Cat, Ufa, Bashkiria, Urals, Russia, September 1993
The picture of relaxed, not-a-care-in-the-world peace and contentment. JS, this one's for you.
Thursday, 5 April 2007
Wednesday, 4 April 2007
Railway Station, Urals, Russia, April 1993
Ah, Russian trains... I clocked up some 1200 hours on them, going as far east as Novosibirsk, capital of Siberia. I love them for the sense of immensity they give to the country - flying across it really avoids this, and (as has been said) causes one's soul to be left far behind, resulting in jetlag. In the 1990s it was like this: There are foldout seats in the wagon corridors; samovars boil water for tea, coffee, soup or whatever; one gets to know one's neighbours; children run free, safe; the restaurant car is also quite safe healthwise; the 4-berth's beds give a good night's rest (assuming you can sleep while in motion, and earplugs are a good idea also); and the country tranquilly rolls by the windows for days at a time. In short, what's the hurry? This is all part of the experience of travel in the largest country in the world.
(I think she didn't realise that my lens was wide enough to include her in the shot. Her arm makes a nice counterpoint line to that of the train going to the vanishing point, and also forms part of a triangle with the train and the railway station.)
St Peter and Paul Fortress, St Petersburg, Russia, January 1993
Every January there is a memorial day for the 900-day WWII German Blockade of Leningrad, as St P was known for most of its communist years. Up to a million people died in the city, but it didn't surrender (or wasn't allowed to). This is the only regular fireworks event which happens when the night is dark, i.e. in winter; the others have disappointingly light "White Nights" skies.
The general technique for shooting fireworks at night requires a tripod and an open shutter. Keep a piece of black card over the open shutter between bursts of fireworks, and snatch it away when you want to record them. Expose as many as you want on a single frame, being aware that exposure is affected by this. It calls for some experimentation.
Tony and Vladimir, Murmansk, Russia, October 1993 My first trip to Murmansk, above the Arctic Circle, 28 hours by train from St Petersburg. There are still many images of Lenin around Russia, both pictorial and sculptural. The resemblance is unfortunate, but has its uses; and at least I don't look like Stalin! (Apologies to the Georgians for that comment. Nothing personal.)
Tuesday, 3 April 2007
Memorial "postbox", lower Svaneti, October 2002
At first I thought these things were actually postboxes, except that sometimes they are found far from a house. The idea is to situate the box as close as possible to where the person died (often from drinking and driving, thus a road death). Food and drink are left in it so that those who come along can toast the memory of the reparted - and hopefully not get drunk themselves in the process.
Nodar's father's funeral memorial feast, Etseri, November 2001 Fully one-third of my many trips to Svaneti have involved funerals of people I knew. This dear old man, 82, was in Tbilisi for some routine medical checkup stuff, and died in his son's arms. I was out of the country at the time, and came back to the news. Nodar was already in Etseri, arranging the funeral. Some of his colleagues and I travelled up, and arrived just as the casket was processing up to the burial site. Lots of emotion, screaming and wailing - as is done here. One of my portraits was used to make the traditional engraved likeness on the headstone, a great honour. There were three tables (supra) like this one, all - as is required at any proper meal in Georgia - laden with vastly more than too much food, for hundreds of guests.
Stream, Etseri, August 2001
Water is a huge subject for me, along with reflections on it. This humble stream is not often so colourful, but I see it every day when I'm "at home" in Etseri. So, plenty of time for different moods to present themselves.
Photography is mostly about a) freeing oneself from needing to think about how the equipment works and b) seeing in new ways, which are often inner visions brought to realisation.
Monday, 2 April 2007
An expedition by horseback above Etseri in the direction of famous Mt. Ushba, August 2001(Top) The shack where we slept the night, temporarily used by farmers during the busy season. No electricity; dirt floor; wood heating, water by stream. But snug and cosy.
(Going down) Another example of: great excitment at the scene before me, shooting quite a few frames; disappointment with the prints from negative - too contrasty!; delighted rediscovery from scanning the negs. Ushba reflected: what a gift. The clouds just add drama for those who know how fickle and shy this mountain can be.
On the way back, overnight above Etseri; next morning, watching the scene emerge from clouds below.
Ancient church, isolated but not by any means forgotten or unused.
Trying for maximum layering of information with my 24mm wideangle lens, from close cracked pond mud to pond bottom to reflection to reality.
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