The Travelling Mendicant Photo

Photographer’s Note

Just flew into Leh this morning and ignored advice to stay put and acclimatise for a day....this picture was the reward for non compliance!
This sadhu decided it was too hot in Hardwar and arrived a week ago to Leh for the first time. Realised in two days flat that he was not being given alms....because the population is either Muslim or Buddhist..mainly the latter ..and so no Hindu's means no sustenance.
He promptly invested Two Hundred rupees in a second hand weighing machine and took up his place at the "blue wall" as an entrepreneur !!!
Charges 3 rupees for one weighing and is already into profits.....I added my two bits to his treasure trove as well ...and he obliged with this picture...
I've called this a "decisive moment" for him since he renounced his vows by earning money as a tradesman, instead of being a mendicant requesting alms!!!

Olga, Darren, Burnham, omritoppol, eleparc, joannar, nbournas, Pompey, hispic, Isabelle, Webby, fapmap, Mansi, Quentin has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Olga (901) 2004-05-25 10:59

funny story, ttmountainman!! how come he expected Leh to be Hindu... how's the weather in Leh right now? amazing clear colours, as usual.

Darren (6815) 2004-05-25 11:09

Nice shot Vijay. Blue and yellow almost always go together well in a photo, this is no exception. The composition is very good, I think. It does look like you were fighting the light on this one. Clearly bright and contrasty, it looks as though you had to do some dodging to bring out details in his face. Unfortunately, this seems to have created some artifacts in the darker areas of his face. However, what else are you to do? The shot overall is very appealing and your note is great.

Burnham (2449) 2004-05-25 11:09

Very good picture Vijay, never mind acclimatizing, good choice. I think he might be a bit to blue in the face, did a workshop.
Everything else is great, good cropping and so well seen with the yellow in front of that nice blue wall.

[workshop] [compare]

joannar (300) 2004-05-25 11:34

What a great shot and story behind it, Vijay! I love the contrast between blue and yellow and your composition with the sadhu not centrally positioned is great.
I always thought that sadhus were a very entrepreneurial lot - but I didn't know that a weighting machine could be such a goldmine :-)
Have a good time up there!

marcchia (199) 2004-05-25 11:44

Lovely colors. Well composed. Perfect..

kourosh (2356) 2004-05-25 12:07

very good portrait Vijay. nice composition, focus, DOF and sharpness. but in my view it is way oversaturated.

nbournas (3146) 2004-05-25 12:39

Excellent story Vijay but also the photo to compliment your story is nicely executed with beautiful and bright colors. I would prefer a little more light on his face but you can't have everything I guess.

omritoppol (826) 2004-05-25 17:53

This is a great portrait. I really enjoy the bright colors. Good compo with him on the right. I realize you had harsh light conditions which can be seen in lack of details in his left side of the face, but still a great shot. Well done

cool_s15 (4040) 2004-05-26 4:18

Wonderful portrait! I really like the contrast of blue and yellow. Nice composition and framing. Well captured.

eleparc (24059) 2004-05-26 14:11

Hi vijay, your post makes my day since i will be visiting ladakh and leh beginning of august... did you fly in from delhi? any pb to acclimatise tothe height?

I love this pic and the note attached:-) it seems you had a harsh light burning out some of his face...but it was worth the try and the shot!;-)) looking forward to seeing more of your shots of my vacation to come...;-)) pts later

Webby (119) 2004-05-27 8:00

Well the colours just hit you don't they! Even though the sunlight is coming from behind you still managed to capture the shaded area of his face. "Decisive moment" indeed, great image.

bfly (5735) 2004-05-28 13:37

great portrait Vijay...and you did good not to do all the daycare for others who could not acclimatise:)..
I think there is too much magenta in the picture though...very good framing and very good story...
wellcome back home..
..(this one could go as a fenerbahce flag too :) I know some people who would be proud of this one more than usual..)

fapmap (250) 2004-06-10 14:30

Fantastic contrast of colors... love it. Difficult to manage the overexposure on the top right of his hat, and the low exposure on his face... Great composition too.
Frank.

mohitmidha (361) 2005-10-18 14:57

hey tt, thanks for introducing me to this site.it rocks! i really feel you should do more portraits.think u have more flair for it than many "professionals" i've seen like myself :)

Mansi (543) 2005-10-23 6:49

wonderful shot.. and gorgeous colors!
your non compliance produced beautiful results...
thanks for sharing
mansi

Quentin (5276) 2005-11-08 10:48

Hi Vijay
This is a beautiful portrait and the colours contrast is
great! I like how you composed your shot and the glance of the
sadhu. Your note is interesting too.
Regards
Quentin