Dancer + Beach, Santa Maria del Mar, Cuba, Summer of 2013

On August 1st of last summer we met with this young woman and her parents and traveled to the beaches of Santa Maria del Mar, just outside of La Habana. An incredible student of dance at a prominent school, she performed for us under the heat of the sun with enthusiasm.

This was her second year with us, allowing her to become more comfortable in her performances. She is selfless and will at times bring another dancer so as to allow us to photograph two rather than one during our sessions. While we would have been more than happy to photograph her on her own, we were also just as happy to photograph two young women and allow each one to rest a bit while the other danced.

Here she is after asking to be photographed while she jumped. I hope she enjoys this image as much as I do when she sees it this summer.

Model + School, Havana, Cuba, Summer of 2013

Once again, and now and then, the men enter the picture… and in this case the camera minded very little. He exuded power and confidence, while also being so gentle and considerate. He allowed all before him to be photographed at the school, then stepped up as the last model to be photographed.

I look forward to photographing him and a female model on the beach, looking forward to this dynamic combination sometime in July! 

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Note: This portrait was made with a Hasselblad 555 ELD/180mm combination onto Fuji Neopan Acros 100 ISO film.

Friend of a Friend + Sand, Santa Maria Del Mar, Cuba, Summer of 2013

On this afternoon with Paola she asked two of her friends to come along at our request. We saw them hanging out in front of their homes and wondered if they would be interested. Well they were and loved the thought of heading out to the beach for the afternoon.

This young woman however enjoyed the beach a little less due to the restrictions placed on her by her family due to her most recent religious progression. While she loved being with her friends, and the sun on her face, she was itching to go into the water. Nonetheless she was so pleasant to document and had this way about her with the lens, soft and deeply moving.

Hopefully she loves the images scanned today and will allow me to photograph her once again, this time in the water.

This image was made on the beach at Santa Maria del Mar just outside of La Habana, Cuba… with natural light and a Hasselblad 555 ELD/180mm combination onto Fuji Neopan Acros 100 ISO film.

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Refugee + Camp, Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, India, December of 2013

Face after face walked over to the space in front of my camera. The honor of being given this chance to photograph each and every one of them cannot be described fully here. Sure my camera has been places and photographed thousands of people, yet it has never dismissed the privilege attached to such a task on behalf of every single individual.

From Delhi the camps are perhaps a little over three hours away. The first two hours are quite easy relatively speaking, but the last hour or so made our drivers quite uneasy… even more so in the dark since this rural area is filled with tractors carrying enormous piles of hay.

On two of our trips we arrived at night never knowing to which home we were going. We would pick up men on the way and be taken usually to a mosque for evening prayers. Then we would be fed the best of meals, then taken to our rooms to rest for the night prior to the photography in the morning. Never once did I ever see a woman in any of these homes, yet the meals and our rooms were all prepared by the women of these households.

When morning arrived all were prepared to arrive at the camps before sunrise so as to begin the photography as the sun appeared. Less than five minutes after our arrival almost all of the children would be gathered, and ready to be photographed. The task at hand would be to maintain order and ask for the girls to be photographed first.

This young woman for example was the first to be photographed at this camp, and the men for the most part did quite well. This lasted for perhaps ten minutes and then groups of men started to gather and check the proceedings out for themselves. This naturally made it quite difficult for the ones following her and we did our best to minimize the distractions. When I would see a girl's eyes diverted to the people behind me, I would stop and look around to see five or six men standing with their arms crossed. Sometimes smiling at them and nodding for them to move along would do the trick. When that failed a more stern approach was necessary, showing them that perhaps they themselves might feel uncomfortable being stared at in this manner.

What I noticed the most after doing either is that the girls would show their appreciation in the most subtle of manners and understand that my presence was purely on their behalf. They knew that the camera was there for them and that this was one way for them to get their stories out, like messages in bottles.

When the rest of the girls saw this young woman cover her face slightly and my reaction to this action, almost all of them wanted to do the same and played with various versions of this presentation. It was wonderful to see them being so creative and so free with their expressions, an incredible morning all in all. I just hope that progress comes to their camps very soon and that these young girls find a bit of solace in their otherwise most difficult lives.

Note: This image was made with a Sony RX100M2, mounted side by side with a Hasselblad 555 ELD.

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Paola + Hands, La Habana, Cuba, Summer of 2013

Her name is Paola and she lives in an apartment within the center of Havana, Cuba. She loves to model and is enrolled in a fabulous training program run by an incredible woman. We met one day as we sat down at the end of a show, as she walked over to look at my portfolio. She was so calm about it and looked beyond her 12 years.

I asked if she was interested, and she nodded with an incredibly fierce expression. We introduced ourselves to her mother and found a deeply dedicated woman. She defined the word 'support' and always met our offers with a positive answer. 

She always made sure that her daughter was ready, both in terms of timeliness and in terms of wardrobe. When one thinks of the most humble environment in which they live, these acts of selflessness are even more incredible.

This past summer was the summer of hearts, at least hands making the sign of a heart. Paola took part in this beautiful movement, and here she is in all of her glory.

www.halimina.org

Note: These images were made with a Hasselblad 555 ELD/180mm combination, onto Fuji Neopan Acros 100 ISO film.

Refugee + Camp, Muzaffarnagar Riots, Uttar Pradesh, India, December, 2013

Sometimes the portraits exclude the environment in which these young girls live, presenting the individuals rather than the community. In this instance both are included for your review. This young girl has seen hell on earth, has been uprooted from her village through intense violence and has been forced to live in this makeshift collection of tents.

We can only imagine what she has seen and experienced as a young girl during the most recent violence in the Muzaffarnagar region of Uttar Pradesh, India. The government is nowhere to be found here, only private citizens doing what they can do. I was advised that some of these young girls had been violated even more so, and this brought a sense of shame to me as a man while pushing me even more so to represent them with the highest of respect through these portraits.

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Refugee + Muzaffarnagar Riots, Uttar Pradesh, India, December, 2013

Another young girl from this camp presents herself to us in this portrait. Months after this was made my mind is still seeking answers, trying to understand more so her expression. Amazing she is in that she does this in front of three dozen of her friends and in front of the male members of her community watching just meters away. I am always in awe although tens of thousands of these portraits have been made over the years.

When we arrived in these camps my friend Asrar would just tell me, 'put the camera down someplace and just tell me which faces you would like to photograph.' This was difficult for me to do at first until I realized that these girls were drawn to the camera, and that my presence was a welcome one. So we did just that, put the camera down in a good spot and watched as all of them walked from their tents over to us.

Chaos would ensue at first, followed by an incredible patience on their behalf. They would sit near to us and wait for their turns without making me feel hurried, especially when the sun will only give us an hour at the most of perfect light. In this portrait she turns to her to the left, allowing that sweetest of triangles to light the shadows under her left eye.

My friend Asrar and his team have gone out to visit the camps most recently and have begun the reconstruction efforts. Soon many of these camps will be more permanent, with housing and bathrooms in addition to water wells in each area. I hope that this improves her life and allows her to begin the healing process.

Young Woman + Model, Pan American Stadium, La Habana, Cuba, Summer of 2013

She was one of the young women joining us at the Pan American Stadium from the last Cuban Post. We met her and her four friends at her professor's home, and arranged for us to go first followed by them in Alejandro's car.

The day was cloudy as mentioned previously, and Eduardo used his digital camera while I provided support through a reflector. In doing so I experienced first hand working in a supportive role, and enjoyed watching Eduardo working while trying my best to accommodate the light to his needs.

Just as we had given up the sun appeared suddenly through a slight opening in the sky. We dropped everything and picked up our film cameras, Eduardo's Rolleiflex and my Hasselblad. The young women were so professional and granted us their portraits in a very organized manner since we had less than ten minutes of sun remaining.

Five women took their turns, with this young woman being the second to go. I noticed that when she stepped in front of us Eduardo's level of interest increased. Looking more closely and from a distance now the reason is very clear. Some of the most expressive work from this afternoon she produced, and this carried through to our second session. At times she emotes deep sadness, at times a most sensual element.

All in all we took whatever light was given to us and made the best of it. The portraits however made during these ten minutes of sunlight were deeply rewarding, with this being but one example.

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Note: This image was made using natural light only with a Hasselblad 555 ELD/120 lens combination onto Kodak T-Max 400 ISO film.

Model + Pan American Stadium, La Habana, Cuba, Summer of 2013

Since Alejandro's 1954 Chevy was unable to accommodate eight of us comfortably, meaning that we wanted the young woman to be free of our less than odorless presence for the ride to the Pan American Stadium, Alejandro dropped us off first and then went back for the models. La Maestra prepared them beautifully and of course came along to guide them further during the photography.

Unfortunately the clouds joined us and we ended up mostly using the digital platform initially. Then just as we thought the sun had set for the evening, a sliver of sky opened up and we dispatched with the digital cameras and picked up our film. Eduardo picked up his trusty Rolleiflex and I my Hasselblad and we went to work.

We had four young women in our presence and asked each to step in front of the white wall for a minute or so before the sun disappeared. Each gave us a dozen exposures and then allowed the others to do the same.

This young woman was less than seventeen years old and stood well above all of us. She had a way about her, and knew just how to bend her neck to support her head effortlessly. She dreamt of being a model and was doing quite well with La Maestra. I hope that she's continued and look forward to another session at the stadium!

Man + Necklace, Just Outside of Havana, Cuba, Summer of 2013

One last portrait for tonight, this one is from last summer in Cuba. We walked through Alejandro's neighborhood and this man happened to be an old friend of his father. He agreed to his portrait quickly and this was made before his wife came over to take the necklace off in her attempt to clean him up a bit. I thought he was magnificent as he was of course and prefer this portrait. 

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Note: This image was made with a Hasselblad 555 ELD/120mm lens combination onto Fuji Neopan Acros 100 ISO film.