Husks and grain, a photo from Jammu and Kashmir, North

Photographer's Note

This is not for hardcore fans of digital photography, but maybe for lovers of film grain. It's a scan of a Kodachrome slide taken more than 33 years ago on a day with a difficult light at an elevation of 3 600 meters above sea level.

Looking at the central area of the photo, the woman and the small stupas behind her, the colours seem fairly correct. Logically the rest should also be reasonably correct, but I don't understand the blueish tones of the background. Frankly, I don't even know what the background is showing. A forest or a grove of big bushes? Maybe, but why so blue? And was there really a forest here? I don't remember any. Perhaps ghosts of Buddhist saints? It is quite possible.

Whatever it is, this is what the original slide looks like, so it's not a matter of a disastrously bad scanning job. I actually quite like the slightly surrealistic effect.

Enough of that. This is from the same walk through the Indus valley in Ladakh that I showed in my last upload. I was on my way to the famous Thiksey monastery southeast of Ladakh's main city Leh, where the local farmers were busy taking care of their crops. If you care to continue with me to my next upload in a few days you will see that great monastery.

I cropped quite a lot at the top and bottom, then also a part to the right to make the woman better placed at a third. I also desaturated the original scan quite heavily to make the yellow and blue tones less overwhelming.

Here is a larger version. No workshop today.

ChrisJ, snunney, Fis2, papagolf21, alvaraalto, Royaldevon, ikeharel, ktanska, pierrefonds, COSTANTINO, aliabazari, jhm, jean113, josepmarin, PaulVDV, macjake, mcmtanyel, adramad, cornejo, Hansaphotos, worldcitizen, PiotrF ha puntuado esta nota como útil.

Critiques | Translate

pajaran (114971) 2019-01-30 0:46

Dobar dan.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepa fotografija i secanje.
Zelim vam lep i uspesan dan, sve najbolje.
Paja.

ChrisJ (171280) 2019-01-30 0:57

Hi Gert

A good daily life scene from north India of the busy woman. The bluish tones contrast well with the yellow fg grain crop. It's called purple fringing and occurs under strong light contrasts, more so at high altitude.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_fringing

"Commonly advocated methods of avoiding purple fringing include:

Avoid shooting with a wide-open lens in high contrast scenes.
Avoid overexposing highlights (e.g. specular reflections and bright sky behind dark objects).
Shoot with a Haze-2A or other strong UV-cut filter."

Also in photoshop you can reduce the blue saturation and add yellow. Happens to me too sometimes. A very good scan and the stupas add depth and layering. Tfs!

snunney (130967) 2019-01-30 1:06

Hello Gert,
An interesting daily life composition with this lady evidently hard at work with her scythe. The graininess adds to the charm and the sense of nostalgia, though I doubt farming methods have much changed there since you captured this scene.

Fis2 (169791) 2019-01-30 1:12

Witaj Gert!
Anothe scene from daily life, beautiful picture.
Good framing and colors.
The second plan is impressive.
I like it.
Warm regards.
Krzysztof

papagolf21 (152605) 2019-01-30 2:01

Bonjour, cher Gert,
L'image est parlante à travers cette femme au travail des champs (il faut avoir une constitution forte pour résister à des travaux difficiles à cette hauteur).
J'aime la présentation qui donne un petit air du passé très agréable.
Merci pour la note également.
Amitiés.
Philippe

alvaraalto (42804) 2019-01-30 2:24

Hello Gert
You can clearly see from the picture that it was taken in the analogue colour era.
This creates an authentic atmosphere that a sharp digital photo would not have had.
As a result, this is a wonderful image of the atmosphere that is given strength by technical imperfection.
In the background I think I clearly recognize a folded mountain landscape and this blue is the colour of the distance shadow light. I did not believe in the ghosts or Buddhist saint.
Excellent picture
Have a good week, groet Rob

mesutilgim (0) 2019-01-30 2:35

Helo Gert,
Another nice and interesting "oldie" in your gallery.
I do not think that life has changed much there, unfortunately.
Many interesting and usefull notes.
TFS and best regards
MESUT ILGIM

Silvio1953 (220665) 2019-01-30 4:05

Ciao Gert, lovely composition with woman at work and interesting rocks formations, wonderful natural colors, excellent clarity and splendid light, very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

Royaldevon (85638) 2019-01-30 5:07

Hello Gert,

You can easily see how hard the lady is working, tossing the cereal into the air, maybe to remove the husk or to help dry the stems. The expression and determination on her face reveals her mood. You have cropped the scene carefully, so the figure is strongly placed in the frame. The layers from f/g to b/g work well, too.
To me, the purplish b/g seems to be the slopes of a mountain with gullies, with the stupas in the m/g.
I would imagine that this type of farming is centuries old. I wonder if it has become more modernised since you were there!

My warm regards,
Bev :-)

Sergiom (117241) 2019-01-30 6:25

Bonjour Gert,

Une autre très jolie photo argentique sortie de tes archives et parfaitement numérisée.Ton point de vue couché dans le foin offre une perspective très intéressante.

Amicalement

Serge

Nicou (193806) 2019-01-30 6:49

Hello

fantastique scène et vue quelle image de cette dame en train de travailler le foin un dur labeur et ce formes de ces maisons je pense et la paille en premier plan quelle vue superbe compo.
Bravo et amitié
Nicou

Tue (91612) 2019-01-30 7:07

Hej Gert,
Baggrunden med det blålige skær giver en interessant atmosfære som du siger. Kvinden der er i gang med de hårde arbejde er godt fanget i centret, det ser ud til at hun lige smed noget af græsset i luften. Også de store stupaer virker godt i baggrunden.
Lars

rychem (72187) 2019-01-30 8:25

A very nice old scanned photo, one more valuable photo in your rich archive, beautiful daily life scene, very well composed
regards Ryszard

Ilonka1974 (10289) 2019-01-30 8:30

Hi Gert,
You captured a nice rural daily life scene.
This picture! it gives us a great look on the reality in Asia. The people there are doing lot of work and they still do it by hand.
Best regards
Janusz

GyurMaster (24672) 2019-01-30 10:19

Dear Gert,

This photo is certainly for me! I like grain and in addition this is a well-composed photo with the litter on the fg. It would have fitted any magazine back then.

Best Wishes,
Gy.

jmdias (114318) 2019-01-30 11:14

gerst[

the background looks a giant and arid slope cut by erosion in some points. amazing these stuppas, they look like sculptures. the farmer girl is a precious register of locals and their hard life.

take care

jorge

fabianoleite (13575) 2019-01-30 11:42

Very peculiar view, showing lots of characteristics of the place, including costumes and activities. Excellent blurring of the foreground and background, bringing the emphasis to the hardworking woman. Congratulations!

ktanska (44492) 2019-01-30 12:14

Hej Gert,
Simple composition and unexpected colours make a fascinating result, even though it is not very sharp. I especially like flying straw showing intensity of work. To me the background looks distant and dryish mountains slopes in shadow.
Kari

pierrefonds (113634) 2019-01-30 13:09

Hi Gert,

You have captured well the action of the woman in the field. The point of view is showing the details of her clothing and of the stupa.Which type of scanner do you use for your slides or negatives? Have a nice day.

Pierre

lousat (138655) 2019-01-30 14:47

Hi Gert,a natural grained effect not bad at all,it's the sign of time of this pic,very different and interesting also you too don't remember what you show in background as i can read. Original post,i like it! Have a nice day and thanks,Luciano

carlo62 (81265) 2019-01-30 14:50

Ciao Gert
penso che Chris abbia dato un'ottima risposta al quesito.
In ogni caso la foto è bella e interessante, la scansione è ottima e il suo valore è aumentato dagli anni.
Saluti
Carlo

COSTANTINO (115583) 2019-01-30 22:06

Hello dear Gert and have a nice time
I have a question for you
how many photos do you have???
I am really suprised because every photo
of yours is a real tresure for us
and this one taen more than 33 years ago
on a day with a difficult light as you said
is really interesting!!!!
hard work indeed!!!
welldone and wellseen
regards
Costantino

aliabazari (21331) 2019-01-30 23:07

Hi dear friend Gert
The beauty of this female farmer has been shown. This is a good environmental portrait. The clarity and exposure are well done. Thank you for sharing this beautiful picture.

rbassin (27472) 2019-01-31 2:30

hello Gert
Une magnifique photo, la scène est bien saisie et on peu apprécier le geste de la femme et les vêtements.
Amicalement
Roland

jhm (211734) 2019-01-31 4:45

Hello Gert,

I remember me if child working on the field in hay and straw.
A little bit as your picture.
Happy that you this has scanned.
Lovely photo work
Very well done, TFS.

Have a nice day,
John.

jean113 (27639) 2019-01-31 8:30

Hello Gert, a fabulous picture, you did a great job with the scanning and the editing.
I like all the different features of your picture.
The woman is working so hard, her expression is priceless.
Lovely shot.
Regards Jean.

josepmarin (59385) 2019-02-02 3:15

Hi Gert,
this one is an almost 34 years old photo! It's fantastic to see this good capture of a daily life scene, caught under difficulty conditions, but with a nice achievement.
The scan of this slide preserves a high image quality, in spite of the pass of time.
In this kind of photos I'm a lover of the grain in it, is the fact which adds a strong dramatic effect in the composition.
Well done!
Friendly regards,
Josep

PaulVDV (62804) 2019-02-02 23:06

Hello Gert,
At first I thought we saw a mountain slope on the background, on closer inspection it are indeed branches and foliage. I expect you to think their rather unusual colour matches the woman's headscarf.
The composition is very good and you've taken the photo on the right moment. I like the stupas behind the woman.
Women in Ladakh are doing the hard work like elsewhere in India.
A very atmospheric shot!
Best regards, Paul

emka (157280) 2019-02-03 1:16

Hello Gert, this picture has a poorer quality than other pictures equally old, But neever mind,it is an interesting document showing the woman at work, i SUPPOSE THAT OU COULD OBSERV SIMILAR SCENES ALSO NOW,

Kind regards

Malgo

macjake (98262) 2019-02-03 22:53

Hi Gert
sorry, i'm a little tardy with my critiques lately.
I'll try to post a new photo in a few hours, one for Malgo :)
reading your note, i wonder how it would look in black and white, at least then you avoid your 'blue' problem. its great that the lady has her body facing us/you, as oppose to only seeing her back. this is a wonderful daily life shot and cultural image. still can't believe 1985 is THAT long ago, yikes! cheers
Craig

gervaso (28177) 2019-02-04 2:47

Hello, Gert!

The quality of the image is quite good for a scanned slide of so much time ago, and it's an interesting rural scene you show us here with these curious stupas. The photo has very good depth with the imposing view of the mountains in the background! Beautiful composition!

mcmtanyel (67709) 2019-02-04 20:44

Hello Gert,
I like grain (all puns intended), especially film grain. I love that blurred mountain in the background.
Regards,
MT

adramad (72564) 2019-02-05 11:47

Hello Gert.
A magnificent composition, taking into account the antiquity of the film, adverse weather and altitude, but it is a fantastic archive image, which shows us the hard work with this woman venting the harvest.
A magnificent scan and touch-ups on your part.
Very good work. I like it
Have a happy day
Very best regards.
Luis.

cornejo (61504) 2019-02-07 11:49

Hello Gert, very good picture of this interesting scene of everyday life working the grain, very well captured in this interesting image, with good sharpness, light, color and quality. A great job perfectly done, my congratulations my friend. Thanks for sharing this interesting work.

Good night and happy weekend.
All the best from the south of Spain.
Angel.

Hansaphotos (11381) 2019-02-10 6:07

Hei Gert

Det er riktig som du sier, fargene i forgrunnen samt kvinnen og hennes klesdrakt, virker realistiske og riktig gjengitt. Blåtonene og kornene i bildet gjør ikke meg noe, det er tvert i mot med på å gjøre det attraktivt på sin egen måte. Kunstverket, eller hva det måtte være, danner en spennende og interessant bakgrunn. Som du påpeker, kvinnen er veldig bra plassert i bildet. Du har gjort en god jobb med skanning og videre behandling av bildet. Veldig bra;)

Hilsen Erling

worldcitizen (15960) 2019-02-10 15:57

Hello Gert,
Yes, the background here is a bit mysterious. To me, it looks like some kind of rocks. I don't mind gritty scans at all; they have character. We can see how hard this woman had to work, and the stupas are interesting, too.

jemaflor (146330) 2019-02-17 9:04

Hi Gert,
Interesting old photo, well photographed this lady at work, good colors contrast, tfs.

kasianowak (17672) 2019-02-25 12:24

Maybe a mountain slope in a more shaded part of the landscape? Although you did mention overcast weather in your previous note and there are no obvious shadows in the photo so the contrast between shade and sunshine doesn't sound like the right answer...
In any case, this is a stunning shot with the lady's colourful clothes and the stupas. Again, great crop.

Miguel82 (47110) 2019-04-17 11:54

Gert, the lady is working hard to prepare the winter. In the bg, three chortens stand majestically. The farm work requires stamina, it is surprising to see women doing such hard task. Wonderful daily life photo taken around Thiksey monastery

PiotrF (54246) 2019-09-09 16:35

Hello Gert
A very interesting daily life scene from India of the busy woman.
I like great composition here and nice colours.
Fine presentation
Regards
Piotr

ikeharel (112475) 2021-06-02 1:57

Hello gert,
You do not have to apologize for a scanned picture job, we all know to distinguish the differences - yet that moment we see on this picture says more than just words: a face expression of the woman in hard-work task next to ancient monuments that teeth of time took a great toll upon.
Have a nice new day,
Ike