Qat smile Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

Let us swear an oath, and keep it with an equal mind,
In the hollow Lotos-land to live and lie reclined
On the hills like Gods together, careless of mankind

Tennyson: The Lotos Eaters

In Yemen, qat governs. Each day at three, climbing the steps to a smoky room with a bundle under the arm; then closing the door to the outside world, choosing the leaves, gently crushing them with the teeth and waiting for the drug to take effect. No rush, just a silky transition, scarcely noticed, and then the room casts loose its moorings. "Capturing moments of eternity," someone once called the subtle tinkering with time that qat effects.

from internet: http://www.al-bab.com/yemen/soc/qat.htm

Flavia, andante, Gerrit, rafelito, nbj, cherryripe, touristdidi has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

lewiz (1293) 2006-02-14 17:48

Hi Luca,
I love the vibrancy of this shot... you've got it both in this guy's smile and the colours of the rope. The light is great too, which really helps make the whole scene a lot more striking.
Wow... just spotted this is from 1995! You've done an amazing job with the scan! Brilliant.
Lewis.

arindam_thokder (3946) 2006-02-14 17:53

Hello Luca,

Nothing new and I just agree with Lewis, you got both the Colors and the expression of the guy perfectly here. The yellow is so rich here.

Arindam

klennon79 (0) 2006-02-14 17:53

Nice colorful, vivid photograph. The man looks vey happy :)Great note too!

Flavia (10202) 2006-02-14 18:53

Hi Luca,

Nice portrait. It's fun, colorfull and ilustrate a particular aspect of this culture.

Regards,

Flavia

ancevski (3334) 2006-02-14 19:16

Luca,

this is excellent photo with great colors, I like it.

Dragan

vagabondtravels (6115) 2006-02-14 19:34

Great colors. Nice portrait. I really like the framing.

MDL (1062) 2006-02-14 20:06

This is a nature shot, the smile and colors around the guy. Well done!

andante (7092) 2006-02-14 20:31

Luca, great colors, great use of it on the composition, love the balance between the dark and lighted areas. Very well done! Thanks for sharing. Andante

Gerrit (36513) 2006-02-14 21:33

Hi Luca

Your picture is showing very well the effect of the stuff. The expression of the mans face is great. There is no association with junks and addiction; the man is very well dressed and looks rather prosperous. It is more like an add for quat because he's holding the product responsible for his eufory to show it the watcher. And he's doing that in a situation that is colourful and yet 'of the common people'.
Very good work.
Thanks and regards, Gerrit

rafelito (3645) 2006-02-14 21:53

Luca
Yo viví cerca de Yemen y conocí esa droga que los etíopes llaman chat,es más frecuente entre el pueblo musulmán.
Tu foto es preciosa y logras efectos de color maravillosos.
Saludos, Rafae

prajan (355) 2006-02-15 0:44

Nice and colourful photo with a genuine smile. It's a simple scene which others may have missed but indeed, you have done well with your excellent framing.

PeterC (2242) 2006-02-15 1:32

Luca,
Great potrait the strong colours, and the expression and smile on his face looks very genuine. Great light i love the two contrasting parts of the photo the bright foreground and the dim mysterious background.
Great shot.
Peter

cessy (13647) 2006-02-15 3:21

very nice portrait of him with colorful ropes frame
I like his smile

lucinka (9920) 2006-02-15 3:50

Luca, what a lovely, colorful and happy photo from Yemen. Everything well composed and managed. Well done. L.

nbj (1871) 2006-02-15 4:04

Amazingly bright colors. A nice and warm portrait.

cherryripe (19237) 2006-02-15 7:40

Hi Luca
What a cheeky grin on his face and look in his eye. Lovely vibrant colours of the ropes and excellent light. Well composed.
Regards Nikki

dolin (15647) 2006-02-15 15:31

Hi Luca.
Excellent ce visage...il me fait rire ;)
Les cordes très colorées qui encadre l'image c'est superbe.
Tu as réussi à garder du détails à l'intérieur malgré la faible lumière...joli.
Belle prise.
Fred

gebala (0) 2006-02-15 17:52

hello. beauty is this photo, exellent point of view, but the most beautiful here is his happy face:) a bit strange but I like it:) great colours:)
kisses
rgs

gelor (3224) 2006-02-28 10:43

Bonjour Lucas,
Une très belle composition et de bien belles couleurs très saturées. Merci.
Gérard

touristdidi (8561) 2006-02-28 10:48 [Comment]

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sengir (4946) 2006-03-03 17:46 [Comment]

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siolaw (25874) 2006-03-11 9:51

very good shot..was the guy in that posture for a long time due to the kat effect or was it an instant shot!!!?