Portraits from Guatemala

Man of Mayalan

 In 1989 Church of God World Missions sent me to Guatemala and Belize to document their mission work in those countries. The highlight of my trip was a 24-hour visit to the remote village of Mayalan, high in the mountains of Guatemala, near the border of Mexico.

My companions on the trip were an American missionary and a Guatemalan doctor We flew into the village in an old Cessna piloted by a Guatemalan man whom I have always thought of as an "aerial cowboy," topping 8,000-foot mountains by about a hundred feet. I could almost count the blossoms on the jacaranda trees.

Tres Muchachos (Three Friends) at the village store.
 

We were welcomed by the Mayan people of the village when we landed on the community soccer field. The minister met with the village elders to prepare for a church service that evening, and the doctor set up a clinic in the church building, which was built entirely of poles lashed together.

Our host. He and his family fed us our meals in Mayalan.

After the church service, we pulled split-log pews together and settled down for the coldest night I've ever spent. It's cold in those mountains, and no one had told me I needed to bring a sleeping bag!

When first light began to appear, I had no incentive to remain in my "bed." So I got dressed, picked up my camera, and went out to watch the village come to life. 

Girl with puppy, Mayalan.

 My equipment for this trip was my usual kit of Olympus OM film cameras and Fujichrome 100D film. In Mayalan I used extensively a Vivitar 75-205mm f3.8 zoom lens given me by my father. Not a highly-rated lens, but it did a good job on this trip. I later passed it along to my brother Mark, who used it, as best I remember, on a mission trip with his church.

See my October 3rd post for information about ordering original signed prints from the Rock City Barns book.

 If you like my pictures, visit my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $4.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Photography and text copyright 2025 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   photography    film photography     Olympus OM film cameras   Vivitar 75-205mm zoom lens        Fujichrome 100D film     Guatemala     street portraits      Missions photography    documentary photography

Street Portraits from Moscow

Artist at his booth on the Arpatskaya.

In March, 1990, Louise and I were in Moscow, working on a documentary about the fall of the Berlin Wall. We had previously been in several other Eastern European countries where the newfound sense of freedom was like wine in the air. Not so much in Russia. Things had loosened up somewhat, but Christians still had to meet in secret for fear of the police.

One of the places in Moscow with limited freedom was a street near Red Square called the Arpat, or Arpatskaya. It had been closed off to traffic and was a sort of pedestrian mall, with booths and small shops lining both sides. We had a few hours off one afternoon, so while Louise took a nap in our room, I picked up my camera and went for a walk to explore the Arpatskaya. I was into longer lenses in those days, so I was carrying an Olympus OM2n fitted with a Tamron 100-300mm f4 zoom, a really fine lens that gave me many good pictures. Several rolls of Fujichrome 100D film were in my pocket.

These two young women were together, sitting on a bench in the middle of the street. They were obviously friends, yet they could hardly have looked more different.The one on the left looked as if she had just arrived from Paris; her friend, with the classic Slavic features, was the embodiment of what westerners might think of as "Communist Worker Chic."

 

 

 

Looking back, I wish my camera had been digital so I could have shown the girls their pictures on my camera screen. That's hindsight, of course. In those days it would never have occurred to me that such a thing could be possible. Technology brings good gifts and some not so good, but instant review is one of the good gifts.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 This attractive young woman was gesturing to me that I should give her some money for taking her picture. I smiled, thanked her in Russian, and moved on. It was an interesting and enjoyable afternoon on the Ar-pat. I made many more pictures, but these are some of my favorites.

 See my October 3rd post for information about ordering original signed prints from the Rock City Barns book.

 If you like my pictures, visit my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $4.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Photography and text copyright 2025 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   photography    film photography     Olympus OM2n film cameras   Tamron 100-300mm f4 zoom lens        Fujichrome 100D film     Moscow    Russia     street portraits      Arpatskaya     documentary photography

More Street Portraits from India

Religious objects booth, Madras, India.

            "Wannakil" --"hello," I said with a smile, right hand in front of my face with fingers up, palm slightly forward in the South Indian gesture of casual greeting.

            "Wannakil," replied the attractive young Indian woman, continuing to paint intricate details on a small plaster Hindu temple for her sidewalk statuary stall.  Her husband and small child watched the tall, bearded foreigner with friendly interest from a nearby tent.

            Still smiling and with a question in my eyes, I tilted my camera slightly.  With a pleased smile, she nodded as I gestured to indicate that she should go on with her work.  As she did, I began my work also, making exposures from several different angles, then changing to a second camera body with a wider lens for a few more frames.

            "Nandri" -- "thank you," I said with a repeat of the salute-type gesture.  She responded in kind, we both smiled, and I moved on down the street in search of other opportunities to make brief but no less genuine personal contacts with the people of India.

"The function of photography is to explain man to man."

            As a photojournalist, I'm always looking for opportunities to make portraits.  Strong photographs of people add power to the message I want to communicate, because people are interested in people.  That's why we call it "human interest."  When someone from another culture is portrayed in all of his or her humanity, dignity, and individuality, both the subject and those who view the photograph are served.  As the great Edward Steichen, creator of the landmark "Family of Man" exhibit said, "The function of photography is to explain man to man." (From an article I wrote for Rangefinder Magazine in 1999.)

Fishermen, Madras Beach.

The two fishermen watched me warily before deciding that I was probably harmless. What kind of fool rambles around a beach in the early morning taking pictures of fishermen and boats?

Housewife on her front steps, Madras. 

 

 This lady was sitting on the front steps of her house in late afternoon. She was both flattered and shy, which is a condition I've often encountered. I made her picture with my Pentax 6x7 camera with the 105mm f2.4 Takumar lens (the only lens I brought with me for that camera). The film was Kodak Ektachrome.

 

 

(From the article) Photography bypasses the logical centers of the brain and communicates directly to the heart.  When the subject is someone from another culture, an incisive portrait can arouse in the viewer a deep awareness that this also is a person, a member of my species.  

The top two photos were made with Olympus OM film cameras and various Olympus Zuiko lenses. The film was Fujichrme 100D.

 See my October 3rd post for information about ordering original signed prints from the Rock City Barns book.

 If you like my pictures, visit my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $4.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Photography and text copyright 2025 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   photography    film photography     Olympus film cameras   Olympus Zuiko lenses        Fujichrome 100D film     Madras     India     street portraits      Pentax 6x7 camera     Pentax Takumar lenses