Shopkeeper, a photo from Taipei, North

Photographer's Note

This lady runs a very small stall in a little market that runs alongside the road leading to Lungshan Temple.

It is almost a mall, in that there are walls and the shops/stalls are permanent, but it is barely wide enough for two people to walk side by side. In this little mall, there are fortune tellers, used cell phone sellers, noodle shops and this lady, who sells canned goods and dried foods. What you see here is almost her entire store, it is just tiny.

This little mall is always hot and steamy, due to limited air flow as well as the noodle shops, but the vendors in here are interesting, at least to me. This woman is always there, always with about the same disconnected look on her face and more often than not, she will be fanning herself to keep cool (even though there is a fan overhead as well).

I have taken a number of shots of here, but the lighting isn't always very good, and the shots don't usually work. Somehow, I caught her sharply on Sunday.

ISO400

elihesamian, Steely, Luko, Josh69, Frankp, eleparc, smael, nfriedli, sn00zie, xadnadjev, LoneWolfREV ha puntuado esta nota como útil.

Critiques | Translate

maciekda (19895) 2004-04-28 6:51

Darren, I know this lady! I have a smililar picture with her too, just her pose is a bit different ;) this world is so small..
very nice picture, this blurred neswpaper is great, great sharpness and focusing, very good, nothing to complain about for me

[3] +

clodreno (0) 2004-04-28 6:55

Very nice image Darren, I love the movement of the fan. This is good .
We can feel the hot weather.
She looks a bit bored though..

[3]

gringofil (0) 2004-04-28 6:57

Nice, Darren. A shot like this I've attempted a number of times, but could never get anything worthwile...but you've managed to capture a wonderful moment here. We've got markets like this as well and I've taken pics there myself...wonderful places for people shots. I really like the motion blur of the newspaper here, works very well. Her expression is quite amazing. Somehow I wish that you've used larger DOF here (which could have not worked given a slow shutter speed), because I would have liked to see the back of her shop in focus. Anyway, nice one, I like it.

[2]

elihesamian (26149) 2004-04-28 7:08

It`s great in daily life categories.I like her lively pose & You captured it very excellent.The shot give me a movment feeling for newspaper in her hand :)
You did great,Darren !

Ginebra (0) 2004-04-28 7:11

Typical scene in Asia. So hot I can feel it... Good caught!

Steely (895) 2004-04-28 8:06

hahaha Darren what a pic!
she's looking at you thru one eye, with the other half closed, reminds me of a crocodile ( somehow...)

Love the close cropping that yet shows how the shop looks like, and her fanning hand
that look .... it kills me :D

[2]

Luko (14000) 2004-04-28 8:44

This is truly excellent as a portrait because rather than relying on face expression or whatever not specifically typical to her activity, you mangae to include the true atmosphere of chinese shops.

I remember as a kid having v'namese friends whose parents owned this kind of cornershop.
They couldn't go outside playing football as often as us, as they had some days to keep the shop, sometimes I'd go chatting with them for hours, inside the shop it was so hot and boring we could almost feel time pass.

I can now feel back this atmosphere, the heat and even the smells...

I wouldn't mind if you had selected "decisive moment" as a category...far more timing needed inside this shot than most plain tight portraits.

[3]

Josh69 (1437) 2004-04-28 9:07

Do you have a new camera?
I would be interesting to see a version of this with more DOF - I don't know if it would be better or not though. The thing which I find appealing of this shot is the neatness of everything staked on the slelves. And her facial expression.

[2]

Frankp (143) 2004-04-28 9:22

Daren, You nailed it this time. Excellent environmental photo. The movement of the paper (fan), the expression on her face, and all the stock around for sale. IMHO, the dof works as it separates out the shop keeper from her wares, yet you can still see all the cans and jars in the background. You have caught the feel of these small shops - wish I could do the same; maybe you will inspire me.

Cheers and keep shooting.

[2]

aferrao (1145) 2004-04-28 9:54

I like the way you,ve captured tha lady in his own world, sorrounded by the thing that makes part of her live, day by day!
Graet shot!

dsidwell (9783) 2004-04-29 0:14

Yep, this is very nice. I like your framing, as it allows us to see her very clearly, while also showing her in her environment. Fun stuff!

eleparc (24063) 2004-05-02 7:33

for some reasons i missed that one;-) i love the way you managed to have the whole scene in sharp focus while only the paper is blurred... the light is excellent too, not too strong, just the way it should be;-) great DOF too;-) nothing to nickpick on this one;-) bravo darren!

smael (2878) 2004-05-04 14:37

Brilliant work darren!
You've managed to capture the essence of these small and overfilled shops, together with a wonderful expression of tiredness. And that fan is the magic touch...!

Terje

philip_coggan (11) 2004-05-09 22:50

"Someone doing something." (The advice given to me when I asked the man who runs a certain stock agency what kind of photo I should take). This is it - a lady running a little market stall on a hot day with not enough customers.

nfriedli (1060) 2004-05-16 8:02

Superbe ! On sent un courant d'air frais en voyant ce journal-éventail. Profondeur de champ parfaite.

xadnadjev (508) 2004-10-14 4:32 [Comment]

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kinginexile (2598) 2004-10-20 2:08

Hard not to admire that pix if one loves portraits and lively colors. Like i do!

Glad you had to struggle for that pix, try many times. I mean, that gives me less complexes! All about hard work!!!!

keribar (43841) 2005-03-25 14:24

Hello Darren, what a nice catch, I like the motion and the framing which shows nothing except what is necessary to get a splendid shot.

Well done - Izzet Keribar