for a minor repair, and I took this opportunity to stretch my legs and walk around, exploring the surroundings. I came across this young woman outside her home, sifting through teff, the grain used to make injera, the bread of Ethiopia and Eritrea. Injera is a pancake-like bread made out of the teff flour, which is mixed with water and allowed to ferment for a few days. As a result of this process, injera has a sour taste to it.

The woman was quite happy to be photographed, but when her mother suddenly peeked out of their front door, I was lucky enough to have grabbed the wonderful look on her face, as well the young woman's unsuccessful attempt at suppressing her laugh. When I finished photographing her, she finally laughed covering her mouth, as so many people do when they're shy.

I framed this Gondar maiden so that the white background of the wall was just above her shoulders, giving better definition to her face. By the way, this is not the photograph of the Ethiopian woman with the errant fly of my earlier post...so don't go hunting for traces of cloning! In fact, this photograph is 'pure'...no cropping, no cloning...just a touch of Level adjustments and Sharpening.

This photograph was published in The Digital Photographer, a British magazine.

Beyond The Frame: Adivasis of Chhattisgarh

I traveled to central India in October 2004 to photograph the Adivasis (tribals) in Chhattisgarh, a recently established state originally part of Madhya Pradesh. One of the more interesting tribal belts is in the Bastar region, and it is there that I photographed members of the Muria, Muria-Gond, Bison-Horn Maria,Halba, Dhurwa, Bhatra and Dorla tribes. I witnessed their ceremonial dances, and rubbed shoulders with them at their weekly markets, or 'haats', where they barter for products and produce. I sampled their delicacies, including a rather spicy concoction of red-ants. Their ceremonial dances are very similar in style to Native American dances.

This photograph is of two members of the Bison Horn Marias tribe, a major sub-caste of the Gonds, photographed after they had performed one of their ritualistic dances. These tribes prefer to live in isolation in forests, and generally shun the outside world. The majority of Bison Horn Marias speak various unintelligible dialects of Gondi, an unwritten language of the Dravidian family. They practice shifting cultivation method of agriculture and collect forest produce for survival.

Due to the presence of the separatist Naxalites, who attack police stations and government building, it is wise to hire guides that are of the area and knowledgeable of the situation. Chhattisgarh and its Bastar region is not for everyone, however I was impressed by the courage against adversity shown by these tribes, and by their desire to preserve
their identity. For the genuinely interested, this region offers an unparalleled glimpse into the lives of a fast disappearing way of life.
Photograph from The Adivasis of Chhattisgarh-Copyright Tewfic El-Sawy

Beyond The Frame: Shadows In Thimpu

Image Copyright © 2006 Tewfic El-Sawy - All Rights Reserved
My recent posts on photographs with super saturated colors and dark shadows made me choose this one for this week's Beyond The Frame. It was taken at the Memorial Chorten in the Bhutanese capital of Bhutan.

The scene is at the small building at the side of the Chorten where three large prayer wheels are virtually in constant motion, rotated by the numerous pilgrims that arrive here. This Chorten was built in 1974 honoring the late King Jigme Dorji Wangchuk, known as the father of modern Bhutan.  It is built in a typical Tibetan style, and is a center of worship for the people living in Thimphu.

The three prayer wheels represent the three protective bodhisattvas: Avalokiteshvara, symbol of the compassion, Manjjusri, symbol of knowledge and Vajrapani, symbol of the power. The rotation of the wheels is meant to send prayers to the heavens. The prayer wheels are near the entrance gate, and all pilgrims and visitors stop by before continuing to circumbulate the Chorten itself. The pilgrims are usually very intent on their ritual of pulling the prayer wheels, and it's a great spot for candid photography.

What attracted me to this scene is the combination of the colors; the yellow ochre of the walls, the turquoise blue of the hat, in the design on the wheels and on the sleeves on the man on the far right, and the diagonal swath of black shadows on the wall and prayer wheel which cuts into the scene. The larger photograph (click on the one above) shows stronger saturation and better color rendition.

Beyond The Frame: El Fotografo Habanero

El Fotografo Habanero- Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy
A few years ago, I experienced the pleasure of spending almost two weeks in Old Havana (or La Habana Vieja, as the locals call it) for a workshop designed to improve my then non-existing skills in street photography. The workshop was taught by the Magnum legend, Costas Manos, who immediately made me realize that a travel photographer does not necessarily make a street photographer.

Setting this possible truism aside, I haunted the streets of Old Havana and photographed virtually anything that fit, to my eyes at least, the street photography parameters that were given to me by Costas. Naturally, to find a scene in which the protagonists did not look at me (one of Costas strict directives) was somewhat difficult in Old Havana, where it's hard for tourists for blend in.

Notwithstanding, I persevered and got to a point where I generated acceptable street photography results. This one (though not a 'street' photograph) of the Habanero photographer was taken near the steps of the Gran Teatro de la Habana. The fellow had a tidy little business going, photographimg tourists with his antique pin-hole camera, dropping the 4 x 3 negatives in a bucket-full of some sort of unusual developer solution. He went along his business with a cigarette dangling from his lips, and a world-weary look on his face. I tried to engage him in my uneven Spanish, but he was wasn't interested in small talk. All he cared about was the $2 he charged me. I hope he's still there...fussing about with his camera and bucket.

I toned the image to approximate the vintage photographs which I saw in the windows of portrait photographers in Havana.