Traditional Hairstyle, a photo from Kunene, North

Photographer's Note

Himba hairstyles have symbolic meanings, related to their social status.

Before reaching puberty, girls have only two thick braids bent over their face.

These braids are replaced by a multitude of thinner strains hanging in all directions from the head after puberty. Moving into adolescence, these strains are lengthened and tied back away from her face, signalling her readiness to marry.

Once a woman is married, her hair is rebraided, including animal hair and hair from her family members. An erembe, a ruffled piece of goat's leather is tied to the top of a woman's head. This is also the last time a woman's hairstyle changes.

PaulVDV, Suppiluliuma, sevy, worldcitizen, Sonata11, jjcordier, RhodieIke, SnapRJW, patdeph, jhm has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

PaulVDV (15017) 2011-07-11 0:26

Hello André,
That's really a very beautiful portrait.
Really a special hairstyle with the thick braids bent over the girl's face.
I like her critical, inquiring expression.
Best regards, Paul

Suppiluliuma (3843) 2011-07-11 0:33

Very interesting info. Thank you.

The shadow adds a different perspective, a 3D to the image, but is a little distracting, creating tension while reading the shot, IMHO.

TFS Dear André.

Cheers,

Erdem

TopGeo (37994) 2011-07-11 0:52

Hello André,
That's really a very beautiful portrait.
Best Regards
Georgios

sevy (13273) 2011-07-11 1:24

Bonjour André,

Un portrait tres interessant et tres bien accompagné par ta note. Tu es certain de ne pas travailler pour le National Geographic sous un pseudo?
Toujours aussi impressionné par le niveau de detail visible sur la peau avec ce 85mm. Qu'est ce que ca doit etre sur le fichier plus format!
j aime bien le placement du modéle legerement de profil avec la tete de face, presque sur la diagonal du cadre et se cachant legerement derriere une des tresses.

Yves.

yquem46 (32295) 2011-07-11 2:01

bonjour André
Encore un beau portrait de grande qualité
J'aime bien son air penché qui prend la diagonale et rend le portrait "non posé" et son originale tresse qui lui barre la figure de façon naturelle
bonne semaine et bien amicalement
Patrick

dta (51480) 2011-07-11 2:12

Salut Andre ,
Très joli portrait , et en sus , une coiffure vraiment originale .
merci du partage .

holmertz (26980) 2011-07-11 8:06

Hello Andre,
A great portrait and an important note that makes us understand, not just smile. The light is wonderfully warm and the girl's eyes are very alert and inquisitive,
Kind regards,
Gert

abmdsudi (26295) 2011-07-11 9:32

Hi Andre
I love this cutie, the simplicity of composition and colour. The main attention, her eyes are placed off centre to gives some space for viewers to explore this portrait and there is good interaction too. Shallow depth of field has allowed her to remain in sharp focus while blurring the background. She is fully aware that she is being photographed and actively posing for it. Well exposed and good colour with pleasant lighting that gives a nice glow to the skin Her hair style is something special. The eye level shot makes it more engaging to viewers and allows us to be a part of the scene. Love the expression tooo. Gorgeous shot, Congrats. TFS
Best rgds

leo61 (0) 2011-07-11 13:09

Hi Andre!
An interesting note and I think this is the first Himba kid photo I can see at TE.Good low POV and a nice blurred background.The light is perfect,too.
I`m not posting these days,,tired and bored with TE.I`m missing more photos in such a good quality.
Best regards,leo

Sonata11 (28375) 2011-07-11 17:16

Hello Andre,
a very beautiful portrait of this girl. Fantastic colors, sharpness, clarity perfect. Wonderful work. Perect shot.
All the best,
Barbara

Waylim (22357) 2011-07-11 18:54

Andre,
This is so cool, I want a hair still like this :) I'll be the center of attention at my work for sure.

Joking aside, this is a very striking portrait shot, not only the hair that grab our attention, the direct yet contact, the quizzical look, the love all the details of the facial expression. The note simple but straight forward to give us exactly what we need to know, no more no less.

Perfect post.

Way

jjcordier (62366) 2011-07-11 23:09

André
On est déjà comblé par cette superbe photo d'exceptionnelle qualité mais tu y ajoutes en plus une note très instructive et intéressante. J'aime le petit air mutin-aguicheur de cette jeune fille qui fait semblant de se dissimuler derrière sa tresse. Un de ces portraits qui me font rêver...et que je n'arriverai jamais à faire!
Amitiés
JJ

RhodieIke (9207) 2011-07-11 23:46

Hi Andre, Super photo of this young lady proudly showing off her braids,great colour's and light, Cheers Iain.

SnapRJW (18784) 2011-07-12 0:19

Hello Andre - Despite the strong light, your have produced a soft and beautiful portrait. I like your almost 3/4 pose and the way the girl is leaning into the space with slightly tilted head, it emphasises her inquisitive expression. The soft BG works perfectly too. Super shot. Best wishes Rosemary

patdeph (35738) 2011-07-12 2:41

bonjour André
la fillette est adorable,j'adore sa pose,ses nattes,ses bijoux,tu l'as superbement cadrée,mais je suis surtout époustouflée par la beauté des couleurs.
Amitiés
Pascale