Thanaka, a photo from Rakhine, South

Photographer's Note

After I posted photo of the two women on the Ngapali beach, some people asked me what they had on their faces. So now another photo of a girl with painted face from Ngapali. This is thanaka, something typical for Burma. When you see a photo of a woman (or a kid) painted in this way you can be almost sure she is Burmese.

From Wikipedia:
Thanaka is a yellowish-white cosmetic paste made from ground bark. It is a distinctive feature of Myanmar (formerly Burma) seen commonly applied to the face and sometimes the arms of women and girls and to a lesser extent men and boys.
The wood of several trees may be used to produce thanaka cream; these trees grow abundantly in central Myanmar. Thanaka cream has been used by Burmese women for over 2000 years. It has a fragrant scent somewhat similar to sandalwood. The creamy paste is applied to the face in attractive designs, the most common form being a circular patch on each cheek, sometimes made stripey with the fingers known as thanaka bè gya, or patterned in the shape of a leaf, often also highlighting the bridge of the nose with it at the same time. Apart from cosmetic beauty, thanaka also gives a cooling sensation and provides protection from sunburn. It is believed to help remove acne and promote smooth skin.

PaulVDV, Budapestman, timecapturer, holmertz, BluSimo, siudzi, Kofman, vasilpro, saxo042, adores, tyro, bukitgolfb301, ChrisJ, delpeoples, Sonata11, josepmarin has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

PaulVDV (15017) 2012-03-10 1:09

Hello Malgo,
Thanaka indeed is very typical for Myanmar. I've never seen it somewhere else. Sometimes it is applied in wonderful designs.
This is a real beautiful portrait and a very well balanced picture. The girl turns her head a little so we can see one cheek better. The other children seem to be a bit more shy.
I remember from my trip in Myanmar in 1997 that I saw few people who loved a dog the way that people in western countries consider them as pets. This girl surely likes and protects her little dog.
Best regards, Paul

rbassin (11085) 2012-03-10 1:14

Bonjour Malgorzata
Une très belle prise de vue, le portrait de la jeune fille est bien cadré et j'aime bien la position des bras entourrant le chien.
bon w-E
Roland

Budapestman (82620) 2012-03-10 1:25

Hi Malgorzata,
a charming portrait of this lovely little lady. I like the composition the timing is excellent, beautiful photo work, Tfs! Have a nice weekend! Kellemes hétvégét kívánok!
György

timecapturer (30226) 2012-03-10 2:30

Hi Malgo
a real delight this study, so full of sweet innocence and charm. Love the expressions and all captured so wonderfully. Excellent and captivating!

Have a great weekend - regards Brian.

holmertz (26876) 2012-03-10 2:32

Hello Malgorzata,
You should score high points for cuteness with this picture, as much for the puppy as for the girl. Other children wanted to be in the picture as well, but we hardly even notice them because of the charm of the nearest couple.
Kind regards,
Gert

BluSimo (9392) 2012-03-10 2:34

Ciao cara Malgo
bellissimo ritratto di una bambina dallo sguardo dolcissimo. quello che più mi incanta è quel leggero micromosso che rende vera e naturale tutta la scena. bravissima!
un caro saluto
Simonetta

siudzi (23837) 2012-03-10 2:50

Witaj Małgosia,

Świetne zdjęcie tej uroczej gromadki! Bardzo dobra głębia ostrości, światło i naturalne barwy. Super efekt!

Miłej soboty!
Gosia

BennyV (12747) 2012-03-10 4:06

Hello Malgorzata

Sharpness on the face could be better to really bring out those thanaka textures, but I love the feeling of this shot. Great blurry bg & somewhat vague colours. It's got something special.

Benny

maxifred (2401) 2012-03-10 4:29

J'aime l'indifférence entre le regard fier de la fillette et celui de son chien qui n'en a apparemment... rien à F...
Très beau cliché,
Fred

Sergiom (39122) 2012-03-10 5:10

Bonjour Malgorzata,

Un très beau portrait. Le cadrage est parfait et c'est le regard de la jeune fille qui attire. Elle prend un soin jaloux de son petit chien.

Amicalement

Serge

francio64 (38188) 2012-03-10 6:01

Hi Malgo,
bel ritratto della bambina, dolcissimo il cagnolino che tiene in braccio.

TFS! Have a nice WE.
L'Assessore

vasilpro (40172) 2012-03-10 10:33

Hello Malgorzata,
Wonderful portrait of a lovely young lady with interesting details, beautiful scene, excellent POV, lovely soft light and colors, TfS!
Have a nice weekend, Vasilis.

saxo042 (31792) 2012-03-10 12:16

Hi Malgo,
A very pretty little girl with her pet. You have captured her facial expression perfectly and her facial painting is also very interesting. An interesting note as well!
Kind regards
Gunnar

carlo62 (12492) 2012-03-10 13:56

Ciao Malgorzata
bellissimo ritratto, la bambina è molto carina ed il cagnolino è simpatico, anche se sembra voler andare da un'altra parte.
Buona domenica
Carlo

adores (28182) 2012-03-10 17:04

Hi Malgorzata!
A really nice portrait!Seems she wanted the dog to pose for you also:)! She's nice with thanaka on her face, as well as the other one looking from behind her shouder:)! A good capture!

tyro (13021) 2012-03-10 17:12

Hi Malgo,

So now we know exactly what Thanaka is! A very interesting note and a very fine picture with which to illustrate it.

Lovely expression on the face of this young Burmese girl holding her pet. Fine colours and perfect exposure and details.

Lovely!

Kind Regards,

John.

bukitgolfb301 (30039) 2012-03-10 17:19

Hi my dear Malgo

How are you?
This is another heratwarming happy fine shot!
Ya TANAKA is the main attractice characterristic in Myanmar. Her meaningful expression is so quite. Reasonable composition and framework are as usual.
Thanks for your sharinig with finest posting and have a good Saturday!

Best regrads,

Takero from rainy Tokyo

PS. Just one year has passed since that sad tragedy(Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear powerstation accident)

Ricx (13435) 2012-03-10 23:23

Hi Malgo, you have captured the little girl in a beautiful pose, especially holding the little puppy.. nice and clear and sharp .. have a wonderful Sunday. Rich

jurek1951 (35765) 2012-03-10 23:40

Witaj Malgorzata,
prawie jak slynna dama z lasiczka,ladny portret,pieknie zkadrowany,pozdrawiam
Jurek

jjcordier (62280) 2012-03-11 0:19

Malgorzata
Un (double) portrait très touchant avec un bon cadrage et de jolis tons d'image.
Amicalement
JJ

SWEETFREEDOM (18389) 2012-03-11 0:43

Hi Malgorzata,
lovely little girl and her dog. good portrait.
have a good sunday.
regards
Alessandro

ChrisJ (86798) 2012-03-11 4:03

Bonjour Malgorzata

In some parts of Thailand the women and girls also smear their faces with this strange cosmetic. It doesn't really make them more beautiful, so I don't know why they do it. Perfect use of a shallow dof & the puppy adds to the cuteness factor. Great to have a shallow dof & oof bg. Tfs!

ktanska (21495) 2012-03-11 9:37

Hi Malgorzata,
Very cute portrait. Little girls love puppies and she holds this so tenderly. Cool tones of shadow seem to fit well with these shyish faces. Face paint adds local character.
Kari

Gigidusud (7956) 2012-03-11 11:16

Hello Malgo,
Beautiful portrait of this lovely child with her dog.
Very touching scene!
Congratulations.
Ghislaine

dkmurphys (36727) 2012-03-11 14:28

HI Malgo,
Charming capture with that girl and her dog. Well taken dailylife scene.
Have a good night.

Daniel

delpeoples (44900) 2012-03-11 15:06

Ciao cara Signore IF

What a sweet photo of this lovely little girl and her puppy. She is exquisite, as is the painting on her face. I like the cool caste to the image and also the excellent shallow depth of field. One of your best portraits for sure. Great job.

Un abbraccio
Lisa

Sonata11 (28235) 2012-03-11 20:24

Witaj Malgosiu,
urocza mala dziewczyna z malym pieskiem. Sliczny portret tych maluchow. Ladne ujecie w ladnych kolorach, ostrosc,swiatlo. Fantastyczny portret. Podoba mi sie bardzo.
Serdecznie pozdrawiam,
Barbara

josepmarin (55011) 2012-03-12 6:14

Hi Malgorzata,
Yesterday I saw a documentary in TV with this facial painting of the women in Myanmar.
I like this portrait of the girl with the puppy in her arms, and such a beautiful look.
It is a direct, simple and very vital composition.
A great work.
Best regards,
Josep

diomed (13926) 2012-03-12 12:49

Hi Malgo,
lovely, tender and very sweet portrait of this child: her expression, as the expression of the small dog is fantastic. Compliments!
NIce Tuesday
Antonio

wolf38 (28146) 2012-04-01 22:43

Hello Malgorzata. Girl with Dog. Childhood. Friendships. Here you have a very nice scene photographed. Interesting is the view of the girl in the camera. Overall, a great shot. My compliments. Rgds wolfgang.