"Into the Sun" Photograph

People walking into bright, low sunshine make quite good photographic subjects for me as they are much less likely to notice me taking their picture which means they usually keep whatever natural expression they are wearing at the time.

You can see the shadow of my shoulder and arm on this woman’s shirt as I take her photograph with my camera at belly-level.

Photograph taken at the “Saturday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

"Grumpy Old Man" Photograph

Maybe he’s grumpy because somebody made him wear a name-tag, green scarf and red bobblehat. Maybe he noticed me and doesn’t like being photographed. And while I’m making up possible reasons, maybe he stood in some dog droppings and has just spotted the culprit.

More likely, he is stuck with the expression as a result of tooth-loss and old age. I hope I get stuck with an expression just like this at his age. Then, any smile from me will be such a relief to others that it’s sure to make them happy.

Photograph taken at the “Saturday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

"Pondering" Photograph

ponder

verb think about, consider, study, reflect on, examine, weigh up, contemplate, deliberate about, muse on, brood on, meditate on, mull over, puzzle over, ruminate on, give thought to, cogitate on, rack ones brains about, excogitate

He definitely looks like a cogitator.

Photograph taken at the “Saturday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Alien

Carrying toy dogs around like in this photograph has suddenly become very fashionable here in Chiang Mai. During an hour’s walk around one of the street markets I am guaranteed to see ten or so. I am sure they are loved and looked after but I do wonder whether they wouldn’t much prefer to have the chance to sniff the world at ground level on their own legs. Perhaps this wouldn’t be a good idea in a crowded market but these dogs seem to get carried absolutely everywhere.

The face and position of this particular dog really does make me think back to the classic movie scene where the alien bursts out of a man’s abdomen. This is the (slightly) less scary version.

Photograph taken at the “Saturday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

The Beauty of Digital Photography

This photograph makes me think back to the days of film when the gap between taking a picture and actually seeing the result was usually a few weeks. And now a whole generation has grown up enjoying the immediate gratification of instant results, photographically speaking.

This is, of course, a great feature of digital photography but there are still people around using rollfilm cameras and I hope they never totally fade away for they offer something different in both process and quality that the digital world lacks.

Photograph taken at the “Saturday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Faceless Faces

Sometimes you make your own luck.

I was trying to take a photograph of the group of girls huddled over looking at some goods. There were other people moving around between us and I wasn’t quite as close to them as I wanted to be. The chances were that the picture would not work, perhaps being blurred or blocked or just fail as a composition but I took it anyway and love the result of people in a crowded situation all turned away from each other with visible but incomplete faces.

It would have been so easy not to have bothered pressing the shutter-release.

Photograph taken at the “Sunday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Passenger

The angle of this photograph was just right to see the disembodied hands on this man’s shoulders but nothing else of the child hanging onto his back. Other than those hands there doesn’t seem to be anything else about him to even suggest that he is actually carrying a passenger.

Or perhaps they are just an unusual pair of decorative shoulder pads?

Photograph taken at the “Saturday Walking Street”, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Photo of a Thai Santa?

Try not to over-eat this Christmas.

Photograph taken at “Sunday Walking Street” market, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Small Seat Photo

This seat ain’t big enough for the two of us!

Thai people in general have a wonderful ability to get down low that many of the rest of us lose somewhere in our school years. All the way up to old age they can comfortably sit cross-legged on the floor, squat for a chat in the street or perch with ease on the tiniest of chairs. Just looking at this photograph makes my knees ache.

Taken at “Sunday Walking Street” market, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Child's View of a Busy Thai Street

This wasn’t what I had in mind when I took the photograph as the blurred man in the shirt just rocked backwards at the wrong moment but I love the accidental result. To me it looks like a child’s view peeking out from amongst the adults. It could have been taken anywhere but was actually photographed in Chiang Mai's busy night bazaar.

Shooting from the hip results in many photographs that I delete straight away but also some unintended compositions like this one that work well.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Streetside Jeweller in Chiang Mai

In this case it is a jeweller sitting working in his mobile shop on wheels in Chiang Mai but it could just as easily be one of many other types of tradespeople. Thai streets are full of them and in the major population centers it’s usually easy to find the right person for any particular job that needs doing. Unfortunately for many this means a continual struggle as what work there is gets spread too thinly amongst the competition.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Thai Street Vendor Bending Photo

This was photographed as people were preparing for one of the popular weekly street markets in Chiang Mai. The old Thai lady wearing a traditional ‘pasin’ wrap-around skirt is, I think, marking the ground where a market stall will be.

If I stare at this picture long enough, she starts to topple forwards.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Thai Man on a Mission Photo

Carrying 24 bottles of whiskey on your shoulders must be a heavy burden and he was certainly taking it very seriously. He strode passed me at quite a pace before I noticed him amongst the crowds and I struggled to get ahead of him for a photograph.  On his way to a party perhaps, his “whiskey blinkers” make him look very purposeful and I imagine he arrived with a pretty good thirst.

Unless, of course, he’s just carrying two empty boxes…

Chiang Mai, Thailand

'It's Time' Thai Street Photo

Is that a hint of reluctance on the boy’s face? Getting dragged into the adult world of time-keeping, I’m sure he’s bright enough to tell the time but perhaps can’t quite see the point yet.

I don’t know the truth of what was happening between this man and boy in this frozen moment from their day and it could be something completely different. However, that’s why I love this type of photography. This is a real moment in these peoples’ lives but the interpretation of it is ours.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

A Very Minor Mystery in Chiang Mai

I don’t know who this woman is but I see her several times a week, particularly around the local street market and she is clearly an ‘old-face’ around our area in Chiang Mai. This photogenic old face of hers has the soft, approachable quality that is so typical of elderly Thai ladies and you just know she’s always ready with one of those Thai smiles that help to make the country so livable.

When I see her she is often carrying a tray of noodle condiments (vinegar, sugar, fish sauce and ground chili) or drinks as in this photograph. It would be very easy to find out why she wanders around like this but I think I prefer to leave her with her little mystery.

Chiang Mai, Thailand