RPS Travel Group eNewsletter #42

TRAVEL GROUP e-NEWSLETTER

#42 January 2019

Travel Image of the Month is: “Fetching Water” by Paul Sansome

©PaulSansome Thanks Paul for putting a little sunshine into our wintry lives. Paul has kindly given us a little background information about this shot which you can read further down the newsletter.

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#42 January 2019

Contents Meet the Committee - Keith Pointon, LRPS Book now for the Dolomites photography tour, led by Charlie Waite Preview of an article “Changpa Nomads, Ladakh” by Ian Wright Distinction success by Dr Paul Skehan, ARPS “Bundi”, an article by Paul Sansome Bits & Bobs Meet the Committee The first committee member to greet you in 2019 is Keith Pointon, LRPS, who is the TG Trips organiser.

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The Dolomites photography tour led by Charlie Waite Just a reminder that this exciting tour takes place in late June 2019, and you can book your place by clicking on the link below:

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#42 January 2019

Remember, places on this trip are limited so book now to avoid missing out!

The Dolomites

Changpa Nomads, Ladakh by Ian Wright I’m doing a short preview of Ian’s article here - the full version will be in The Travel Log shortly (although I might pinch a bit more of it for the next newsletter!)

Changpa Camp

Several things had caught my imagination and offered up potential for exploration and photography, not least the isolation itself and the landscape, ‘Here’, one author has acutely observed, ‘the bones of the earth not only protrude through the mantle which life has cast over them,

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#42 January 2019

as they do in all mountains anywhere; the covering is of the scantiest, and the structure shows through in all its purity. It is the beauty of line that predominates, rather than the purity of texture’.

Pashmina Goats

Typical Landscape and Tso Moriri Lake

The landscape is vast and, on many occasions, we travelled hours without seeing any human presence. Most of our journey was above 4,000 m, a good deal above 5,000 m. Thank goodness for Targas, our resourceful driver - a bright young man, like many villagers, drawn into the growing tourist hub.

Text & Images ©Ian Wright Look out for the full article coming soon in The Travel Log

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#42 January 2019

ARPS Distinction Travel Group member Dr Paul Skehan was recently awarded his ARPS distinction and this is his submission:

My journey to an ARPS distinction I recall getting my first camera aged around 11 which I won as a prize for writing an essay on the merits of milk which in fact I detested and wouldn't drink! This was the start of my interest in photography and I subsequently bought my first traditional Olympus SLR camera soon after qualifying as a doctor in 1983. For many years my photography consisted principally of taking holiday photographs, which I always tried to compose well. Life was busy combining a full-time job as a general practitioner with getting married and raising two children. In 2004 I bought my first digital compact camera, which ,whilst not of great quality, did bring an introduction to digital technology and the ability to take large number of photographs without worrying about the costs of developing the large number of photographic failures. Around 2008 as the cost of digital cameras fell I took the plunge and bought my first digital SLR camera, the Canon 350 D. With my children having reached their teenage years I was beginning to find more free time. I became more interested in developing my photographic skills particularly enjoying taking landscape photographs in more interesting locations which we were now able to visit such as Canada, San Francisco and Yosemite. I found that I wanted to take better photographs and started reading camera magazines and books. In 2012 my wife Christine suggested that I join a local camera club, and after a little hesitation I decided to give it a go. Joining midway through the season I entered the beginner section and scored reasonably well in competitions. The following year I moved up into the advanced section and became club competition champion in 2013 and again in 2014.

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#42 January 2019

Stimulated by the competitive environment and learning from speakers and judges I gradually expanded my photography repertoire into cityscapes, wildlife, and black and white photography in addition to my principal interest of landscapes. I advanced my skills in post processing mainly using Lightroom rather than Photoshop through continued reading magazines and watching YouTube videos.

In the summer of 2015 I was introduced to the Royal Photographic Society by the husband of one of my work colleagues who was a long standing member and holder of an ARPS distinction. He suggested I bring some photos along to an informal photo Forum. At this point I knew nothing about the RPS or its Distinctions.

However the positive feedback I received convinced me to put together a panel from my existing portfolio over the summer months which I submitted for a Licentiate Distinction in October 2015 and was successful.

Immediately following this I was travelling on a two-week holiday with my wife to India and my RPS friend suggested, half jokingly I think, that if possible I should try and get some photos that might form the basis for a travel ARPS. At this point I really had no experience of travel photography as a genre and very little experience of photographing people. I came back with about 3000 photographs and took what I thought were the best of them to a subsequent photo Forum. The feedback left me in no doubt that very few of the photos were of the required type or quality.

At this point Christine and I made a joint decision that we would go back to India again in 2017 and that I would embark on a mission in the interim to develop my travel photography knowledge and skills. We booked a holiday to travel around Rajasthan in October 2017. I purchased a number of relevant books including guides to travel photography by Lonely Planet and Footprint,

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#42 January 2019

a fantastic Steve McCurry book entitled “India”, and importantly the recently published Royal Photographic Society guide to travel photography distinctions. I concluded that I would probably have more success in taking principally “fly on the wall” type photographs as opposed to posed portraits. I updated my camera equipment moving to a lighter, mirrorless Fuji film XT 2, and purchased two prime lenses, 23 mm and 56 mm, which I felt would be most productive for the type of photographs I needed. I honed my skills in street photography as much as I could on the streets of Glasgow prior to heading to India.

The holiday in India was a fantastic experience as we travelled from Jaipur to the holy city of Pushkar, and onwards through the cities of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Udaipur. I returned with another 3000 or more photographs and felt much more confident with the results. I spent much time processing photographs, making draft choices, seeking feedback from my local informal RPS group, as well as attending two formal Distinction Advisory days. Gradually through the process photos were reworked, rejected when appropriate, replaced by alternatives, printed and reprinted. I did all my own printing on my Epson SureColour 600, and found that the biggest problem I encountered was in getting natural looking skin tones.

Having obtained much more positive feedback at an Advisory day in Bridge of Allan during the summer from James and Hazel Frost, both Travel FRPS, I decided to go ahead with the small number of advised tweaks and submitted for September 11 assessment date. Three days later I was highly elated to receive an email confirming that I had been successful. It had been a great learning experience, at times very stressful, particularly when printing issues severely tested my resolve but ultimately hugely satisfying to go from a travel photography novice to achieving a travel ARPS in the space of about two years.

Text & Images ©Dr Paul Skehan, ARPS

“Bundi” by Paul Sansome I do really like elements of my photograph selected for the January photograph of the month. I love the colour of the saris and it was shot against a fascinating background in beautiful light. However, the women, whilst not posed, were there by my arrangement to provide a photo opportunity for clients on one of my photography holidays to Rajasthan. This was actually the wife of my local guide and two of her friends and they were simply asked to make their way down to fetch water as would have happened a century or more ago. Therefore, as a re-enactment, it is not a true travel photograph.

The Morning Read

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#42 January 2019

The location of this (Travel Image of the Month) shot was the Dhabhai Kund in Bundi. The Kund, or stepwell, is an extraordinary architectural device for giving access to the town’s water supply. Its geometric construction, dating from the 16th century, creates intricate Escher-like designs. Since the town has long since been supplied with running water this, and many other such wells, are no longer used and most have fallen into complete disrepair. There is free, unrestricted access to this stepwell and do not expect to find it either clean or well maintained.

The Kiterunners

Top: Eye at the Window Bottom: Backstreet Scene

Contrast January’s image with a photograph that I took on my first visit to this location (above left), which was one of the most remarkable occurrences on my travels. Whilst stood looking at the empty void of the stepwell, I noticed a kite flapping across the sky. In Asia, kite flying is a fight game involving blades. Those familiar with Khaled Hosseini’s book “The Kite Runner”, or the resulting film, will know that the defeated kite is retrieved by an assistant, often a younger brother, to the lad operating the kite. In this case, unbelievably, the kite flittered down and landed in the water of the well! Shortly afterwards the chasing kite runners entered the kund. Unable to reach the kite, the lads must have thought what were the chances, out of all the places in this parched town, that it would land in the small pond of water. I was thinking that the chances of all of this happening whilst I was there, with camera, were one in a million! I was now aware, though, that photography in this great construction really needed a human presence.

The southern Rajasthan town of Bundi, by the way, is my favourite place for photography out of all that I have visited in India. People may be familiar with the reputation of Jodhpur as the “Blue City” but it is clear to me that, with a network of pastel coloured backstreets and alleys, Bundi offers better opportunities for depicting life with a colourful backdrop.

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#42 January 2019

Geographically, Bundi is located 200 km south of Jaipur and is linked to it by a new highway. It makes a great stopover if people are trying to visit the famous cities of Jaipur and Udaipur. Photographically, however, it holds a higher ranking for me than either of those tourist centres and really merits at least a two-night stay.

Dominating this town is the Garh Palace, a rambling, crumbling structure that is entirely worth the climb just to see its magnificent Rajput miniature wall paintings. The Palace also offers elevated views over the whole town. There are many temples throughout the town and there are over 50 stepwells, though only two, the Dhabhai Kund and the Raniji ki Baori, are really worth the visit for photography. However, you should visit this town for street photography and not historical sites.

L: Coordination - R: Relaxed Passenger

Spend your time leisurely wandering the back streets, meeting people and photographing them as you go. As in many Indian cities, the lanes are a maze and to get the most out of your visit you should use a local guide.

They will make sure that your visit includes the Muslim quarter which offers a different set of photography subjects including a number of bangle making and jewellery workshops. The lanes are largely free of cars so you will just encounter a few bicycles or motorbikes, perhaps delivering milk in metal churns from the farms in the surrounding countryside.

Swinging on a Gate

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#42 January 2019

These backstreets will be a marked contrast to the hectic activity that you will experience elsewhere in India.

You will, of course, come across many scavenging cows following their daily route to people that they have learnt will feed them!

Over several visits, Bundi has offered great photography both for myself and for my photography holiday clients. I really recommend it as a travel photography location.

View towards Garh Palace

Text & Images ŠPaul Sansome

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#42 January 2019

Bits & Bobs Last New Year Katharina & I were invited to attend & photograph a very special party. As you are probably aware, Sweden is a very tolerant society that has welcomed refugees, and we have become friends with one family who organised a New Year’s Eve party for their family and friends, all refugees from troubled areas of our planet. The party-goers came from all over the county and celebrated until the early hours.

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It was a great party with happy smiling faces all around.

To finish this first newsletter of 2019, I’ll leave you with a few of my favourite lines, penned by John Donne almost 400 years ago ...

No man is an island, Entire of itself, Every man is a piece of the continent, A part of the main.

If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less.

As well as if a promontory were.

As well as if a manor of thy friend's Or of thine own were: Any man's death diminishes me, Because I am involved in mankind, And therefore never ask for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee.

John Donne Meditation 17 Devotions upon Emergent Occasions 1624

I wish you all a joyful and peaceful 2019.

See you next issue Grahame

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