Woman in train, a photo from Mandalay, North

Photographer's Note

Travelling on a nine-hour crowded narrow-gauged six-car Slow Train from Thazi (70km south of Mandalay) to Shengyuong in Shan State, I ended up standing in a carriage without seats for 6 hours occuppied by villagers mainly women farmers and baskets of market produce but it was a wonderful experience which should not be missed while gaze through wide open windows at the wonderful scenery passing by at a speed of just 20-50kph.

After 3hours of crossing the plain from Thazi, the train enters the hills and climbs up a steep mountainside in Shan state on a series of switchbacks, reversing several times and backing up the slope to gain height to the final 1500m high on the plataeu. In several points, the train loops around and doubles back on itself. The process of 'climbing the staircase' slopes last about i hour, the parallel tracks can be seen on each 'step' below as the train progressively climbs without changing in lateral distance. It is so facsinating and a life time experience indeed to see how this 'staircase climb' from lowland up the plataeu was invented by British engineers two hundred years ago and still in use today and probably the only of such system in the world.

About this picture:
This was a quick shot of a lone woman looking out of the carriage. I loved the darkness around her and the light outside and her thoughtful face - how I would have liked to know what she was thinking!
ISO upped to 500 due to low lighting.

Additional pictures:
Workshop1: Picture of the crowd in the Slow-Train from Thazi to Shengyong.

Workshop2: From Kalaw station the next scenic forty km is undulating as the train goes over an impressive bridge over a canyon and there follows a final steep fall known as the Heho Ghat then on to Shengyuong terminus, the gateway to the Inle Lake.

ourania, holmertz, daddo, bukitgolfb301, Noel_Byrne, Schnappilic, Cricri, CLODO, Vasa, adores, macjake, gus72 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

ourania (13085) 2013-01-03 12:03

Hello Abmdsudi,
a wonderful look on your quiet fellow traveller. Sharpness and depth are excellent and she is superbly placed at the right side of the tight frame as her eyes are fixed to the left side. I love the light on her face and eyes that stand out delightfully in the dark ambiance. Thanks to your great note we have an accurate idea about the landscapes that are passing before her eyes but no idea about her captivating melancholic expression. I absolutely love the photo from the interior of the wagon in the workshop. Congratulations and thank you!
All the best, have a great day,
Ourania

holmertz (27216) 2013-01-03 13:04

Hello Abmdsudi,
This is a wonderful portrait with exceptionally good light and colours. The woman really makes me wonder too what was on her mind. She is quite beautiful but she doesn't look very happy. Maybe she was just tired. In all its simplicity it's also a masterly composed photo. The workshop photos are also very interesting. The crowd inside in the train is fascinating and would have been a very good regular upload.
Kind regards,
Gert

daddo (18635) 2013-01-03 13:50

Salam Abmdsudi. Interesting and moving result as we admire the technique involved and the small window into her soul/mind.I do miss your photos of the Uighurs. Regards. Klaudio.

yquem46 (32835) 2013-01-03 13:59

hello abmdsudi
nice close up portrait off centered
Very expressive and razor sharp
The " abmdsudi" quality
Best regards
Patrick

energypolice (190) 2013-01-03 16:32

Hello Abmdsudi,
Excellent photograph, excellent sharpness, excellent composition, excellent lighting.
TFS,
Matrix

bukitgolfb301 (30401) 2013-01-03 21:05

Hi dear Abmdsidi YTH

Selamat tahun baru 2013! Semoga sukses anda dalam tahun ini!

Great start by greatly impresive portrait!
Nice close-up her profile. Her a little sad expression is outstanding indeed! Very good text for portrait shot! Thank you for you sharing and have a good day!

Takero from Tokyo

Fis2 (73646) 2013-01-04 1:44

Witaj Abmdsudi!
Curious face, interesting eyes.
I like frame, composition and light.
Excellent portrait.
Best regards
Krzysztof

amaryllis (30381) 2013-01-04 6:07

Bonjour
un très beau portrait de cette femme dans le train, de profil, à l'air pensif; c'est excellent comme toutes tes photos de portrait
a bientôt
juliette

dkmurphys (37419) 2013-01-04 7:58

Hello,
Another great portrait. Looks like the woman has a lot of bad thoughts or just everyday problems...Well seen, enjoy the weekend.

Daniel

Noel_Byrne (8073) 2013-01-04 8:06

Hi Abmdsudi,
This lady does indeed have a very thoughtful look, and tinged with sadness it seems too. Her mind appears completely elsewhere as you took this. Thanks as always for your note which puts great context to the image. Lovely composition as well, with great control over depth of field.
All the best
Noel

eldancer1 (17330) 2013-01-04 9:35

Beautiful portrait! Love the lighting and nice catch of the expression on this woman's face. Details are very sharp. Very well done, tfs.

chrisvek (5675) 2013-01-04 19:26

Hello Abmdsudi

Very nice portait of this woman.Superb atmosphere and very clever look on her.Amazing POV and framing.Well done.

Have a nice day
Chris

Schnappilic (7957) 2013-01-05 5:01

Hello Abmdsudi,

Nice portrait of this woman, well composed and exposed! I like the light on her face!

Best regards!

Ovidiu

SnapRJW (19188) 2013-01-05 9:43

Hello Abmdsudi - Your portraits get better and better. Again you use the negative space to great effect and I love the far-away, dreamy look in the woman's expression. This candid shot seems to say so much more than a posed or 'eye-contact' portrait. Super. Take care. Rosemary

Cricri (87288) 2013-01-05 22:26

Hi Abmdsudi
Beau portrait de cette dame le regard lointain, bonne lumière sur son visage, le cadrage et la note fort intéressante
Beau dimanche
cricri

CLODO (24902) 2013-01-06 0:59

Hi Abmdsudi

I like how the soft light illuminates her face and the white dots in her eyes giving life to your shot. Good tonal symphony. An everyday situation we rarely noticed.
Cheers
CLODO

Vasa (16008) 2013-01-06 17:34

Using the train is a perfect possibility to meet lovely models. Your vigilance is great Abmdsudi and your witness is in my way to look at the subjects. All compliments, friend,

Branko

claudeD (24601) 2013-01-07 0:24

Hello,

very good portrait shot of that woman in train. You have realized a perfect sharpness that is always important foe a good portrait.I like the view very much.Very well done.TFS.

With regards from Luxembourg

JC

annjackman (13463) 2013-01-08 3:16

Hello Abmdsudi,
A beautiful portrait. The woman seems deep in thought and you have managed to isolate her from the other passengers with just the worn carriage wall as BG. Lovely catch lights in her eyes - very well taken.
A great note - not sure that I would want to stand on a train for that long!
Kind Regards, Ann

adores (28552) 2013-01-09 15:58

Hi Abmdsudi!
A good portrait of a very sad face! She seems so lost in her thoughts. Guess she didn't even notice you! Well captured! And Gert is right, the Ws are so great, specially the one with the people inside the train. Why didn't you post it as main post? It's such a good shot!

everlasting (13803) 2013-01-17 21:05

A portrait of my liking:) travelling by train in Burma is as you say often slow but the photo graphic opportunities far outweigh the disadvantage. The light catches her eyes very nicely and the train makes an interesting backdrop

macjake (39998) 2013-01-18 23:34

Hi Abmdsudi
I always enjoy visiting your gallery, never know what you're going to post from around the world :)
its an interesting story that you share with us here.
one that I'd like to take myself.
you chose the correct POV, with the available light striking the side of her face.
yes, one could only wonder what she's thinking.
wonderful photo
cheers
craig

gus72 (2510) 2013-04-15 18:23

Hi abmdsudi !!
I am a bit like you ....... I wander what are they thinking about ??
what make this portrait really nice is the contrast between the rather dark background against her bright eyes.
also ...... a smart crop with the subject positioned in the corner.
Nice work.
Gus