a portrait of kid monks Photo

Photographer’s Note

this was taken in tewang monastery in arunachal pradesh. it's supposed to be one of the most beautiful monasteries in arunachal pradesh. and it's at quite a height must be easily 10,000 ft above sea level.it's a pity foreigner's are not allowed in arunachal pradesh. at least this part of arunachal pradesh.it's one th most spectacular states in this country.
what struck me the most about this place was that i've never seen so many young monks at any other monastery.every family from the nearby villages has to send one boy in the family to become a monk. it may seem harsh, but the parents are extremely proud about their kids being monks and these kids are happy as well.
i must also mention that this photograph has not been cropped . it's the original . the only photograph that ive cropped is the beggar girl and mystic.

eleparc, Darren, merpb, Galeota, reinoco, shihwei, kajspice has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

maciekda (19599) 2004-04-26 10:17

this is good Sohrab, great tight composition - so close! and the orther kind in the background is nicely included. great faces - this young tired skin. wonderful picture

Darren (6819) 2004-04-26 10:32

This is very good Sohrab. A great, tight compositon and very good use of shallow DOF. One (very) minor thing is that it appears the eye on our right is slightly sharper than the eye on the left. Hard to control with such shallow DOF, but I think it would be better if the left eye was the sharper one, as that sort of would follow the lessening focus as we look to the right. This is really minor and the photo is excellent.

guyben (1097) 2004-04-26 10:54

Excellent portrait. It is nice to see someone who isn't afraid to almost fill the frame with his subject.
Also, the harsh reality of this boys' life is well captured here, well done.
I feel that this image would benefit from b&w. Color seems to be distracting here and b&w tones could enhance the drama.
I've posted a workshop for you.

Well done anyway.

[workshop] [compare] +

eleparc (24059) 2004-04-26 11:28

very interesting note sohrab! this kid's skin seems to have endured some harsh climatic conditions...very daring crop and compo... i like it! ;-) i donot agree with darren about this eye focus idea... if anything was perfect in this world, one would probably know it by now...;-) this petty critic for me was useless and out of bounds...

liakoshim (565) 2004-04-26 13:17

very good image. such close up allows to see every details on his face. i like the other face peeking through behind. perfect depth. thank you for sharing. my dream is to see your country. i hope it will come true soon.

ADC (36) 2004-04-26 19:08

Great face, great color, great picture. It could be a National Geographic cover photo.

gringofil (0) 2004-04-27 0:37

This is an excellent shot. I like your compo here with one boy in the foreground and the other in the background. Good job, too, on keeping the DOF shallow enough, but also wide enough for us to make out the second character in the back. Quite an amazing shot you've got here. The toned down colors are simply amazing. Well done!

merpb (1970) 2004-04-27 7:25

Fantastic portrait sohrab, as a viewer I am completely engaged. Your powerful dynamic crop is fautless and the point of focus for me is spot on.
Superb image.

Galeota (10334) 2004-04-27 8:23

Excellent shot. The eyes of the child are fantastic and I like the short DOF and consequently that the second child stays blurred on the background, although a smile is perceptible.

photosettle (1505) 2004-05-13 11:06

Good choice for depth of field. Really like the tight composition, which helps us focus on the first figure. I almost get the feeling the young monk behind is looking admirably at the one in focus. Nice shot

nygus (8077) 2004-05-16 19:53

good stuff. i like the crop, and DOF, i love the "mountain" skin texure. Nose 's to white though. keep up though. finally i see Indian pictures not done by western tourist but by a local guy.good job,

flydragon (0) 2004-09-01 13:26

Hello Sohrab
i missed some of your pics
woww this one is really beautifull
composition dof
this is excellent
well done
Simon

reinoco (4) 2004-09-02 8:17

This is definately art! Amazing photo it makes you feel like you are actually there.

doitashimashite (0) 2004-12-04 9:21

This picture attracts my immediate attention. This two-in-one portrait is interesting because of the DOF: one face sharp, the other one blurry and in the background. The fact that it is an extreme close-up adds to the strength of the image. Plus, I think that this picture is taken pretty quickly because the young monk isn't really posing, the expression in his eyes is rather natural.

This picture is a winner, I wouldn't know how it could have done any better.

sengir (4946) 2005-01-08 8:15

I like it. Nothing new to write ;)

Gardenia (107) 2006-02-23 13:12

I love this pic!

Photo Information

Copyright: sohrab hura (sohrab) (7423)
Genre: People
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2003-00-00
Categories: Daily Life
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Theme(s): smiles from around the world, E.Y.E.S, Faces of India [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2004-04-26 9:59
Favorites: 2 [view]