Postcard from hell Photo

Photographer’s Note

The hard ascent from Ijen lake of a miner who carry about 90kg of sulfur in the middle of clouds of foul smelling fumes.
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West of Gunung Merapi is the Ijen volcano, which has a one-kilometer-wide turquoise-colored acid crater lake. The lake is the site of a labor-intensive sulfur mining operation, in which sulfur-laden baskets are carried by hand from the crater floor.

Sulfur Mining at Ijen
An active vent at the edge of the lake is a source of elemental sulfur, and supports a mining operation. Escaping volcanic gasses are channeled through a network of ceramic pipes, resulting in condensation of molten sulfur. The sulfur, which is deep red in color when molten, pours slowly from the ends of these pipes and pools on the ground, turning bright yellow as it cools. The cooled material is broken into large pieces and carried out in baskets by the miners. Typical loads range from 70–100 kilograms, and must be carried to the crater rim approximately 200 meters above before being carried several kilometers down the mountain. Most miners make this journey twice a day. The miners are paid by a nearby sugar refinery by the weight of sulfur transported (600Rupees per kg). The miners often use insufficient protection while working around the volcano and are susceptible to numerous respiratory complaints.
from Wikipedia

BilboCA, ktanska, cherryripe has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

mariani_josep (360) 2009-09-27 19:35

Hi Luca

I like your picture ... great composition. The effect of wide lense make distorsion in a man in the right and it's nice.

TFS
MJ

BilboCA (734) 2009-09-27 20:16

Hi, Luca,

Thanks for sharing this story with us through your photo and note. There is great value in this sort of documentary reporting about conditions for people working (and living) throughout the world.

There is much about the photo to like aesthetically. I like the colors: the rich blue sky, the green-blue pool, and the yellow sulfur cakes are striking in intensity. The steam creates a mystical quality. (The sulfurous fumes no doubt make this environment hellish when added to the enormous workloads of the miners, but that smell doesn't come across in the photo...) You've placed the elements nicely in the frame.

Compliments,
- William

westcoastgirl1 (1664) 2009-09-27 20:40

Hi Luca

Fabulous! Great shot and write up. Thanks for sharing about the plight of the minors who have to work there.

Thanks,
Tosca (westcoastgirl1)

sevy (14056) 2009-09-28 0:12

Hello Luca,

This shot was already shown in many books but it is not changing its impact with the guys working hard in an hell landscape.
You used well the potential of the wide angle to show us the actions inside the landscape.

Yves.

jjcordier (25412) 2009-09-28 0:44

luca
La beauté sauvage de cet endroit est à couper le souffle mais ta photo montre aussi les conditions atroces dans lesquelles ces gens travaillent. Très belle photo!
Amicalement
JJ

eversmile (6543) 2009-09-28 0:46

Hi Luca

I like this one too... the fury of the elements is somehow magnified by the clarity of the colors, but we have a good idea of the wilderness. I like the contrast of colors, and the curve of the mountain in the back that seems to accompany, a degree higher,the slope that the miner is climbing... it introduces a more dramatical tension in the atmosphere. forgive me to quibble over that, but IMHO, you could have slightly cropped on the left, where the colored elements down the rock are a little distracting, without losing the mood of the picture. My attempt in WS.
Anyway, congratulations! I wonder how difficult it is to breathe? I have been visiting the volcano on Pantar island, that seemed not so active although, but to my surprise, it was not so much as hell as I had imagined.
Regards
Marine

[workshop] [compare]

ktanska (16733) 2009-09-28 3:29

Hi Luca,
Rough beauty of the place is ironic contrast to all the pains those workers have to suffer. Touching picture where the documentary value goes beyound technical excellence.
Kari

Uzi (1160) 2009-09-28 5:39

beautifull photo. with this contrast and coluras... and your note.. the view is so amazing.. but if this place is your place of work it's not so amazing ....
great job
cheers
Iza

pauloog (7079) 2009-09-28 14:48

Hello Luca,
A splendid and interesting view combining the strange beauty of the volcano with the almost inhuman conditions of the worker.
A real TE document.
regards,
Paul

brandstaetter (14516) 2009-09-29 3:02

Ciao Luca,

e´ assolutamente necessario di avere un grandangolo nella tascha, per queste occasioni straordinarie. Un lavoro bellissimo.
Ciao Christian

cherryripe (19237) 2009-09-29 10:49

Hi Luca
There's so much atmosphere in this shot, not only due to the thick steam but also due to the position of the guy on the right. Just a pity his face is slightly hidden. Like the colours too.
Regards
Nikki

Giedra70 (597) 2009-10-04 2:19