28-DEC-2007
Lat child, near Dalat, Vietnam, 2007
The Lat people are a Central Highlands hill tribe. They are practicing Christians. I made this photograph just outside of the village church. He never took notice of me, or my camera. Many people often do not think I am taking their pictures because I always shoot from waist level, using a flip up viewfinder. They see me looking down into the viewfinder, but because I am not looking “through” the camera at them, and not masking my face with the camera (which can be threatening to some), I am able to get some very natural responses. He was probably waiting to see what I was going to do, and had no idea that I had already done it, again and still again. I was able to get a perfect response here, a mixture of boredom and sadness, and I link it to the primitive clapboard church and the fragile palm sapling he touches repeatedly.
08-JAN-2008
Monk, Tan Chau, Vietnam, 2008
We came to the locked gates of his monastery and looked through the bars. This monk saw us, and invited us in. The sun was just setting, and as we talked, I noticed it brushed his tunic in fragment of golden light, particularly over his heart. We asked many questions and he painstakingly answered them in English, and as he was talking to us, I kept photographing him. I organized the image using diagonal flow, starting with the softly focused gate in the upper left hand corner, and then using the garden hose to carry the eye past the flowery hedge to my subject. When he naturally crossed his arms and looked skyward for a moment while he searched for an answer, I made this portrait. It is a rewarding image because rather than telling us what he looks like, it tells us who he is. And that is the ultimate purpose of portraiture.
01-JAN-2008
Aged man, Ben Tre, Vietnam, 2008
We found him having breakfast in his house -- which opened on to the street. His family was very proud of our presence -- they felt that by making pictures of him, we were honoring him. The elderly are revered in Vietnam, and this man has seen much of its history and perhaps even participated in some of it. I am not sure he fully understood what was happening -- there was no response from him when I showed him this picture. But his family appeared to be deeply moved. There is a wealth of detail in this image, adding context that enriches this tapestry of a life well lived. The simple foods, the warmth of a space heater, the flowers placed next his table, even a government certificate within the cluttered cabinet. The three shades of blue – in the tablecloth, chair and on the wall, unify the image.
17-DEC-2007
Ticket taker, The Temple of Literature, Hanoi, Vietnam, 2007
The Temple of Literature is the oldest architectural complex in Hanoi, established in honor of Confucius more than a thousand years ago. After passing through the gate, I decided to make her portrait and began photographing her from a distance. She is aware of my presence but shows no self-consciousness and does not smile (the kiss of death for a substantive expressive portrait is a big grin). Her body language speaks as clearly as her businesslike expression. She is relaxed yet alert, and confident of her responsibility. She drives a motorbike to work – we learn this from the helmet on her chair. And her shirt matches the color of the wastebasket – she seems to blend into her work and her work blends into her. The light was soft and even, and she is sitting inside of an ancient gate, making the colors of her skin and clothing emerge from the darkly shadowed wall behind her. On the way out of the complex, I stopped and showed her this image. It was the only time I saw her smile.
01-JAN-2008
Seamstress, Mo Cay Town, Vietnam, 2008
We were invited into a Mekong Delta home that also produced garments for sale. This young seamstress was in training, and gives us a close-up portrait of one of Vietnam's cottage industries. I use my 28mm wideangle lens and move in very close to her – she looks up with patience and humility, and while very shy, she shows no signs of self-consciousness. The lens stretches the frame to include both the sewing machine and the colorful fabric on the table behind her. My vantage point is high, looking down on this youthful apprentice seamstress. This causes her to look up at us, almost as if she is seeking approval for her work. This environmental portrait illuminates a huge segment of Vietnam’s economy – we saw dozens of homes and shops where young women worked over vintage sewing machines, manufacturing clothing seam-by-seam, and piece-by-piece. This young woman can represent all of Vietnam’s young women who earn a living working with their own hands.
13-SEP-2007
Face of time, Pingyao, China, 2007
I made this portrait in the warm evening light to bring out the texture in both skin and rock. There is great age expressed here -- both the person and the place speak of time.
14-SEP-2007
Comrade, Pingyao, China, 2007
This gentleman has lived through the Japanese occupation of China in World War II, the coming of the Communist regime, the Cultural Revolution, and the opening of China to the west, launching an era of great changes. Here in Pingyao -- deep in rural Shanxi Province, things move more slowly than elsewhere. This man rarely leaves this spot before his front door. The world must come to him. And in the form of tourists, it does.
13-SEP-2007
Sunset portrait, Pingyao, China, 2007
I use the golden light of a setting sun to warmly illuminate the face of a venerable subject who sits impassively for my camera. He allowed us to photograph him at great length, yet never changed his expression. The numbers painted on the wall behind him must have local meaning – we did not discover what the meant, or how long they had been there.
15-SEP-2007
Shy child, Beijing, China, 2007
I found her at play in one of Beijing's many alleyways. She enjoyed playing cat and mouse, alternately showing off and then playing coy. She uses the doorknob here as a symbolic privacy screen -- giving us only one eye at a time.
07-SEP-2007
Tea Time, Feng Jing, China, 2007
This gracious lady showed great patience -- we trained our cameras on her for over ten minutes, without any complaint or distress. Her house is hundreds of years old. It’s colors, textures, and environmental detail adds meaning to this portrait.
02-SEP-2007
Intensity, Malacca. Malaysia
This woman was engaged in a long and intense discussion just inside the entrance to Malacca's historic Cheng Hoon Teng Temple. She knew that four photographers were shooting her simultaneously yet showed no signs of either self-consciousness or annoyance. The light streaming through the open door to our left illuminated her face. By putting half the face in light and half in shadow, I create abstraction that
suggests her character without fully describing it. I use my spot-metering mode to expose for the lighted side only, allowing the rest of the face to vanish into the shadows.
07-SEP-2007
On the bench, Feng Jing, China, 2007
I particularly liked the narrow, high bench he sits upon. In spite of the fact that his heels are lifted off the ground and he has limited seating space, he seems perfectly at home here. The furnishings are spare and well used. His cigarette grows shorter by the moment. He looks at us without emotion or curiosity. He does not pose for us – he is simply being himself. This is an example of a portrait where the environment and subject merge in harmony to express character.