“Sun-shy” Photograph

If I was taking pictures by bringing the camera up to my eye then I would expect this kind of reaction from some camera-shy young Thai women but I’m sure she hadn’t noticed me. In this case she was simply shielding her face from the sun which was still strong even at 5pm on a January afternoon.

In Thailand, dark, tanned skin is associated with people who have to work outside such as farmers and laborers, so many people try to avoid the sun to keep their skin light as a kind of status symbol. This has been boosted by the popularity of the youth culture from the generally lighter-skinned Korea, so the cosmetics industry is now steam-rollering the fashion with their promotion of skin-whitening products.

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