Hà Nội qua ống kính của một nhiếp ảnh gia Hungary
Xin giữ nguyên bài viết :chuyenhvt:
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Notice something on the above photo I took of marching Communist Vietnamese soldiers across from Ho Chi Minhs Mausoleum: those two faces on the left side of the picture were giving me icy glares!
Because I have had a
lets just say hectic Communist past in Hungary
seeing the soldiers looks sent chills down my spine and made me pack up and get out of there ASAP.
But first things first: why the heck am I writing from Ha Noi, Vietnam anyways?
After my short lived all ruined photography trip in Thailand I decided to return to Vietnam where I had very positive experiences with people, scenery, photography and true love on a minibus.
At a later time I may visit southern Thailand but to minimize my slightly negative northern Thailand photographic experience I decided to fly to Hanoi instead of my preferred way of getting around: by bus. Basically I wanted to get out of Thailand ASAP.
Guidebooks warn about the taxi mafia at Hanoi airport so I got on an airport shuttle and had a specific hotel written down on paper where I wished to go.
This safety precaution can avoid being taken to a substandard and overpriced hotel where the taxi mafia gets a kick back from.
Not surprisingly my decision to take a shuttle was met with some yelling and displeasure.
Even though I was this cautious what happened next was that when I was dropped off (on a corner, presumably at my hotel) I was greeted by a guy who said my choice of hotel was full but the sister hotel had availability.
I did not think the official shuttle company would trick me, the other hotel cost the same and had WI-FI as well so I agreed to check it out because it was late at night already.
The room was just OK, the price was just OK but the WI-FI did not work and the guy was a bit shady and lacked very basic customer service skills - by this time the room became way too expensive.
Moral of the story: one can go to a hotel which Lonely Planet suggested using the method of transportation which Lonely Planet suggested and still get into a bind.
Next morning I checked out and went to another more reputable hotel where everyone was nice and they even assisted me to get a 6 month multi entry Vietnamese visa extension.
Six months may sound like a long time as a tourist in one country so I may leave for Laos or Thailand and return to Vietnam but I definitely wanted to extend the one month default tourist visa.
Unfortunately I could not get this 6 month visa in Bangkok, a bit of a communist red tape perhaps? I had to buy a 1 month visa first to enter and extend that once I arrived in Vietnam.
I did not mind staying a week in Hanois old quarter, I could have done short trips around Hanoi and return to pick up my passport but I found enough culture to photograph for seven days without problem.
And no, I did not have the urge to see Halong Bay, many would call me crazy because everyone goes to see it but that is a good enough reason for me not to go. I have seen The Seventh Wonder of The World and soaked up as much tourism as I care for already there. :)
Now lets see some of my pictures from 7 days of Hanoi street photography. I did end up with some nice images but for this post I decided to show some of the more interesting photos.
Communist training starts early with the kids of Vietnam. This was a school play I found by chance at the Ly Thai Tho statue next to Hoan Kiem Lake in the Old Quarter where kids marched and sang songs; for me Hungarian Communist flashback No. 347:
Women maintaining the grass in front of Ho Chi Minhs Mausoleum.
I knew I was pushing the red envelope by photographing a Communist guard (got some suspicious looks from him too) but I felt if I did not include him the photo would have lost its point:
I myself come from humble beginnings growing up in Communist Hungary. Many things are humbling when living under a Communist government.
I am not sure why this welder is not wearing a safety mask but Communist workers do not ask questions, Communist workers do not complain, Communist workers get the job done.
It seems he is welding with his eyes closed but he could have just blinked when I took the photo:
I heard from a reliable source that lonely men who refuse to take or cannot afford Viagra hang out at this bar every night:
I stopped by these two kids because one was peeling cucumbers and the other one was just eating them and I thought that was a hell of a work distribution.
Then the kid on the right asked me to take his photo but the joke to hold up the cucumber like this was his idea, it was definitely unsolicited by me:
Most of the trash in Hanoi is thrown out onto the curbside and cleaned up later. As I was walking around looking for visually interesting and unusual sights these discarded flowers always caught my attention because they were not in a really bad shape, they were still beautiful therefore they added some colorful decoration to the streets:
Looks like the little angels are also little drama queens. This photo was taken at the same play where the boys were marching soldiers.
I was very lucky to stumble upon this school play while randomly walking around in the Old Quarter of Hanoi.
I was able to photograph for about 1 hour 10 minutes, took about 600 photos some of which I really like and will present them in the future.
There were several costume changes so I could get a nice variety of photos and the sky was overcast providing excellent soft light without having to worry about harsh shadows on the faces or having to use flash.
I positioned myself just a few inches from to the videographer so many of my shots have direct eye contact with the kids looking into his camera.
My five 2GB memory cards came in handy as well and I was able to shoot like crazy and edit later.
Some of my better photos came from not the performance but from what happened during the breaks and dress changes; the kids let their guards down and were natural and very funny:
Vietnamese people must have a sixth sense to notice foreigners photographing them. Blending in while traveling Southeast Asia is not an option but there are tricks like shooting from an elevated position or from afar using a telephoto lens.
These methods are somewhat successful depending on how much the subject has developed this sixth sense.
When I took this photo I was across the street with 2 lanes of heavy loud traffic and an additional row of parked cars between me and the men.
Within a few seconds I was spotted by one of them even though the men were busy working; absolutely amazing:
This photo is an example of how nothing can turn into something in a split second while doing street photography. I initially stopped to take a photo of the tree which had a big paper bag stuck in between its branches.
When a shot is not particularly interesting I usually wait a short time to see if someone walks or drives into the picture to make it better.
After I took this photo a few seconds later the only title I could give it was: Man checking out the goods
I found it pretty funny:
There is no limit to where, when or in what position a Vietnamese motorbike driver can sleep on the job:
There is no limit to the size of the load a Vietnamese motorbike driver will try to carry:
This blurry photo was shot from the hip and was not even supposed to survive editing until I noticed that I captured not one but two popular Vietnamese pass times: nose picking and urinating in public.
I can only assume that the right leg being lifted up provides the man with added privacy??? What privacy???
No, no, no! Let this photo be the guiding light for how to become a better photographer.
Read ANY photography book by the great Ansel Adams and within the first few paragraphs you will find it: DO NOT HOLD AN ICE CRAM CONE WHILE TAKING A PICTURE! Such a no brainer:
This Rock n Roll leg spread is borderline obscene in front of the beautiful bride but photographers gotta do whatever it takes to get that razor sharp wedding photo:
I love the wedding photographers instructions for the bride and groom as to where to look. So demure, so timeless, so classic, so elegant, so neck-breaking:
The photographers assistant. Can I have an assistant like her too?
Lucky boyfriend taking photos of her lovely girlfriend at the beautiful Hoan Kiem Lake. Dont really want to brag but I think I got a better angle and better shot than he did (notice how I matched the curvy shape of the stone ball with her curves). Of course hes got her which hardly makes us even:
This man was rowing his boat on the Red River with his feet, moving it in a circular motion, effortlessly like riding a bicycle. It was amazing:
Meet Bulldog. You will not read about him in guidebooks but he is the Boss of the youngest and most ruthless Ha Noi street gang, you guessed The Bulldogs.
Why is he the baddest dawg? Notice he got bling, notice he is chewing on the finest Cuban tobacco even while I was taking his picture with his father nearby, notice his phat fingers: his gang hand signals can mean life or death, notice he is sporting his own Bulldogs clothing line already.
His eyes are vacant of any human emotion, he grew up on the tough streets and he wont shad a single drop of tear for neither his Bulldog soldiers nor for his Bulldog bitches. Word!
Did you know: elephant te$ticle$ are an expensive delicacy in Southeast Asia?! My favorite meal made of them is pudding! Yumm!
I kept the womans identity anonymous by hiding her face behind the gate on purpose out of respect:
Patience is a virtue; I have never seen a countdown this long. The sign says: Great Anniversary of 1000 year Thang Long - Hanoi:
Wow, that is some pink eye or maybe just bubble gum:
Street photography is not always smiling children and pretty flowers!
This gruesome discovery is still giving me nightmares:
Welcome to Southeast Asia, this is your squat toilet! Pretty simple setup, I am sure you can figure out all the steps:
