My Work: Baneshwar Pind Daan

One of the highlights during my Tribes of South Rajasthan & Kutch Photo~Expedition™ was a few days spent photographing in Baneshwar during its annual fair, or mela.

The Baneshwar mela is popular tribal gathering held in the Dungarpur district in south Rajasthan. The gathering is followed by a fair held at a small delta formed by the river Soma and Mahi. It's a relatively modest event, without the hype and the attendance of the Kumbh Melas, but it's nevertheless a deeply religious gathering with simple and traditional rituals. Bhil and Garasia tribals come from the neighboring states of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat to offer prayers to Lord Shiva, to perform pind daan, and to socialize.

Here's Baneshwar: Pind Daan, an audio-slideshow of photographs made and ambient sound gathered during the mela. Photographed in a documentary style, I chose to process the images in black & white despite their vivid colors.

The audio-slideshow was featured in my March email newsletter sent to my subscribers.

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Matt Brandon: Penang's Pulau Tikus

Matt Brandon has been photographing since he was 10 years old with his father’s Cannonet QL Rangefinder, and now specializes in NGO, relief and humanitarian projects. He recently moved to Malaysia, and frequently features audio slideshows on his The Digital Trekker blog.

Here's one of his latest production which he titled The Hands Of Rat Island. This self-assignment was completed over the course of 3 days, and was centered on a small market in Penang called Pulau Tikus or “Rat Island”. Matt decided he'd only feature the hands of the people in that market.

As interesting as hands (almost as faces) are from a visual standpoint, it's also interesting to hear the market hubbub captured by Matt's recorder. You'll also hear the inflections of Hokkien Chinese, one of the most common Chinese languages overseas, which is spoken by the Chinese-Malay.

Having traveled in Malaysia, I still recall the aromatic smells and exotic tastes of the wonderful Malaysian street food, which I've experienced in KL, Malacca and Penang...but I digress.

There are quite a number of posts on TTP on Matt Brandon, and these can be found here.

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Marc Wattrelot: Balochistan

Photo © Marc Wattrelot-All Rights Reserved
Here's a timely feature brought to us by Foto8 showcasing the work of photojournalist Marc Wattrelot titled Divided Desert: Balochistan.

The blurb that accompanies the slideshow informs us that Balochistan extends over 350,000 square kms (approximately the size of Germany) and is the largest province in the Pakistan Federation. About 7 million people live in Balochistan; a mixture of consists Iranians, Pakistanis and Afghanis.

It's the often-heard story: a region rich in natural resources, its people among the poorest, the Punjabi central government rife with corruption and nepotism, give rise to a resistance movement striving for autonomy.

It's timely because the remnants of Al-Qaida may well migrate to the hinterlands of either Pashtunistan and Balochistan. All the ingredients for major trouble exist in this region in the coming months and years to come, so as I said, a timely feature. I don't always agree with Robert D. Kaplan's political slant, but he has penned a thought-provoking article on the Baluchi issue in the May 2009 issue of The Atlantic, which explains the volatility of this region.

Interesting photographs, but irritatingly repetitive audio...!!!

Foto8 describes itself a space to share, comment and debate photography.

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Multimedia Work: Debates At The Sangha

Photo © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
I'm pleased to share a multimedia gallery of new photographs made during my recent Bhutan: Land of the Druk Yul Photo Expedition.

The "Debates At The Sangha" slideshow is of photographs (and audio) of the weekly Buddhist debates at the sangha of the Kharchhu Monastery near Chamkar town, in the very heartland of Bhutan.

The Lhodrak Kharchhu Monastery is a recent addition to the Bhutanese pantheon of monasteries, and its venerated abbot is Namkhai Nyingpo Rinpoche. Over 300 monks and novices live at the monastery, and animated debates are held twice a week to hone the mental skills of the qualified monks.

Most of the debates are held in the open air, and are expressed in Sanskrit through loud vocalization of the various points of view and punctuated by hand slapping for emphasis.

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Alia Refaat: Vedic School

Photo © Alia Refaat-All Rights Reserved
I'm pleased to feature an audio slideshow by photographer Alia Refaat showcasing her work at a Vedic school in Thrissur, Kerala. The photographs and audio were made during my Theyyams of Malabar Photo Expedition at an ancient Vedic 'gurukul' (or training/boarding school (very similar to the Buddhist monasteries for novitiates), where we were treated to a demonstration of this way of teaching the sacred Vedic scriptures.

Alia's Soundslides audio slideshow Vedic School is here, and you'll see she successfully applied the various multimedia techniques such as the flipbook to convey the sense of movement to her stills. A nicely done photo essay....lovely and atmospheric photography by a talented photographer.

As mentioned in earlier posts on this blog, Alia (aka "Coucla") Refaat is a commercial photographer from Cairo, Egypt.She studied Mass Communications, and trained at Spéos Paris in commercial, portrait and studio photography. It was Alia's inaugural travel photography expedition, and her resulting photographs were featured in a series of solo exhibitions in Cairo, where she also appeared a number of times on televised interviews.

Alia's main website is here, and previous posts on her work are here.

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Mohit Gupta: Thankas

I mentioned that I would feature Mohit Gupta's multimedia project "Thankas" on TPP as soon as it was uploaded on his website, and I'm pleased that he has just made it available to us to appreciate on his newly completed website/blog.

Originally from Himachal Pradesh, Mohit is an independent photographer based in New Delhi, who specializes in travel and documentary photography. To Mohit, photography is a serious medium for expression. A self taught photographer, he is mainly interested in documenting culture, traditions, rituals and religion, and has traveled within South East Asia to do just that. He also works with NGOs and helps them documenting their work.

"Thankas" was Mohit's project while at the Foundry Photojournalism, where he attended my Introduction To Multimedia Storytelling class. It is a well-made audio slideshow, incorporating many techniques...including the flip-book technique to simulate motion from a number of sequential still photographs.

My previous post on Introduction To Multimedia Storytelling is here.

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RESOLVE blog Features FPW's Multimedia

My Name is Dechen - Foundry Workshop Multimedia By Dhiraj Singh from liveBooks on Vimeo.

Miki Johnson, Editor of the RESOLVE blog, interviewed two photographers who participated in this year's Foundry Photojournalism, and posted their multimedia projects as well.

One of the two participants, Dhiraj Singh, attended my class Introduction To Multimedia Storytelling, and produced an absolutely stunning tour de force photo essay, which can now be seen in the above embedded video. Dhiraj was deservedly honored for this work by winning the workshop’s top honors for student work.

The other participant was Tristan Wheelock, who attended the Intermediate Multimedia class by Henrik Kastenskov of Bombay Flying Club.

The interviews and multimedia work produced by Dhiraj and Tristan can be seen on RESOLVE.

Dhiraj Singh's work was featured on TTP, and his website is here.

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NY Times: One in 8 Million

Photo © Todd Heisler/NYTimes-All Rights Reserved

One of the "props" I used very effectively during my Intro To Multimedia Storytelling class at the Foundry Photojournalism Workshop is the stunning work done by The New York Times photographer Todd Heisler (along with others) with the One In 8 Million series. The class participants watched The Medical Tourist, and realized how effective a few stills and well edited audio can be in storytelling.

One of the participants in my class, Dar Yasin, was so captivated by what he viewed that he decided to base his multimedia SoundSlides project on the One In 8 Million series, and produced a black & white photo essay on The Street Barber, a 3 minute window into the life of Shyam, a barber in the streets of Manali, India. Dar shot the project in an hour or so, and recorded the audio at the same time.

The New York Time has featured a "shoptalk" with Todd Heisler, in which provides insights into his work. Interestingly, he tells us that he photographs a subject over two to three visits, makes a broad edit of 80 to 100 images, narrows them down to 25 to 40 images, then sits with a sound producer and start pacing the images with the final sound edit.

I know I've said it before, but for anyone interested in multimedia, done simply and very effectively, One in 8 Million is a must-see.

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Matt Brandon: Bangla Sahib Gurudwara

Photo © Matt Brandon-All Rights Reserved
Matt Brandon of The Digital Trekker blog has produced Bangla Sahib Gurudwara, a SoundSlides photo essay on the most prominent Sikh gurudwara (or Sikh house of worship) in Delhi. The gurudwara is known for its association with the eighth Sikh Guru, Guru Har Krishan, and for the pond inside its complex, known as the "Sarovar", whose water is considered holy by Sikhs. It was built by Sikh General, Sardar Bhagel Singh in 1783, who supervised the construction of nine Sikh shrines in Delhi in the same year, during the reign of Mughal Emperor, Shah Alam II.

It is situated in the Connaught Place area of Delhi, and is instantly recognizable by its stunning golden dome. While in Delhi for the Foundry Workshop, I was told of a massive Sikh religious festival occurring at the gurudwara, but I was too tired to attend it. Perhaps next year.

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Chico Sanchez: Pok Ta Pok

"The Popol Vuh, holy book of the Quiché Maya, contains a story of a confrontation between good and evil, played out in the form of a ballgame. Throughout pre-Hispanic history, this ballgame has played an important yet mysterious and debated role in the cultures of Mesoamerica, sometimes taking the form of sacrifice ritual, sometimes a game of chance, always symbolic of a timeless struggle between opposing forces, with an outcome governed by supernatural powers in conjunction with human skill and honor."-(BBC)

Here's a short audio slideshow by photographer Chico Sanchez documenting the ancient ballgame of Pok Ta Pok as played in Yucatan, Mexico. As the preamble above describes, it's a symbolic game between the forces of good and evil.

Chico Sanchez is a freelance photographer based in Mexico City. Chico worked in Venezuela, collaborating with Reuters, European Pressphoto Agency, Agencia EFE, and freelances for various newspapers and magazines.

Many of Chico Sanchez's documentary/travel photography slideshows have been featured on The Travel Photographer blog and can be found here.

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Pablo Corral Vega: Andes

Pablo Corral Vega is a photojournalist from Ecuador whose work is published in National Geographic, National Geographic Traveler, the Smithsonian Magazine, the New York Times Sunday magazine, Audubon, the French, German, Spanish, and Russian editions of Geo, and other international magazines.

His work has been exhibited in Perpignan, Quito, Guayaquil, Cuenca, Tokyo, Seville, Washington, D.C., and Houston, and he has published six books of photography: Tierra Desnuda, Paisajes del Silencio, Ecuador: De la Magia al Espanto, Ecuador, Andes and Twenty Five. For the book Andes, published by the National Geographic Society, famed Peruvian author Mario Vargas Llosa wrote twenty short stories inspired by the photos.

It is Andes that I choose to feature today on the pages of TTP.

Kent Kobersteen, former Director of Photography for the National Geographic Magazine wrote the following text about Corral for his book "Twenty Five":

"Pablo Corral Vega brings to his photography great passion, an unparalleled aesthetic, and a high degree of concern for both his work and his subjects. (He) is a world-class photojournalist, and in my opinion one of the finest Latin American photographers working today." "

There's no question that Pablo Corral Vega's work is incredibly beautiful, and his imagery of the various cultures depicted in Andes is passionate, emphatic and in many cases, superb. The photograph of the man and the shadows is certainly one of those.

I also greatly enjoyed Pablo's video work showing the same places he photographed for the National Geographic. Yes, I recommend viewing Pablo's personal view of this musical genre and its associated sensuous dance form. But be careful...after viewing the video, you will want to book your flight to Buenos Aires, and spend the rest of your life in these cafes and restaurants, immersed in tango atmosphere.

My thanks to Eric Beecroft for the heads-up.

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Dhiraj Singh: Nagas

Dhiraj Singh is a photojournalist and editorial photographer in Mumbai, whose work has appeared in various international publications including Newsweek, Vanity Fair, The Wall Street Journal, MSNBC among others.

He recently won the third place in the ‘war and disaster’ category at the China International Press Photo Award-2009 and third place in Spot News at “The Asia Media Award” which was held in conjunction with IFRA’s Publish Asia 2008. His pictures of the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008 were also part of a group exhibition titled, ‘Bearing Witness’ held in that city in 2009.

One of Dhiraj's non-audio SoundSlides photo essay is on the Nagas. The Naga Sadhus are part of a mysterious society, and are worshipers of Shiva. The term Naga means ‘naked’, and they're also known as Naga Babas. They mainly appear in public during the annual Kumbh Mela.

Dhiraj Sigh and his work were also profiled on Verve Photo.

My own work on the Sadhus of the Kumbh Mela is featured here.

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My Work: Multimedia GNAWA!

At long last, here's the multimedia photo essay on the Gnawa (or Gnaoua) Festival in Essaouira, which includes photographs made in situ during performances and processions. It includes audio clips of live recordings, as well as a short interview with a master "maalem".

Just click on the above photograph or here. This will open a new window and automatically start the multimedia slideshow, so if at work, you'll need to turn down the volume of your speakers.

I originally planned to have this posted in a few days, but the multimedia slideshow was recently "leaked" on Twitter...so as it's out there already, it also ought to be on TTP blog!

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James Morgan: Kazakh Eagle Hunters

James Morgan is a travel and documentary photographer, as well as a professional writer based in the United Kingdom. Although he specializes in travel and documentary photography, he has also worked on a number of commercial projects. Amongst his many clients are The Sunday Times (South Africa), Foto8 (UK), Dalmatia Creative (UK/US), Baikal Club (Siberia) and others.

He recently documented a Kazakh eagle hunting family in the Altai mountains of Mongolia. Having published the resulting photo essay in a Soundslides format on Foto8, he writes that the spread of the Russian empire some 200 years ago sent many Kazakhs across the border into western Mongolia where they settled in the region of Bayan Ulgii. The current Kazakh government is offering financial and domestic incentives for these Kazakhs to return to their original homeland, but many decide to stay.

James Morgan's Kazakh Eagle Cultures can be seen of Foto8 (an excellent online photo magazine) or on his own website.

Note: The soundtrack is by Kawanduk playing a local instrument called dombra. It sounds very similar to a country & western song!

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William Widmer: Between Giants

Here's Between Giants, a feature on a small community in Ladakh by photojournalist William Widmer.

The Changpa are one of several groups of indigenous nomads who inhabited the high plains of Ladakha for generations, and are finding their traditional way of life threatened by modernity and influx of tourism.

William Widmer is a freelance photographer based in San Francisco, who's interested in shifting concepts of community. While most of his work is focused on subcultures within the United States, he also produced photo essays (including multimedia) of India and others. He also works at liveBooks, a company that provides customized, editable websites for photographers.

Don't miss his Soundslides essay on SOFOSH, an NGO involved in childcare, adoption and foster care for children.

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The Guardian: Yemen

Here's a Soundslides presentation titled The Secret Life of Yemen, as featured by The Guardian newspaper in the UK, and narrated by Kevin Rushby. It doesn't credit the photographs, but they could be by Bruno Morandi, whose photograph appears on the accompanying article by Rushby.

The producer of the slideshow attempted to use the "flip-book" technique for a sequence of stills to convey dynamic movement, and the sound editing includes both Rushby's narration and a catchy Yemeni folk song...but no ambient sound.

I've always wanted to travel to Yemen, however its bad publicity is a deterrent. Will this slideshow change my mind and others?

Incha'Allah.

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My Work: Al Ziqr Multimedia

The ziqr is a form of ritual performed by Sufis, a sect of Islam frequently considered as too liberal and too progressive by the more orthodox theological authorities in Egypt and the Islamic world. Nonetheless, it is practiced in Egypt, particularly in the slums of Cairo and in the country's rural areas. There has been a recent revival of interest in Sufism, and many of Egypt's contemporary Sufis are young, well educated people in professional careers.

The devotions of many Sufis center on the ziqr, a ceremony at which music, body movements, and chants induce a state of ecstatic trance in the disciples.

I photographed two of these rituals; one in the Old Cairo area of Darb Al Ahmar, and the other in a small village called Manawat. (Click the small arrow to start the slideshow).

A large version of this multimedia photo essay is here.

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Haiti

Ruxandra Guidi is a freelance radio and print news correspondent. During a five-week IRP Fellowship, Guidi traveled to Haiti to examine the effects of foreign aid on human rights, violence and povety. This Soundslides gallery, with photos by Roberto "Bear" Guerra and music by Luis Guerra, depicts the harsh living conditions in Haiti, a country gravitating from one humanitarian crisis to another.

The International Reporting Project (IRP) provides opportunities to U.S. journalists to go overseas to do international reporting on critical issues that are under covered in the U.S. news media.

(posted by TTP's robotic assistant)

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Horst Friedrichs: Mali

©Horst Friedrichs-All Rights Reserved
Here's a Soundlsides on Mali by Horst Friedrichs. It's in German but worth your while for the photographs even if you're a non German speaker.

Horst is photographer/photojournalist, who studied photography in Munich. He freelanced with Stern, The Independent and The New York Times in the nineties, and traveled to Venezuela, Pakistan, Mali and Japan. He produced a numner of books, among which is the well received Troubadours of Allah (what a glorious title!) depicting the Sufi singers (I tried to find his gallery on the Troubadours, but wasn't successful).

Posted by a TTP robot in London

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Chico Sanchez: Holy Week In Oaxaca

I've been waiting for Chico Sanchez's photographs of Semana Santa and as I predicted, he just came through with another of his well produced SoundSlides slideshows featuring Holy Week in Oaxaca. As you'll see, Easter for devout Oaxacans is the most important religious celebration of the year, which is demonstrated by processions and ceremonies that take place throughout the city of Oaxaca itself, and in the whole southern state.

The slideshow is a co-production of Chico Sanchez and Leslie Mazoch (who has co-produced many of these slideshows).

A number of Chico Sanchez's documentary/travel photography slideshows have been featured on The Travel Photographer blog; and can be found here.

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