In the above portraits a teacher sits on the same frame as her student, both associated with Humana People to People India. We arrived mid-day and needed to find a place of shade. As we talked in the narrow alley I noticed this courtyard just over a low wall. We asked the residents of the home and they welcomed us without issue. The entrance to the courtyard is to the upper right corner, and the wall is just beyond the baskets and grass/dung packets.
The residents of the house provided the small chair, and one by one the students sat down for their portraits. We would make perhaps four to six exposures of each child, then ask the next to sit down. As we were finishing our work we asked their teacher to join in the session and she did without reluctance. She even sat down in the same chair, in full view of the children and adults as well. The level of dedication always touches me, to see women and men working so diligently on behalf of the little ones.
The portrait of the young girl was made on the sixteenth roll while the latter image was made on the eighteenth roll of this session. A Hasselblad 555 ELD was used with a 120mm lens mounted on a tripod for consistency and stability. The film used was Fuji's Neopan Acros 100 ASA, and a small reflector was placed behind me and to the right with the help of a local volunteer.
Soon we hope that this school will reopen and have plans to help reopen five schools in 2013 with the gracious help of Humana People to People India. In this way this wonderful teacher can return to her position and this student can once again learn to read and to write in between performing chores for her family.
Any reader interested in taking part of this work may contact me through the following links, input is most welcome.
Halim Ina Photography
Wow I love this return to including the environment. I shoot like this too. I've been fooling around with small aperture so that even the background is in focus. I hope to bring my lens to bear on my human rights/empowerment activities. All I have is a canon t3i and I'm still learning how to use it. I was morning my long gone darkroom days but then I say Zone System for digital today! I don't really miss the darkroom but I miss the idea of continuous tone.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you are on the planet brother. I have a small commentary that takes place in Mumbai: http://leftthumbprint.wordpress.com/2012/12/27/httpedition-cnn-comvideovideoworld20121207india-weeping-jesus-cnn/
You my dear good brother are an asset to our local arena and to the world at large. Your eyes see the world in the clearest manner, and I consider myself honored to know you. The simplest of cameras in your hands will work because YOU already see what needs to be represented. Zone System is still with us, regardless of tools. I look forward to seeing more of your work, and will check out the link in a little bit.
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