Muktinath a long time ago Photo

Photographer’s Note

Actually it wasn't that long ago, just 14 years, but I somehow I find that this B&W version resembles a much older photo.

WS's: the same shot in sepia and in colour. I put another view from the distance in a WS attached to my next post.

Muktinath is a small village on the foot of one of the most famous mountain passes in the Annapurnas, the Thorong La, which is 5,416 meters / 17,769 feet above sea level. The village stands at an altitude of 3710 meters / 12172 feet and it's a sacred and pilgrimage site for Hindus and Buddhists. I guess that it is also a kind of pilgrimage site for another kind of modern pilgrims, the trekkers, not only because it is part of the popular "Annapurna Circuit", a 300 Km trek around the Annapurna Massif, but also because it is visited by many others less hardcore trekkers like myself who take just an airplane to Jomsom and then spent a few days hiking up and down.

As far as my limited knowledge of Hindu and Buddhist mysticism allows me to understand, Muktinath is specially revered by Hindu Vaishnavites and Tantric / Vajrayana Buddhists. Vaishnavites, who can be described shortly and perhaps not so accurately as Hindus who worship primarily Vishnu, one of the gods of the Trimurti (Hindu trinity), consider Muktinath one of the eight most sacred shrines. Vajrayana Buddhists consider the place one of the 24 Tantric places and they consider the Hindu murti (image) a manifestation of Avalokitesvara, who is an important bodhisattva, a kind of Buddhist deity that helps people in their quest for nirvana. Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rinpoche, who brought Tantric Budhism to Tibet in the 8th century AC, where they revere him as the second Budha, is believed to have meditated in Muktinath on his way to Tibet.

Location (latitude, longitude): 28.815,83.86215 (I am not sure about the accuracy, but my guess is that the error isn't higher than 800 meters / 0.5 mile)

Note on the location in TE: according to Wikipedia, all this region, from Jomsom to Lo Manthang and Muktinath is part of Dhawalagiri district [te]. I put my posts in the Gandaki district following the others, as almost no one posts their photos of the region in the supposedly right place.

robertosalguero, Atousa, Emile, zeynepe, feather, xuaxo, ruisc_pt, Docarmo, Charo, adores, shevchenko, riclopes, siolaw, danos, robob, paura, maloutim, Wanda1, axiotea, AiresSantos, pboehringer, edytungkal has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

robertosalguero (110) 2008-07-14 19:54

Olá José,

Indeed this image feel older than it is. The white peaks create such an interesting contrast against the blacks. Good perspective of this little village and the dual tones work fantastic here. Thanks José.

Roberto

Atousa (3466) 2008-07-14 20:43

Salam Jose,
Seems to be a deserted village specially its B n W..I like the colour layers of this shot - in B n W n also sepia- they make me concentrate on the houses n the snow-covered mountains in the BG..tfs
All the best, Atousa

Emile (20117) 2008-07-14 22:18

Hola José.
Me gusta tu foto en blanco y negro, se ve que tu scan es muy bueno ya que parece tomada ayer. Buen POV y composición. Las blancas casas y la montaña cubiertas de nieve hacen un buen contraste con lo oscuro. La verdad es que esta muy bien captada con grandes detalles. Buen trabajo.
Un fuerte abrazo.

UnTrained (0) 2008-07-15 5:14

Olá José,
that mixture of strong light and dark shadows enhance your idea and I like the black&white, but also the original. The warm ground versus the cold sky and peaks is still present in the black&white. The small shadow at the right lower corner adds some mystery.
Lieben Gruss, Ulf

zeynepe (9360) 2008-07-15 5:18

Olá José,
Fantastic photo on the top of the fantastic mountains.
The harmony between the white peaks and the white houses are so lovely.
Congrats and have a wonderful day,
Zeynep

feather (50144) 2008-07-15 6:31

I think you have done a very good B&W conversion on this Jose and it works very well. I don't much care for the sepia as I find the tone a bit too strong. I tried a WS on the colour version, just because I wondered if it could be rescued. See what you think.
Kath

[workshop] [compare] +

xuaxo (5835) 2008-07-15 7:29

Olá José
Esta foto acho-a muito escura (nomeadamente o céu), embora possa ser deste monitor. As outras, mesmo a sépia, acho-as muito saturadas. Tudo deve ter a ver com o original.
Seja como for, peguei na tua versão a cores e tentei um workshop, para ficar mais ao meu gosto; saíu algo como uma imagem em sépia mais suave.
Quanto ao resto, gosto da paisagem de aldeia perdida no tempo no meio das montanhas.
Só agora, quase a acabar de escrever, é que reparei no WS de Kath; se fosse agora talvez tivesse pegado no dela para fazer o meu.
Um abraço,
F

[workshop] [compare] +

ruisc_pt (6207) 2008-07-15 7:39

Impressiva e impressionante, eu diria até um pouco dramática.
A nota é bem elucidativa graças ao rigor que nos habituaste.
A mim tocou-me especialmente a versão sépia que me fez imaginar uma foto dos anos 40 do séc passado.
Ab
R

trekks (14334) 2008-07-15 9:47

hi Jose

wow! 14 years ago. Still very sharp and good clarity in this photo. Nice light control and resolution. I note it is OM4!

tfs, bill

Docarmo (8844) 2008-07-15 10:15

Olá José,
Gostei desta versão em P&B carregado, pois deu a impressão artística de algo perdido (solto) no tempo e no espaço, sem latitude nem longitude (embora você tenha nos chamado à realidade com o mapa). Parece-me uma ilha imaginária, onde o oceano é aquele céu negro, cósmico.
Os WS do xuaxo e da Kath nos fazem cair na realidade ;-)
Um abraço,
MCV

Bluejeans (33049) 2008-07-15 11:20

Oi José
Voltaste atrás no tempo parece bem uma foto antiga duma civilização parada no tempo , gostei muito do contraste da neve com o céu negro , a versão a cores também e muito bonita , bom trabalho de scan , parabéns!!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

ifanik (20542) 2008-07-15 13:56

I like it my friendJose
Very beautiful art photo
The b/w is very nice
Best regards
Nick

Charo (31779) 2008-07-15 17:35

Olá Jose,
He visto los WS y todos están bien, pero tu decisión de poner la de B/N creo que ha sido muy acertada por el gran contraste entre los tonos que resaltan excelentemente las casas y las montañas. Buen trabajo amigo, bien escaneado.
Abraços,
Charo

adores (15745) 2008-07-15 17:53

Olá José!
Vejo que tens encontrado algumas boas nas tuas buscas! Acho que prefiro esta, ou até mesmo a sépia, à versão colorida. Acho mesmo que esta é uma daquelas fotos intemporais. Provavelmente, se lá voltares agora não vais encontrar grandes diferenças nas casas e no modo de vida da aldeia, deve ser assim há decadas. Gosto das pessoas na rua e das montanhas cobertas de neve ao fundo.

shevchenko (10072) 2008-07-15 20:18

Hi Jose,
Good pov to show the village at the foot of mountains, dry land and simply life, simply houses, interesting composition, thanks for sharing an old B & W photos.
Ally

siolaw (25830) 2008-07-16 0:14

Salut Jose,
J'aime bien la conversion bien contrastée, elle rend bien la forte luminosité de l'endroit... C'est bien cadré et d'une grande netteté
Bien amicalement
Laurent

riclopes (33131) 2008-07-16 0:32

Fabulosa, José. Acho que já te tinha dito que estas imagens da tua viagem ao Nepal são as que mais me excitam e esta comprova isso. Uma vila perdida a 3710m de altitude com uma visão de sonho lá atrás - não preciso de mais nada. Na fase seguinte partimos para a apresentação da imagem que me parece entrar num campo subjectivo relativo ao gosto de cada um - confesso que esta é a que gosto mais, assim escurinha e com bons contrastes. O ambiente resultante é fantástico e faz-me ainda gostar mais disto. Talvez o WS da Kath seja o que poderia ser uma alternativa, mas escolho esta sem hesitações.
Um abraço,
ricardo

danos (33240) 2008-07-16 0:48

Ola Jose,
splendid B/W shot from the oldies, with the snowy peaks of the Mts to are an eye catcher.I like the side light that falls on the houses and the earthy road that lead to the village.Excellent the management of the light as the tints of the blacks.Well done.

Have a nice day,Danos

robob (3640) 2008-07-16 6:36

Hello José,
C’est vrai que cette version B&W fait penser à une époque beaucoup plus ancienne,
Très chouette contraste avec les sommets blancs de l’arrière plan,
Très jolie image !
Au plaisir de te lire,
Robert

batalay (21193) 2008-07-16 6:59

Hello dear José,

This is another magical shot of the roof of the world from your archives. With older images, presenting them in B&W makes sense, creating a timelessness. I wonder if this has changed much in 14 years.

Meanwhile, your remark about the Dali Museum in Figueres, I wish we could do it on August 3. I just looked it up, and here is a good link on, Barcelona that I found.

Warm regards,

Bulent

paura (39202) 2008-07-16 7:44

José,
Uma linda fotografia deste que deve ser um dos lugares mais bonitos do planeta. Aquelas montanhas atrás, com suas arestas retas, bastante diferentes das que encontramos por aqui, que são bem arredondadas. As humildes casinhas complementam o excelente ângulo e fazem quase despercebido o fato de ter sido escaneado.

Abraço

Paulo

maloutim (4045) 2008-07-16 11:23

Bonjour José!
Quel bon travail de conversion d'une vieille image, en noir et blanc ou en sépia! Le blanc des pics montagneux et des maisons ressort tellement bien sur le fond plus sombre.
C'est une belle composition et une note d'un très grand intérêt!
Amicalement.
MarieLouise.

mark_mk (246) 2008-07-16 13:25

Hi Jose,
you almost reached the magic number of 300posts. Man, I`m wondering what shot you`ll post for your 300, looking forward to seeing that.
You always surprise me, yet another old picture out of your archive, how nice! Nice B&W effect, it really looks like taken back in the 60s. Nice job composing this picture. Nepal must be an amazing country...
Very nice one Jose!

Take care
Mark

danyy (69417) 2008-07-16 15:06

Bonjour Jose,
on remarque un peu que cette photo n'est pas issue du numérique. Les contrastes sont très forts.
Et ces super sommets enneigés ressortent très forts.
C'est une ambiance tout à fait particulière.
Amitié.
Daniel.

Wanda1 (11015) 2008-07-16 22:25

Hi Jose,
It does look like a very old photo, timeless though in black and white, and I like that feeling. I like the white snowy mountains cotrasting with the rest of the scene, and it is a nice view inluding some of the village in the foreground.
Regards
Wanda

axiotea (16281) 2008-07-17 21:38

Olà José
I, definitely, do prefer the B&W version ;) The luminosity is very attractive and I like the contrast between the snow caped mountains with the darker elements.
Thank you for the links (14)!
Abraço
Marilyn

AiresSantos (42844) 2008-07-18 5:51

Ola Jose
Ainda esta para chegar o dia em que vou publicar uma foto a preto e branco. A escolha do P&B realca o contraste entre o branco da neve e restante paisagem.
Apesar de parecer um pouco escura podemos ver detalhes muito interessantes
Um abraço e bom fim de semana
Aires

ribeiroantonio (21967) 2008-07-18 20:47

Gosto muito da sensação de antigo e perdido no tempo que esta imagem a P/B nos transmite. A aldeia parece ter mesmo parado. Mas isso era assim há 14 anos. Como será hoje?
Quanto ao P/B acho muito escuro, especialmente no céu. Além disso, parece-me que perde muitos pormenores ao nível da aldeia.
António

jmdias (19837) 2008-07-21 17:05

zé

gostei dos picos brancos ao fundo, parecem grandes tendas e fazem um diálogo com o casario claro que está no primeiro plano. A opção pelo branco e preto é boa

abraços

jorge

jimkilgallon (0) 2008-07-22 17:23

Olá José,
Beautiful scene from this part of Nepal. Excellent jaggedness in the mountain terrain with the feel of an old village in the foreground. I like the tonal ranges in the black and white. Well captured, 14 years can only seem like yesterday.
Regards
Jim

mikeo (12117) 2008-08-03 1:04

Hello Jose,

It really looks to be an old shot but I like a lot this b/w version. Thanks to this choice the photo has incredible climate - looks like the one taken somewhere on the distant planet. Great effect, really.

Well done.
Greetings,
Mikeo

pboehringer (770) 2008-08-19 15:28

Jose,
for us living daily in the digital era with the big and potent megapixels any image done before that age and scanned gives us the impression of being old. That is a true pity. There are so many outstanding shots that got somewhere lost due to that. Your present post is such an example and only due to your "stubberness" it got salvaged into the digital era.
The conversion has its problems and yet it is a great shot. I looked through all the different WS and have to say that your main post is still the most attractive. Why? Maybe the B&W with the strong contrasts and the dark sky reminds me most of my favorite photographer of all times!
Peter

edytungkal (4519) 2008-09-03 20:33

This absolutely showing one of the best documentary shots on TE and about the photo, i think B&W version is the best choise for such kind of picture, maybe just a little bit too contrast and give a bit darker result. Nevertheless you have posted an important archieve from this country. Thanks Jose :-)

daniel

bantonbuju (48796) 2008-09-24 2:43

ola jose,
undeniable beauty of the black&white landscapes!
i'm astonished how good the quality of the scan is... despite all these years that passed...
best wishes, jerzy