Distracted Among Culture
To a certain extent, no one can dictate how your time at a museum should be spent and just as I was thinking about this walking through several halls at The Metropolitan Museum, I found a New York Times article that described this same assessment: “At the Louvre, Many Stop to Snap but Few Stay to Focus.”
I could spend as much time roaming a museum as I can lose track of time in a bookstore, cross-referencing information that I’ve inspected briefly elsewhere but ultimately what keeps me in any of these 2 places is the fundamental interest of learning from things that I consider a source of self-improvement.
Culture is as ubiquitous as you would expect it to be in a museum and yet you have to realize that not everyone is going to deem that attraction nearly as appealing as you instantly would. I must have walked around this boy at least 3 times after I shot this photograph and even then, he was completely absorbed in his Gameboy that the only way he could have objected to my presence is if I had snatched the device away from him.
The boy was obviously more interested in having a more contemplative, solitary experience with his gadget than he was with the amazing Tibetan setting he found himself in. To each his own.
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Photo Essay: Colombian Day Parade in New York
Being around people who are passionately celebrating something is contagious. In this case, the candor in their screams, the hard sway of the tricolor flag, the array of native outfits, it’s alluring people and the overall readiness of the Colombian community in welcoming anyone to join their celebration was remarkable. Underneath the harsh 85 degree temperature on Sunday July 31st, I found myself amidst the streets of Northern Blvd celebrating the culture and the traditions of the annual Colombian day parade. I’m not Colombian but being a photographer and an admirer of culture was a good enough reason for attending.
In comparison to the Puerto Rican day parade which takes place along the overcrowded streets of 5th Ave, the Colombian one shined at a smaller scale which I liked a lot more. Unlike the slew of other photographers armed with 70-200mm lenses and 2 camera bodies strapped around their shoulders, I shot entirely with an 85mm and no press badge to guarantee that I would snag the type of up close shots I wanted. Constant movement was crucial because of the inability of my lens to zoom. Tasteful shots were all in the footwork.
With nothing to lose other than being escorted off the main streets and asked to stay behind the barricades like everyone else, I kept my dSLR as visible as possible so as to secure my stay in the middle of everything. I simply looked like I was supposed to be there and I guess you could say I behaved as if I knew what I was doing. During the 2+ hours that I walked the parade route alongside the participants, no one ever questioned my presence. I was asked twice who I was shooting for and at no time did I feel self-conscious stating I was working for myself. I solidified the statement as I handed them a Moo card.
The great thing about parades is that everything goes as far as street photography is concerned. When that amount of people are in a public place, particularly when they’re having fun and being entertained, they’re normally unaware of anything other than ensuring their view is not being obstructed from the spot they’ve secured for themselves hours before the event.
With the exception of a few onlookers, everyone’s is relatively upbeat if they notice you photographing them. You can’t expect not to be a potential subject if you’ve chosen to be part of such festivities. Asking permission to photography complete strangers is not something I’ve master as of yet so I took advantage of doing it all day. The likelihood that they would have declined was small in view of the setting we were in but uttering the words was a push towards boosting that confidence.
The reason I shot with a 85mm was because I don’t own a fast mid-range zoom lens yet. I’m looking to eventually purchase the 17-55mm f/2.8 but leaving the technical aspect aside, my objective as a photographer was not to be one of the many skulking at a distance. I didn’t want to be a voyeur to everything around me but rather an active participant. I love interacting with people too much to give up the opportunity of being close to the action.
I enjoy casual shots as much as anyone else but I appreciate it even more when people furnish me with the opportunity to photograph them because of my approach. The sun was shinning and in spite of that, I refused to wear my shades because I wanted the people to see who was photographing them. Street photography involves getting close to people and so much was the case during the parade that I’m eagerly added Colombia to the wishlist of countries I hope to one day visit.
Feel free to view the rest of the photographs from the Colombian Day Parade.
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Town of Zacatecoluca
What can I say about El Salvador? It’s small, it’s beautiful and it’s a country known for its war-torn past although that’s not what describes it today. It’s also a place I refer to as my second home after having lived there for 5 years with my grandparents in a town called Zacatecoluca.
Every year since the age of 8, my parents would send my brother and I for the entire summer. With each visit, our attraction for the way of life, the culture and unfamiliar settings that we might have missed the previous year grew stronger that we one day asked our parents if we could live abroad for a year.
You can imagine how unsettling it was for a parent to hear their kids asking them such a question but I think the thought process behind my parent’s decision to accept was that there’s many kids who know more about the latest video games than they do about their heritage.
When you visit a place, you’re likely to know more about the destination from the people you see than they attractions you visit. I have friends who were born in El Salvador that now live in the states and I happen to know more about the culture they they do. Granted I spent 5 years of my life amongst the locals but it was my interest in learning about my parents were born that awarded my the knowledge and not the books they gave us in school to read.
Anything electronic was and still is expensive, so one year I asked my parents if they could send me a digital camera. Couples weeks later I receive a Canon A80 which is what I utilized to take this photograph of the town we lived in. That in the background is a volcano by the way. The fear of having lived close to one eventually goes away.
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Mayan Souvenir
In comparison to the cold, dark and lengthy days of being in New York during the holidays, Cozumel is a heaven that can be reached in 6 hours to experience the complete opposite. It’s a beautiful place with gentile people, colorful culture, appetizing food and not to mention a feast for your camera. Photographs seems to come easy in the sense that the overwhelming feeling of newness is too much to prevent you from not wanting to document everything.
I’m always attracted to the beautiful settings of a place as much as I am about the people in it. Particularly in Mexico, it’s interesting in seeing the residents being part of a culture fighting to keep their delicate balance of rich Mayan heritage of the past with all the commercialism of the present. Mementos of their ancestry were unquestionably encountered every in Cozumel and I would be remiss in not bringing back a portion of it after having enjoyed so much the stay in this beautiful country.
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