old woman of Hoi An, a photo from Quang Nam, South Central Coast

Photographer's Note

Hoi An has turned into a major tourist attraction. I found it quite hard to enjoy myself while tripping over the many tour groups crowding the narrow streets...and I was there in the off-season! Still, it is a very photogenic town, with shots like this around every corner. This was taken on a rainy, overcast day. Note the use of a plastic garbage bag for a rain hat.

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Critiques | Translate

Paolo (41254) 2005-05-09 8:09

Great portrait, funny and detailed!
good colors and light too.
thanks, ciao

hamster (104) 2005-05-09 8:21

Heheh, very realistic :)

toddadams (575) 2005-05-09 8:35

What a stark and impacting photo. She is smiling in spite of what has no doubt been a very tough life. Her (lack of) teeth and aged skin elicit so much sympathy. Yet she seems happy. You've gotten a very good portrait here. Capturing people looking natural isn't easy, but you've done it here.

I think doing a workshop in B&W or sepia might work well with this. The rough texture of her skin would lend itself to that very well.

[workshop] [compare]

kinginexile (2598) 2005-05-23 3:30

I think the light has not been dealt with too well, as such a rich and expressive portrait asked for it. If you look at the background, the dark recess provides a much more interesting contrast with her skin tone than the bland stark wall, and the compo is a bit straight. No doubt you were mesmerized by such a strong, vivid and telling face.
As I say, you were there, and we were not, so kudos for freezing this one for keeps.

PogoStick (510) 2005-08-24 21:41