It was a hot summer month of May. I was in the district of Bellary, which is known for its super hot summers and as a land which is badly hit by the mining or rather over mining, to be specific!
I was there at Hospet, along with my friend Shivakumar L to shoot some of the people portraits and culture images of the people around Hospet, Hampi and Sandur. We were there on an assignment. It was almost a first of its kind for us. We both were excited. We both were used to shoot for the whole day when it is Nature or WIldlife Photography. But people photography was something which I had not done much for so long hours.
We were going around Hospet and Sandur along with our friend Samad Kottur who was helping us with talking to the people and convincing them to allow us to shoot. It was because of his immense energy and knowledge about the place and people which made the trip a success.
We visited the Lambani settlement around Sandur. Lambanis are known for their vibrant colored clothes and they make those clothes by hand, mostly at home itself. We had the privilege to visit a Lambani village and make some images of women making the clothes at their homes.
We met two young guys who were working in a nearby mining refinery. One of the guy's head was nicely bathed with the fine dust of the ore. They seemed kind of unknown about the cause of the over mining and what they were concerned about was their daily wage which was barely enough to live their life and ofcourse to recharge their mobile!!
People we met were interesting! It was a nice learning for me. Both photographically and personally.
Approach to this genre of photography demands a very different skill set.
I am happy that I am learning it!
Cheers,
Ash
I was there at Hospet, along with my friend Shivakumar L to shoot some of the people portraits and culture images of the people around Hospet, Hampi and Sandur. We were there on an assignment. It was almost a first of its kind for us. We both were excited. We both were used to shoot for the whole day when it is Nature or WIldlife Photography. But people photography was something which I had not done much for so long hours.
We were going around Hospet and Sandur along with our friend Samad Kottur who was helping us with talking to the people and convincing them to allow us to shoot. It was because of his immense energy and knowledge about the place and people which made the trip a success.
We visited the Lambani settlement around Sandur. Lambanis are known for their vibrant colored clothes and they make those clothes by hand, mostly at home itself. We had the privilege to visit a Lambani village and make some images of women making the clothes at their homes.
We met two young guys who were working in a nearby mining refinery. One of the guy's head was nicely bathed with the fine dust of the ore. They seemed kind of unknown about the cause of the over mining and what they were concerned about was their daily wage which was barely enough to live their life and ofcourse to recharge their mobile!!
People we met were interesting! It was a nice learning for me. Both photographically and personally.
Approach to this genre of photography demands a very different skill set.
I am happy that I am learning it!
Cheers,
Ash
10 comments:
Beautiful write up and images Ashwini. My fav of the lot ( the ones that you have put up here ) is the black smith one! How about converting it to B&W.
Wonderful portraits...the faces seem happy, though they seem to have a tough life...there's a lesson in that for me. Thank you!
Loved it all the way, especially the lovely smiling lady's portrait.
Harder ones!!
I think with portrait photography, the modification into B/W portraits work very well... You get to know the feel/emotions of the faces even in B/W portraits. The essence is not lost in such a transition.
Great job Ash!
Thanks Chetana.
B/W works very well on some images and sometimes color takes the front seat. A simple example is in the very first image of this post, the B/W version would not have signified much w.r.t. the saffron cult. Similar is the case with that of Lambani portraits, where color is the soul of their culture.
Hence my take would be - it depends on individual image and what you are intended to convey through your images. If it is the emotion and character then Yes, B/W does wonders many a times. If it is the culture and tradition that you want to emphasize then color would be the appropriate choice.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Cheers,
Ash
Emotion/feel and colours are part of the same coin in photography.. But located on either sides... Both are the soul..
In some photographs, either of them take the lead.. Ofcourse, I am just for this moment, neglecting the finer details and aspects of the object and photography...
You are absolutely right, 3 cheers!
I emphasised on the 'emotional' part of a portrait...
I had Nature photography in my mind when I posted my comment... For me, (I am always in search of 'stunning feel' in nature photographs) And in this case, (for me), colours are important...
B/W photographs might make u nostalgic, take u to a different loka altogether, for ex., in ur Kanooru mysteriuos fort's photos, B/W worked magic... But if there is an absolutely stunning nature's look, B/W modification would do injustice to it.. Because colours are fundamental, essential, they leave you stunned and make you bow and kneel again in front of nature!
U are right from a photographer's point of view. I agree to that..
I am in an onlooker's position...
They are different ways to look at a (thing) photograph..
My stand towards photography (landscape/nature) is: neutral. I just enjoy them for what they are... The sheer happening of that particular moment as captured... They make me feel stunned and I look and stand at them dumbstruck. My mind is usually void after seeing such photos.. And that is what I want from such a photograph...
Yes, I don't work this way with Portraits and Wildlife photos... The approach should be different.
Right?
Keep up the good work!
Good luck!
And great job so far.
Waiting for your greater accomplishments..
Hey bigger pictures are simply amazing..
The effect is greater. The image size is just apt.
The black backdrop just works wonder man! Its perfect. Now the pictures directly reach your mind faster, and without any hurdles.
The black magic, I would like to call it as!
SOme of your best pictures ashwini. Glad to see you try some different genres.
-Chinmay
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