Exposure Magazine | Volume 2

EXPOSURE Volume 2 | May 2017 | $6

Experience the

New Year in NYC

Interview with

HONY

Freedom Trail and the

Story of America Mihaela Noroc’s

Atlas Of Beauty

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Letter from the Editor

The Atlas of Beauty

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Photographic Census of a City

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New Years Eve in NYC

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Interview with Justin Guariglia

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Night and Day in a Single Photo

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Photoshop Tips and Tricks

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The Storytellers

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The Boston Freedom Trail

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Every Table Tells a Tale

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Letter from the Editor According to the dictionary, “Exposure” means, “The act of exposing, laying open, or uncovering. An act or instance of revealing or unmasking.

Presentations to view, especially in an open or public manner. A laying open or subjecting to the action or influence of something.”

In photography, “Exposure” is the phenomenon of light striking the surface of film or a digital imaging sensor. The exposure is determined by the volume of light passing through the lens aperture combined with the duration of the exposure. Being a photographer, and viewing photography as an art, can relate to the dictionary definition of exposing just as much as the photographical definition.

The photographer is exposing, laying open, and uncovering stories of people around the

world. They are capturing moments in time and exposing them to the public. The viewer in response is being exposed to places, events, and even cultures that they are unfamiliar with. They are being influenced by the photographer.

Let me introduce myself: I am Christina Weisensel. Exposure’s new Editor in Chief. I have been a fan of the written word since I was a child. My parents would have to take away my books and force me to play outside. As I grew older I discovered magazines and their unique way of telling stories through print and picture. While in high school I developed a greater passion for art and discovered the joy of photography. At the click of a button I understood what Aaron Siskind meant when he said, “Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever...

it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.”

I wanted to bring those moments to you, the audience, in a convenient, fun, and inspiring way. Let this magazine take you on an adventure.

If you get an itch to pick up a camera and travel the world once you have reached the back cover, then I have done my job well.

Immerse yourself in these images and let your mind wander to new and exciting things.

Expect to be Exposed to more.

Christina Weisensel Editor in Chief

Letter from the Editor

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The Atlas ofĆ’ Beauty

Interview with Mihaela Noroc

By Simona 31/07/2014

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Remember the article I wrote in January about Mihaela Noroc? She went on a trip around the world to look for beauty. And she found it!

A few days ago I got in touch with her on Facebook and asked her a few questions because I’m curious about what drives her forward on her journey.

Berlin, Germany. Photograph.

San Francisco, USA. Photograph.

Tibet, China. Photograph.

Colca Valley, Peru. Photograph. © Mihaela Noroc

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How did you come up with this idea? To leave home, find and photograph beauty around the world?

Me and my husband spent almost all of our savings on traveling. In all our trips, I was shooting travel photography, focusing especially on women. Two years ago I discovered the most beautiful women I have ever seen in Ethiopia. That’s when I figured I can combine the two, travel photography and women portraits, and that’s how BAW was born.

How long did it take you to leave, since you got the idea?

After I got the idea, in less than 6 months we were on the road. Me and my husband decided we were going to spend all of our savings on traveling. At first, BAW was just something I was doing while traveling. Meanwhile I realised that I love this project and I want the whole world to know about it, so I started to work really hard on it and think about how can I drive it forward.

How about the visas and the budget?

Before we left, we only got visas for Russia, China and the United States. We got the other ones along the way. We raised the money after a few years of hard work, there were times when we worked even on Sundays, so after all those sacrifices, we figured we would spend it on the thing we like most: traveling.

Shiraz, Iran. Photograph.

Luna, Chile. Photograph. Š Mihaela Noroc

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For how long have you been away? When do you plan on coming back to Romania?

We left in august 2013. We’ll be running out of money shortly, so a few days ago we started a little fundraising campaign, hoping to continue our journey of searching beauty throughout America until december. But BAW doesn’t end with us coming back to Romania.

This is just the first episode. If I find any partners willing to support my project, BAW will go on for many years to come. It takes years and a lot of traveling to create the “beauty atlas” that I dream about.

I hope to reveal as many world cultures and traditions through the faces I photograph and make this independent romanian project a worldwide known project. For me, women are better at holding on to traditions than men, because they are mothers, and socially, they’re more connected to their homes, their birthplaces. That’s why I chose to photograph women and capture the diverse world we are living in.

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I’m not looking for a specific type of woman or take into account the fashion standards. I’m searching for natural beauty, which tells a story about the area it comes from.

What places or things shocked you the most along the way?

I haven’t had major cultural shocks, because I’ve seen almost all continents in previous trips. I would talk about nice surprises rather. I was very pleasantly surprised about the warmth and openness of the people in Iran, which helped me a lot with my project. An interesting detail is that the majority of people who liked my facebook page, after romanians, is from Iran, even though Facebook is forbidden there and they access it using special software.

I was also pleasantly surprised by the incredible generosity of the poor people in Myanmar, which

were always willing to share with others the little that they had.

Another surprise for me was the honesty of russians, the brazilians’ lust for life, or the traditionalism of an otherwise modern society like Japan’s. The things that bothered me the most were the heavy pollution in China, the poverty in which many people from Chile live in (a country that is presented in the media as being one of the most developed countries in the world), or the reluctancy of the japanese to help me with my project.

Amazon Rainforest, Ecuador. Photograph.

Nasir al-Mulk, Iran. Photograph.

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Photograph.

Maramures, Romania. Photograph. © Mihaela Noroc

The Atlas of Beauty

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Photographic

Census Of A City

Interview with Brandon Stanton of Humans of New York Heard on All Things Considered 24/10/2015

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What would you do if a stranger stopped you on the street, asked to take your picture and asked to hear your story?

but about how I spent my time,” Stanton tells NPR’s Michel Martin.

“I loved taking photographs at the time, and I struck upon this kind of crazy idea that I was going to go to New York and stop 10,000 For the past five years, people on the streets and take photographer Brandon Stanton has their portrait, and create kind of a been doing exactly that — on the photographic census of the city.” streets of New York, no less — and So, he got started. And it wasn’t thousands of people have said yes.

Stanton has been not only collecting easy. “I was terrified at first,” he recalls. “But over time, you know, I their stories and images, but also realized it’s not really about what sharing them on his blog, Humans of New York. That blog — and other you say when you approach a stranger, it’s all about the energy associated projects — have picked that you’re giving off.” up millions of followers and a few book deals. His first book based on the project was published just over two years ago; now, he’s publishing a second collection, called Humans of New York: Stories. But it wasn’t such a sure thing when Stanton got started. “I was working in finance in Chicago, and I lost my job. I just kind of made the decision that I was going to spend the next period of my life thinking not about money,

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On the challenges of approaching strangers.

The key is to be comfortable with the fact that some people are going to turn you down no matter what.

It’s the rejection that is hard. It’s not the interviewing that’s hard, it’s not the photography that’s hard; it’s approaching people all day long, and having a good portion of those people reject you and some of them be rude. That is why the work can be psychologically draining. But I’m used to it now.

On how he decides whom he wants to talk to.

Randomness is the key word there: I’m normally just looking for somebody that looks like they’re approachable. The interviews have gotten much longer with Humans of New York. When I was first starting, I was just photographing people.

And then I went to just including a quote or two. Now, when I’m approaching somebody on the street, I’m spending about 30 to 45 minutes with them, often. And so when I’m looking for somebody on the street, I’m looking for someone who’s not with friends, someone who’s not in a hurry. A lot of times it’s somebody sitting on a bench or leaning against a wall, and other than that, there is no other criteria.

It’s completely random. And I think that that is what leads to a diversity of stories.

Couple on Broadway. Photograph.

Woman in Brooklyn. Photograph.

Eccentric Couple. Photograph.

Purple Woman. Photograph.

Men with Violins. Photograph. © Brandon Stanton

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On one of his favorite stories.

There was an Egyptian man who was famous for having climbed the tallest mountain on every continent.

He told me the story of how he met this woman who he traveled with and eventually got married with and fell in love and then they had their first child. And she passed away while giving birth to their first child. The story he told me, you know, was just very, very tragic — and, superimposed over these exploits that this man had gone through, so many physical exploits that he was known for. And then his greatest challenge was something that was much more emotional. I’ve become very good friends with this man, and it was one of the most powerful stories that I’ve ever told on Humans of New York. ... I think what Humans of New York does is highlights maybe the other tones of our lives that people aren’t so willing to express. There are tons

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of kids in there [on the blog], and there’s tons of happy stories, but you know, for me, it’s ... why do the sad stories kind of stand out to me?

I think it’s because so much of the storytelling on social media is selfdirected, and it serves to highlight all the good stuff that’s going on in our lives: Look at my marriage, look at my car, look at my house, look at my kids, look at my job. And it’s all so self-promotional and happy.

You know, I think what Humans of New York does is highlights maybe the other tones of our lives that people aren’t so willing to express, or tragedy that they might not have told anybody else. Then, there’s somebody in my audience that’s reading that and says, “You know what, I’m going through that exact same thing, and I was afraid to talk about it also.” Those are the stories I feel proudest about.

“I think what Humans of New York does is highlights maybe the other tones of our lives that people aren’t so willing to express.”

On why he thinks people want to talk to him.

I think that if you ask with a genuine interest and a genuine curiosity and a level of compassion, there’s very little that someone won’t share with you. I think that even though some of the things on Humans of New York are kind of very personal and very revealing, I think the discomfort with sharing that tends to be overridden by the appreciation of being able to distill the experience of your life into a story and share it with other people.

Mother and Child. Photograph.

Rocker in Subway. Photograph.

Child with Artwork. Photograph.

Children with Sleds. Photograph. © Brandon Stanton

Photographic Census of a City

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New Years Eve in NYC Ringing in 2016 in the City that Never Sleeps

By Christina Weisensel 14/04/2016

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In 2015 my parents gave me a life experience as a Christmas gift. They sent me on a two week adventure to the East Coast. The main attraction: New Years Eve in Times Square.

This had been on my bucket list since I was 4 years old. No jokes.

The plan was to fly to my roommate Katie’s house in Boston and take the bus to New York with her. Once there, we would meet up with a few other friends from Kentucky and Egypt. My adventure began as smoothly as you would imagine,

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but of course, living in the midwest, disaster can strike at any moment. I had a layover in Chicago and from one misunderstanding to another scheduling mistake my flight was delayed just long enough for me to be stranded due to weather. Thank goodness I live in Chicago, and have spectacular friends, because I was able to sleep in an actual bed instead of an airport floor. I also planned ahead and scheduled an extra day at the front of my trip in case something like this happened.

The next morning I was off, back to the airport for round two. Thankfully, I got on a morning flight and got to Boston in one piece. Sleeping that night was a struggle because Katie and I were so excited to get to New York the next morning, but somehow we scraped together a couple hours of shut eye.

Bright and extra early the next morning we were deposited at the bus stop and began our five hour trip to the city that never sleeps. The closer we got, the more excited we became. Finally we arrived and splurged to get a taxi to take us to our accommodations in Brooklyn. Let me take a moment to slide down a rabbit trail. My brother and I have been teasing my mom since we were children that she knows one eighth of the population of Earth. We are always

told, “Oh, you’re Laur’s kid??” How this relates back to New York is we were able to get this extremely cheap room because of my mothers agglomeration of connections. We met up with our friends who would be staying with us and decided to start on the tourist attractions. We had all purchased the New York City Pass so we had tickets to six popular spots. We chose to go to the Empire State Building first to see the city at night. Even with the four hour wait and having to walk up ten flights

of stairs, the view was totally worth it! Being above the city, looking down at the millions of people that looked like ants that are constantly moving, was breath taking. From the very top we were able to see Times Square, the main attraction for us, the place we would be standing the next day, waiting to ring in the New Year. After we caught our breath, having it knocked out from the view, we headed down to the street, got a few snacks and provisions, and headed back to Brooklyn.

New Years Eve in NYC

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We really lucked out on New Years Eve. It was a clear day and unseasonably warm. Being a Minnesota native and living in Chicago for three years I only needed to wear Underarmour and a sweater. The five of us got to Times Square around 10AM and it took an hour to get herded into a pen. The pen we would be in for thirteen consecutive hours. I don’t know if you, reader, have ever been to Times Square on New Years Eve, but let me tell you a secret: Under no circumstances can you leave your pen. Once you’re in, you’re in! (Of course, you really can leave, but

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you can’t get back in.) So you better have steeled yourself to not move, eat, or pee for half a day. Even if you haven’t been in this situation or never plan to, I challenge you to not move, eat, or pee for fourteen hours. It is exquisitely harder than you would imagine. Unfortunately, our Egyptian friend was unprepared even with our constant reminders.

He desperately needed to use the bathroom and we told him, “If you leave, you won’t be abel to get back in!” He had no choice and proceeded to move towards the front of the pen where the barriers and cops were. We saw him walk

away and were saddened that he had left. Ten minutes later though, he miraculously reappeared! After asking how this had happened he told us the magic trick, ask the cop politely and remember who let you out. The pizza place directly next to our pen would let people use the bathroom with a purchase. That worked out in our favour as we were very hungry. Going out in pairs, we were all able to use the bathroom and get semi-nutritional sustenance.

Our next obstacle to solve was the issue of boredom. If you haven’t been to Manhattan, or if it has been awhile, let me explain Times

Square. The corner with the tower of flashing ads where the ball drops is at 7th and 43rd . Manhattan is laid out like a grid. 7th is the street Times Square is on. (Though, the place where you would go to take tourist pictures is more around 7th and 45th.) The perpendicular streets going north increase in number, all the way to 59th where the south edge of Central Park is. At 47th, 7th splits off onto Broadway. The stage where you see the performers and celebrities is roughly at the corner of 7th and 45th. Are you with me?

If not, pull up a map, it’s not as confusing as it seems. The people you see on TV are all in the very small range of about two blocks.

All on 7th between about 45th and 47th. You know how it looks like there are tons of people? Let me tell you that it is much, much worse. Multiply what you see on TV by about twenty. Does that seem excessive? It’s not. On both 7th and Broadway the crowd goes all the way to 59th. Literally millions of people are all within a rectangle of two by fifteen blocks. So, you have to be there early. The people you see on TV show up around 8AM. As I have previously mentioned, my friends an I were there for about thirteen hours. We got lucky and were on the corner of 7th and 48th.

Just two blocks back from the main stage. The down side was that there were no speakers facing us, so we didn’t hear a single thing.

The plus side was that we were just far enough that we wouldn’t be on TV so no one cared about appearances and we were able to sit on the ground if we could find a big enough patch of concrete. Around 6PM we started getting really bored. Because there are millions of people in such a small area you are not able to use your phone.

Literally zero bars. Thankfully I had the game Heads Up on my phone.

We joyfully sat in a circle and played this game for over four hours. Best $1.99 I ever spent. At 11PM we started getting antsy for the New Year. Every ten minutes I would ask how much longer. Finally it was time for the one minute countdown. I started taking pictures furiously. It was well worth every second we sat in that pen. Every moment we got hungry or resisted the urge to use the bathroom. That one minute leading into the New Year was the most exhilarating moment of my life. The countdown, the fireworks, the literal tons of confetti raining down. A moment I will never forget.

After I took a ton photographs and the fireworks died down the crowds started to disperse. Some people in

my group went home, some went to scout out a place to eat food, but I fought my way closer to the stage to get more pictures. I’m very glad I did because I got excellent photos and I saw Ryan Seacrest. I found my friends who were looking for food.

After over an hour of gallivanting around Lower Manhattan we decided it would be best to just go back to Brooklyn and pick up something at the corner store. We all slept like rocks before waking up later the next morning.

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Katie and I were given Broadway tickets by my parents so we dressed very nice and our party headed down to the Freedom Tower and the 9/11 Memorial and Museum. Out of all the historical museums I’ve been to, the 9/11 exhibit was the best. It is underground where there is still the foundation of the original Twin Towers. As you wind you way through a time line of the event leading up to the plane crashes, the event itself, and the aftermath you are surrounded by artifacts and media that make everything seem hyper-realistic. It is a sobering and emotional experience that I would highly recommend. Leaving the museum we realized that we had just missed the last boat to the

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Statue of Liberty, so we made plans to come back first thing the next morning and go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art instead.

Unfortunately, as we were on the train, we realized it was a holiday and the MET was closed. Being the Chicago city slickers that we are, we all took a brisk stroll through Central Park to go to the Museum of Natural History. The highlight of the museum where Nicholas Cage fought a dinosaur skeleton with Teddy Roosevelt was the Marine Animalia room. Suspended from the ceiling is a giant Blue Whale that guests are able to lay under.

As we laid down under a whale, contemplating all of our experiences so far, Katie and I broke of from our

friends to get an authentic Italian dinner at Scarlatto before our play.

After one the best best meals of my life we made our way over to the Imperial Theatre for Les Miserables featuring Alfie Bowie. I don’t know about you, but I have always been a fan of Les Miserables. The epic tale of freedom, sacrifice, and love. With some jokes thrown in here and there. If you ever get the chance to go to New York, I would highly recommend going to see a play of Broadway, it just makes the entire trip complete. Thankfully, my adventure wasn’t quite over yet.

On our last day in New York was the busiest day I have ever lived.

We all woke up at dawn to make our way down to the bottom of the island. Catching the first boat of the day, we went to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Being on a boat, seeing Lady Liberty, is so fun. It makes you feel like an immigrant coming to America for the first time. You especially feel like a foreigner when you walk through Ellis Island. A couple years ago, Ellis Island was falling apart.

Thankfully, it was refurbished and turned into a museum experience.

Many people in America have ancestors who came here by way of Ellis Island, myself included, and you really feel like you’re stepping into history. Boarding a boat back to Manhattan, our next stop was The Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center. Thankfully you get timed tickets, so we got to the views of all the greatest landmarks of

Manhattan without waiting in line.

If you ever see a gorgeous shot of the Empire State Building or Central Park, you could bet money that the picture was taken from Rockefeller Center. The best part is being able to go on the actual roof of the building. I can’t even get on the roof my my three story apartment building, yet there I was, standing on Top of the Rock. This is the part of the story where I broke away from the group to go get lunch with old family friends. I won’t bore you with the details, but always try to eat with a native New Yorker. They will undoubtedly take you to get the best lunch of your life. Leaving the comfort of a diner booth I had to fight my impending food coma to get down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to meet my friends.

Once I got there I chose to take a whirlwind tour of the art on my own so I could see personal highlights within the short amount of time we

had. No matter how many times I go to the MET, I will always get lost.

Last time I got lost in an Egyptian Pyramid. This time I got lost in Monet and ancient Mesopotamia.

Quite the combination. Rushing at this point, Katie and I made quick goodbyes before running to Brooklyn for our bags and running back to Manhattan to catch our bus back to Boston at 6PM. Needless to say, this exhilarating trip resulted in my sickness, but it was well worth it.

Having my camera attached to my hip, I got better photographs than I could have imagined. Some of my proudest photographic moments to this point in my life were made while on this trip. Even if you are a tourist, doing every tourist thing in the book, you can still make the most of every moment and get the best photographs of your life. Dorothea Lange said, “Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.”

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Interview with Justin Guariglia Photographer for National Geographic

By Leica Internet Team 30/09/2010

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Raised in an artsy suburb of New York City and exposed to art, Venetian architecture and photography in his formative years, Justin Guariglia has had a lifelong passion for documentary photography and Leica M cameras that eventually led to a distinguished career as a magazine and travel photographer. His wanderlust has taken him and his

cameras all over the world, but he has settled in Asia, a vast region he has revealed with an incisive and compassionate eye in stunning books and splendid feature articles in major magazines including cover stories in National Geographic Traveler and Smithsonian.

Here, in his own thoughtful and unflinchingly honest words, is his remarkable story.

Q: What camera and equipment do you use?

A: Everything from Leica rangefinders to handmade Swiss large format digital cameras.

of work available—a shoot here, a story there, a portrait needed…so magazine work became the way to pay my bills and to travel and see the world, but I always came back with lots of personal images that editors usually never saw. At that stage National Geographic Traveler and Smithsonian magazines ran short stories on distant countries, and that helped pay my way to see the world. I moved further into larger-format photography with the help of commercial jobs, which also freed up my time to focus more on personal work. I’ve recently moved back to Asia to reinvent myself creatively. Here I’ll be able to work almost exclusively on personal work—in a way, coming full circle, and back to the creative side of photography that originally drew me to the medium in the first place. From my new base in Asia, I’m able to travel around the world and execute my projects. My photography is evolving, constantly.

Q: When did you first become interested in photography as a mode of expression, an art form, and as a profession?

A: When I first fell in love with photography I was all consumed by street photography and the chance, fleeting moment that one could capture with the camera in hand. I was a big fan of Andre Breton, and the whole surrealist movement. I spent days and nights on the streets of New York City with my Leica M cameras recording everything in black-and-white. After falling in love with the works of Baudelaire, I was inspired to travel with my camera.

It was really a case of wanderlust, and I attempted to record what I felt deep within as a traveler moving through foreign places, as opposed to simply recording what was happening. Of course, one cannot travel without money, and that is how I discovered photojournalism.

Even back in the late 1990s, unlike today, there was still a good amount

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Malaysia. Photograph.

Man Upside-Down. Photograph.

Man with Umbrella. Photograph.

Person on Bridge. Photograph.

Monk. Photograph.

Women Dancing. Photograph. © Justin Guariglia

Q: Did you have any formal education in photography, work with a mentor, or were you self-taught. Was there a photographer or type of photography that influenced your work or inspired you?

A: My family introduced my brother and me to the arts when we were both very young. We received both hands-on education, the making of art, and being very close to New York City, got to visit a lot of museums. In college I got a special opportunity to study Venetian Art History under one of Italy’s great art historians, the late Terisio Pignatti.

I was part of a small group of 20 students that got to study with him while living next door to the Peggy Guggenheim Museum in Venice, and every day got bombarded by art—if not in the museums, then in the churches, or simply by taking in the remarkable local architecture.

This experience changed my entire understanding of the confluence of life and art forever. This art background is essentially my foundation in photography since I never formally studied photography.

Q: How did you first become interested in Leica?

A: It was THE camera used for street photography because of the hyperfocal qualities inherent with the wide-angle lenses and manual everything—you would be hard pressed to find a camera that an experienced photographer could work faster with on the street than a Leica M camera.

Q: What approach do you take with your photography or what does photography mean to you?

A: It really varies based on the task at hand. For magazine work, it’s all very straightforward – you document what’s been laid out for you, or what’s taking place—it’s often highly subjective, but made to appear completely objective.

With my personal projects, it’s more representational, but there are underlying concepts that ground and unite my work. The work is understood to be subjective, which is something not permissible in the world of photojournalism.

Interview with Justin Guariglia

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Q: You mentioned that photojournalists had once laughed at you for using a Leica Camera.

Can you share that story?

A: It was in Jakarta back in the late ‘90’s and there was rioting during the elections. The press moved around in a big pack, but I was an outsider of course. I was on assignment for a big American newspaper, but I was treating the story like a personal project.

I showed up at one event and was the only shooter without 50 pounds of gear around my neck and began taking photos when several European photographers began laughing at me for my street photography approach. There was some comment about the size of my camera, and the size of theirs… haha! I think they were half kidding and half serious, but personally I could never use the larger SLR cameras comfortably—I was never a press photographer. When the police opened fire on the crowd I was in, I got a quick wake-up call and realized I was not doing what I really wanted to be doing with a camera, so I focused on travel photography—to continue traveling the world, but with much less risk of getting killed in the process.

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Q: How has shooting with a Leica Camera influenced your work or help you grow as a photographer?

A: The biggest influence might be on the subject matter I select.

Because the Leica is so small and quiet, it’s the antithesis of a large SLR/DSLR, which, when raised and pointed at someone, is not far from being an act of aggression. The rapid-fire sound and recoil of a DSLR camera firing off frame after frame, to me has always felt like a machine gun in the hands of a photographer—as though you’re at war with the subject in front of the lens. So I prefer the slower and quieter rangefinder, or view camera with cable release—it feels a bit more in tune with the environments I like to work in.

Q: How did you come to work at National Geographic? Can you tell us about your cover story on Bali?

A: I was looking for a magazine connection to help get me out in the world to travel and learn more about life and National Geographic Traveler proposed that I do a story in Bali, Indonesia. I wanted to make sure since it was my first job for a major magazine, that I did a job that would make them call me back for more travel, so I worked extra hard to produce something I felt they would be happy with. The Bali issue turned out to be one of NGT’s best selling issues of all time, so they called me back.

Q: How long have you worked for National Geographic Traveler and what other publications has your work been featured in?

A: I’ve worked with NGT for about 10 years, and with the Smithsonian Magazine for almost as long, plus I’ve done freelance work for dozens of other publications around the world.

Q: You’ve mostly focused on Asia.

What influenced you to specialize on this area of the world?

A: I came to the Far East in 1996 to study Chinese before it became the hip thing to do. I arrived at a time when Beijing was attracting a lot of people who were stimulated

by China on an intellectual level, as opposed to today, where most come for a slice of the gold rush taking place—that is, for business reasons. In my small class in Beijing in 1996, my classmates included the current China correspondent for the New Yorker, another was the son of a famous sinologist who was President Clinton’s advisor to China, another was the son of the US ambassador to Hong Kong, and there was even a French-American polymath who began writing for the Economist while we were still in school. It was really inspiring to be around these guys, and it was here I really picked up a camera seriously for the first time. During school I was bitten by the Asia bug, and would end up moving around the region, living in Beijing, Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Taipei, and Shanghai, in that order, over a tenyear period.

Q: What books have you written and what are the themes?

A: The Shaolin: Temple of Zen (Aperture Foundation, 2007), and Planet Shanghai (Chronicle, 2008) were my first two books. We have a new book about Malaysia coming out in 2011.

Q: You had mentioned that your Leica camera’s unobtrusive nature really helped when you were shooting a story on child trafficking in Cambodia. Can you share that experience and tell us how you captured the photos?

A: Well, you need to get in and out without getting killed by people who don’t want you there, and certainly don’t want any story getting out that reveals what they’re up to. In short, you need to be as discreet as possible.

Q: What’s your approach to getting to know a location so you can capture its essence in your assignments?

A: The key to great travel photography is always lots of research, lots of exploration on foot, meeting lots of people along the way, and of course, spending lots of time.

Q: Going forward, what do you hope to achieve with your photos or what are your goals with photography?

A: For me, photography should present a new way of seeing. If a photograph doesn’t challenge how I already view the world, then that photograph has little or no value for me.

Q: You evidently lived in New York City as a youngster, and studied Venetian Art History in college. Other than being introduced to the arts and visiting museums, how do you think growing up in New York influenced your photography, and do you believe your profound exposure to classical art influences your work today?

A: I grew up in Maplewood, NJ, a suburb of Manhattan. It’s a small arty town with a lot of creative people. I grew up a few houses down the street from where Asher B. Durand lived, the Hudson River School painter. It’s a small village with rolling hills, lots of trees, lots of green, and only a few miles outside of Manhattan. Clearly it was another world when he walked the earth, but the spirit is still there. I

think this has had a deep effect on how I’ve looked at the world, and only now am I interpreting this and is it coming to the surface in my work. I think one’s environment has a profound effect on the way one thinks, sees, and creates, and I’m no different than anyone else in that respect. I think sometimes it takes months, years, or even decades for one’s experiences and environment to effect one’s work… but eventually all of our work is effected by our environment and especially our early influences in life.

Man Working. Photograph.

Monk in Temple. Photograph.

Man Farming. Photograph. © Justin Guariglia

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Q: You mention that the Leica M is discreet, unintimidating and quiet, but are there any specific operational characteristics such as the viewfinder, ergonomics, basic rangefinder concept, that you find especially beneficial in your work?

A: The camera is a tool for me—I’m not a technical person, but I love great design and things that work.

The M cameras function perfectly and embody both these concepts.

Q: You said that your favorite lens is “the one that solves the problems at hand.” Fair enough, but which lenses do you use most often on, say, the M9, and what lenses do you favor for specific purposes such as s hooting street scenes, architecture, landscapes, etc.?

A: I’m trying to cut myself down to just carrying a 35mm f/2 Summicron, but I only own 3 lenses—the 24mm f/2.8, and 35mm f/2, and the 50mm f/2. I think the idea is to keep it as simple as possible to free up the mind. If you get too caught up in all of the lenses and the technical aspects of photography, you begin to enter another world.

Q: In describing magazine work, you note that your approach is very straightforward and literal, but that “it’s often highly subjective but made to appear completely objective.” You go on to say “with my personal projects it’s more representational” and “the work is understood to be subjective, which is something not permissible in the world of photojournalism.” Since all photography entails selectivity— what to shoot, what lens to use, what shooting angle, which instant to record—do you think objectivity is really possible with any kind of photography—or is it merely an illusion?

A: Good question—I think it’s definitely an illusion. It’s an idealistic concept that doesn’t exist.

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Q: How do you plan to earn a living with photography going forward, and how does living in Asia fit in with your career or personal passion?

A: I’ll be exhibiting my work and selling prints exclusively going forward. We’ll also do books – but it will be through print sales that we’ll keep the studio going forward.

That’s the plan. Asia is where I’ve chosen to raise my family. It makes for an interesting, and comfortable base, but also it acts as a place where as a foreigner, I can be more independent with my thinking because I’m naturally isolated from my surroundings by the mere fact of being an outsider. I have no pressure to conform, I’m not restricted by rules, or social norms, simply because I’m foreign, and this helps me with my work. As a result my work today looks nothing like the work I was producing just a few months ago before I got back to Asia.

Q: We can well understand why you no longer want to be a photojournalist covering conflict zones, but do you plan to pursue any aspect of street photography or documentary photography that’s conceptually distinguishable from the broad genre of travel photography?

A: I think I will always be a documentary photographer in the sense of cataloguing life on the planet, only now going forward, I’m taking greater artistic license in my work, which I’ve never really afforded myself. So street photography, travel photography and photojournalism acted as steppingstones for me in my career.

They afforded me the opportunity of getting to where I am now. They have also given me a rather unique perspective from which to become an artist working with a camera.

Q: In characterizing the difference between film and digital for you, you succinctly observe that they’re simply different tools for solving different problems. Since you’ve been shooting for some time did you make the transition from a 35mm Leica M to the M8, and then to the M9? And specifically what kind of problems to you think digital capture solves better than film?

A: I put my 35mm Leicas away about 6 years ago and went to medium format digital and to a DSLR because there was a period when Leica digital cameras either didn’t exist or weren’t up to snuff in some respects. I just went back to Leica with the introduction of the M9 and will use my M9 as a camera to carry everywhere—primarily to record images of things that excite me, things that might inspire ideas for future work. In terms of digital, the workflow is the main advantage— you can photograph, download everything immediately, and receive instant gratification. Of course, digital is both a blessing and a curse, but the M9 accentuates the former.

Man on Throne. Photograph.

Soldier in Uniform. Photograph.

Sword Demonstration. Photograph.

Komuso Reenactment. Photograph. © Justin Guariglia

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Night and Day in a Single Photo

Select Photos taken by Stephen Wilkes

By Michael Zhang 11/11/2012

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Photographer Stephen Wilkes has become well-known for his project titled “Day to Night,” which features single images of various locations that capture the passing of a day.

Wilkes shoots his photos using a 4×5 large-format camera from 40-50 feet above the ground in a Condor bucket truck. He spends 15 hours up in the air — without any bathroom breaks, we might add — shooting around 1,400 individual photographs throughout that time.

His eyes constantly scan the area,

looking for the changing light and for interesting characters who enter the scene. After capturing his pile of photos, he spends a whopping 4 months post-processing them and combining them into a single flawless photograph.

Visit Wilkes website at: www.stephenwilkes.com

Western Wall, Jerusalem. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

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Santa Monica Pier, Los Angeles. Photograph Š Stephen Wilkes

Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Photograph Š Stephen Wilkes

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Wrigley Field, Chicago. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

Tunnel View, Yosemite National Park. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

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Presidential Inauguration, Washington DC. Photograph Š Stephen Wilkes

Eiffel Tower, Paris. Photograph Š Stephen Wilkes

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Pont de la Tournelle, Paris. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

Flatiron 9/11, NYC. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

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Times Square, NYC. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

Central Park, NYC. Photograph © Stephen Wilkes

Night and Day in a Single Photo

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Photoshop Tips and Tricks Make your photos POP!

By wix.com and makeuseof.com Photoshop is a heck of an amazing software that can really help your creativity express itself through a variety of useful tools. It’s also excellent if all you want to do is retouch a photo a bit before you post it on your site or anywhere else. If you are a Photoshop

beginner, only recently exposed to the wonders of this advanced design machine, read on. We have gathered a few tips and tricks that could really make a difference as you move forward with your next few images.

Magnetic Lasso Tool This is an easy selection tool that helps you trace and outline a part of an image, and to separate it from the rest of the image in order to perform certain actions. The magnetic lasso tool detects the edges of an object, so it works best when you have a bold contrast between an object and its background with well defined edges.

You can find this tool in the tools panel.

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Transform

Unit of Measurement

When you want to change the size of an image, rotate, flip or distort it, you can always do so by clicking Edit, then click Transform and select the action you desire. From here you can resize, flip the horizontally or vertically, and distort the image.

Select the action you want and when you are done press Enter.

A short and quick way to switch between units of measurements is to place the cursor on one of the rulers (press Cmd + R to show or hide the rulers), and right click, then choose a new unit from the context menu.

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Adjustment Layers

Make Colors Pop

As you use Photoshop for whatever purpose, like change colors of an image, make it sharper or improve the contrast, remember to always use the adjustment layers. The big advantage of the adjustment layer is that you don’t make the changes on the image itself but on a separate layer, so you can always change the settings to see which adjustment works best for you. You will find adjustment layers in the bottom of the the Layers Panel (a black and white circle icon).

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Click on the Background layer and create a duplicate of it. Now click on the Normal button at the top of the Layers Palette. In the drop-down box, select Soft Light. When selecting this adjustment, it should make the colors of your image pop, or at least intensify the contrast of your images. The contrast of most digital images always need to be improved. This technique does that job extremely well without too much loss to detail. If the Softlight application is too strong, select the Opacity button at the top of the Layers Palette and decrease the opacity of the layer/effect.

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Spot Healing Brush Yes – it’s exactly like it sounds, this tool will make everything look prettier! If you have a spot, blemish, or a mole this tool will remove it instantly. It can also be used as a pimple remover.

Just place the brush over the area you want to “fix”, make sure the brush is a bit bigger than the blemish and click.

Photoshop automatically samples from around the retouched area so you really don’t need to do anything else.

Automatic Image Adjustments When you start learning how to use Photoshop to improve your photos, you might want to try out some of the automatic adjustments that can be made, even if you don’t understand the tools themselves. The basic image enhancement and adjustment tools in Photoshop are found under Image>Adjustments in the menu bar. In the Adjustment palette, there are various tools like Levels, Auto Contrast, Curves, Brightness/Contrast.

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The Storytellers Making the world a better place: One story at a time!

A selection of recent posts

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Theodore and Hilda “You actually caught us in middle of a quarrel”, said Hilda and looked at Theodore. He laughed and teased her, “But, darling, I won that one!”

He smiled victoriously and explained, “She wanted to continue walking but I wanted to rest a little.

My lady insisted and didn’t let me have my way. We walked for about half an hour and then we got lost.

That’s when I got to say- I told you so! And then I won and we were just finishing up with the quarrel and looking for a nice bench to sit for a while.”

“You see, we fight very easily and yet, we making up for the fights has always been easier than you can even imagine.”, admitted Hilda.

Theodore went on to add, “Usually all we have to do is to pour a glass of wine, smile at each other, be together and let things settle down as we hold each other.”

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Theodore and Hilda, from Holland, are travelling to India after 26 years.

Hilda promptly added, “After 26 years, travelling with him is difficult.

He’s getting older. He keeps getting hungry or thirsty or tired all the time. And when I don’t let him, he gets grumpy. But when I look at his old face, I suddenly feel that it’s all worth it.”

Theodore admitted that she has given more perspective to his life.

“She has helped me realize that there’s always a bigger picture and things aren’t necessarily all black and white.”, he said and looked quizzically at her expecting her to answer what had she learnt from him. “Oh well, he has taught me how to stand up for myself. “, she said promptly and they smiled at each other.

“You see, every day brings a different challenge. Some days, the challenge could be as seemingly as to put up with daily ‘routine’ prescribed for us. Having a loved one in your life makes it easier to face those challenges. Together, we always do better”, said Theodore and that’s when we decided to save this story for Valentine’s Day this year.

A Mother’s Advice to Her Daughter

Bangalorean Speaks Up

“If I had to give just one advice to my “Do North Indians really think we daughter, I would tell her to always have no varieties in our cuisines?”, be independent. “, said Chaitra. asked our Auto-driver, Munni Anna and we explained that She explained, “I know that I will although we aren’t from the real always watch her back. But life can ‘north’, we didn’t really think it was be harsh and I may not be there true. “Exactly! We have so many for her. She must not wait for help variations in Dosa itself: Masala in difficult times. Life is no fairy tale Dosa, Benne Dosa, Rava Dosa, and expecting knights and heroes Neer Dosa, Kal Dosa, Wheat Dosa, Paper Dosa, just to begin with! to be your savior is just foolishness.

Then there are so many She has to be her own hero. I hope permutations and combinations she is blessed with strength and with these and also, there are courage to fight her battles in life.” so many fusion Dosas as well: Cheese Dosa and Noodle Dosa, for example!”, he clarified. “Don’t even get me started about other

South Indian delicacies now!”, he added happily.

“What is ‘Chaas’ for them is ‘Neer More’ for us. I am sure there must be many other examples. I can’t seem to recollect anything else in this hot Summer”, he added with a smile. “You see, despite all the rivalry, be it social or political, deep down we are all the same but with our own load of flaws though. But who cares enough to be perfect, anyway? So, as long as we have time, why don’t we just smile and stay happy. Everything will be fine.”, he said thoughtfully and we couldn’t have agreed more.

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Change is Us “I am really good at Maths. I think I can be a good Engineer.”, said Ram, the elder one of the two.

The younger one, Vijay, promptly responded, “Okay, Fine! But I will be a policeman when I grow up, you see!” and smirked.

to be a policeman and set a better example for the policemen.”

Ram admitted that although some of the little florists do run around troubling people, that cannot be attributed to all of them. “Not all five fingers are equal, are they?”, he asked and explained that they do That afternoon, we ran into these attend regular schools and pay due two florists and we got to hear tales attention to studies. “Whenever we fresher than the blooms on sale. get holidays, we do some errands like this to earn some extra money “He wants to be a policeman and be nice to florists like us.”, said Ram and help our parents. There’s nothing wrong in that, is it?”, said and patted the little one’s head.

Vijay. Ram just smiled and added, Vijay immediately added, “Not just to florists but to everyone.” He went “What the policemen know is not the complete picture. There are on to explain, “We are no criminals, Didi! We do no harm to anyone. We different sides to every story, only if one cares to listen!” don’t steal from people nor do we force anyone to buy from us. Why does the police have to be so rude to us then? Why do they always chase us down the street? I want

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Catch me if you can

Stuntman in the Making!

“When I am with my brother, he gets “This is not my cycle. As my parents superpowers. He can run so fast that won’t give me a cycle anymore, I your camera can’t catch him at all. had to borrow this one from a friend.

You can just see a great white blur!”, I live quite far from this place and I said the little one. just hope none of my relatives see me here.” he said.

He smiled devilishly and called out to his brother, “Bhaiya, let’s show Out of sheer curiosity, we asked, them!” and off they went filling the “Why wouldn’t your parents give air around the beach with the lovely you a cycle?” He laughed and then roar of their victorious laughter! answered, “I love doing cycle stunts and they are scared I will end up hurting myself. Little do they know that I want to practice and then become a professional stuntman!”

He proudly admitted that he has mastered various forms of wheelies and stoppies on cycle.

me ‘Salman’!”, he added with pride.

When we asked him if he was a Salman fan, he immediately did a Dabbang pose and added dramatically, “Meri jaan aur maan, sab Salman Bhai k naam!” (My name and fame- everything is for Salman Bhai) Little Salman hopes to be a stuntman for Salman Khan someday.

“Although my parents are really scared all the time, they are nice people. They love me a lot, especially my Ammi (mother).”, he said. “But Abu is the smart one. He got one thing correct – He named

The Storytellers

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The Boston Freedom Trail

Living in a sliver of the Story of America

By Christina Weisensel 17/04/2016

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The Freedom Trail is more than a collection of historic sites related to the American Revolution or a suggested itinerary connecting Boston’s unique neighborhoods. It’s a chance to walk in the footsteps of our forefathers—literally, by following a crimson path on public sidewalks—and pay tribute to the figures all school kids know, like Paul Revere, John Hancock, and

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Ben Franklin. In history-proud Boston, past and present intersect before your eyes not as a re-creation but as living history accessible to all.

Boston played a key role in the dramatic events leading up to the American Revolution. Many of the founding fathers called the city home, and many of the initial meetings and actions that sparked the fight against the British took place here. In one day, you can visit Faneuil Hall—the “Cradle of Liberty”—where outraged colonial radicals met to oppose British

authority; the site of the incendiary Boston Massacre; and the Old North Church, where lanterns hung to signal Paul Revere on his thrilling midnight ride. Colonists may have originally landed in Jamestown and Plymouth, but if you really want to see where America began, go to Boston. Just follow the red brick stripe marking the Freedom Trail as it stretches for 2.5 miles

through Boston’s most historic neighborhoods, and takes you to 16 sites important to the birth of American liberty.

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The Freedom Trail starts at historic Boston Common. This is where Colonial militias trained, where public hangings took place over the span of 3 centuries, and where British troops camped out before heading to Concord on the first day of the American Revolution.

From there you will be able to see the Massachusetts State House in the distinctive gold-domed building atop Beacon Hill. Here, the past meets the present. Several blocks away is the Park Street Church, whose 217-foot steeple is considered to be the most beautiful in New England. The church was actually founded in 1809, and it played a key role in the movement to abolish slavery. Reposing in the church’s is the Granary Burying Ground, final resting place of Samuel Adams, John Hancock, and Paul Revere. A short stroll to

Downtown brings you to King’s Chapel, founded in 1686 by King James II for the Church of England.

Follow the trail past the Benjamin Franklin statue to the Old Corner Bookstore site, where Hawthorne, Emerson, and Longfellow were published. Side note: Here I bought a book about product design. It was an accept store that was even home to a cat. Take a moment to stop in and explore. Once you leave with more books then you intended to buy, nearby is the Old South Meeting House, where arguments in 1773 led to the Boston Tea Party. Overlooking the site of the Boston Massacre is the city’s oldest public building, the Old State House, a Georgian beauty. In 1770 the Boston Massacre occurred directly in front of here—look for the commemorative stone circle.

Cross the plaza to Faneuil Hall

and explore where Samuel Adams railed against “taxation without representation.” A good mid-trail break is the shops and eateries of Faneuil Hall Marketplace, which includes Quincy Market. Side note: The food at Quincy Market is incredible. Eat lunch here if you are able, totally worth it. But save room for dessert later when you’re by Old North Church.

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When you depart Faneuil Hall, follow the red stripe to the North End, Boston’s Little Italy. The Paul Revere House takes you back 200 years—here are the hero’s own saddlebags, a toddy warmer, and a pine cradle made from a molasses cask. It’s also air-conditioned in the summer, so try to stop here in midafternoon to escape the heat. Next to the Paul Revere House is one of the city’s oldest brick buildings, the Pierce-Hichborn House. Next, peek inside a place guaranteed to trigger a wave of patriotism: the Old North Church of “One if by land, two if by sea” fame. Side note: Before you continue on this excursion, take a moment to step off the trail. Get a cannoli at Mike’s Pasty Inc. It is well worth your time! Continuing on, you can then head toward Copp’s Hill Burying Ground, where you can view graves from the late 17th century through the early 19th century.

Afterward, cross the bridge over the Charles and check out that revered icon, the USS Constitution, “Old Ironsides.” It’s open until 6 pm

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(4 pm November through March), and you’ll need about an hour for a visit, so plan accordingly.

The perfect ending to the trail? A walk to the top of the Bunker Hill Monument for the incomparable vistas. The hill was the site of one of the first battles of the Revolutionary War. Though the colonial rebels actually lost, they inflicted large casualties on the better-trained British, proving themselves against the empire.

The Boston Freedom Trail

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Every Table

Tells A Tale

Interview with Penny De Los Santos

By Evangelia Koutsovoulou 13/06/2014

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Before finding her vocation in the visual storytelling of remote communities and cultures through the food they eat and gather, Penny De Los Santos has worked extensively as a documentary photographer. Her award-winning stories have been featured in publications such as National Geographic, Time, Martha Stewart Living and Bon Appetit. She spoke with us from her apartment in New York City, just a few days before departing to shoot a cookbook in the Basque country.

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How did you first get involved with food photography?

It was around 2006: I had an editor who had just moved to a new publication so he called me to see if I was interested into doing a story in Peru and as soon as I get done there I could also shoot a second one in Chile. It was a story about food culture, a celebration of the local community for Saveur magazine. So far I mostly did visual stories around people and culture.

So he asked me to just do what I usually do, without worrying about the food too much. I went to this assignment and met with the writer - a food historian – on location. As we were walking at the market in Santiago, to hear her talk about how the potato migrated and how it influenced this particular culture, I realized that food tells amazing stories. I had never seen anyone photographing such a thing and

found it incredibly compelling, exploring food culture. On my way back home I was thinking that this is what I want to do. I want to shoot food.

How is your life influenced by food?

For me, from what I have experienced through my job, it’s not just about the ingredients. The active gathering around the table and how they connect, is what influences my work the most. The intimacy of sharing a meal and how profound and different that can be. You know food connects all of us. It’s something far beyond our differences and politics. Food is the one thing that can change us all.

Tacos. Photograph.

Shrimp. Photograph.

Cooking on the Street. Photograph. © Penny De Los Santos

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You have done several interesting stories documenting the food habits of faraway cultures. How do those stories occur?

Usually it’s something I’ve been commissioned to do. For the first 10 years of my career I was trained by National Geographic. Being a visual storyteller, I know how to narrate a culture that I had never interacted with before within a short period of time. So this is what I do.

What is the most fascinating experience that has happened to you so far?

I’d had so many and they’re always pretty profound, but there are a few that I speak about mostly because they changed me. One of those stories was in Beirut: my assignment was to photograph a group of Iraqi refugees. Those men had left their families, their communities, everything. And they had nothing, in a city that they barely knew. So the story was about how 8 of these men had found each other and how they gather once a week and

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remember home by cooking. For me as a woman and as a westerner, I would have never been able to seat at their table and eat with them. But through my camera and because of photography, that was my passport into their lives. I think food is one of the most intimate ways of communication, without a doubt. But by sharing in this case particularly, those men remembered their home. Realizing that because of cooking they found community and a new home, and I really felt that because it was powerful and profound. It was one of the most incredible tables I’ve ever sat, I could have never imagined anything like that.

What is the difference between the way the older cultures and the westerners perceive food?

Certain cultures have a deep rooted tradition in gathering: if you go to a developing country and you go to the market, the difference is the place where you are sourcing your ingredients and the way recipes

are handed down. I think that to some degree we have that in the U.S. through cultures who have migrated here. Still, in our case the commercialization and globalization of food is deep. As much the further you get away from the western world you don’t see that.

And therefore people cook more simply and closer to the ground, metaphorically speaking. Meaning that they don’t add a bunch of different ingredients. It’s very simple and thoughtful. While in this country we look at recipes and websites, we’re really interested in “growing” our food connection while those cultures already have that.

Bread Baking. Photograph.

Tea Drinking. Photograph.

Loaded Soup. Photograph.

Vegetables and Spices. Photograph. © Penny De Los Santos

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Christina Weisensel

explore.