Robert Watcher
Well-known member
A water wheel driven planer
Complete with Wooden Drive Wheels
Complete with Wooden Drive Wheels
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2009 Lots Of Photography From Costa Rica
- Thread starter Robert Watcher
- Start date
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
The Painting process
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
AH - a tourist shot of me - - - the guy who hardly ever gets his picture taken.
Anne insisted that we take a "Tourist" shot of each other in front of Costa Rica's most prominent tourist attraction - - - the giant ox cart in the central park of Sarchi Norte.
And the reciprocal one that I took of Anne
Hey - we have to act like tourists at least once during our excursion!
Anne insisted that we take a "Tourist" shot of each other in front of Costa Rica's most prominent tourist attraction - - - the giant ox cart in the central park of Sarchi Norte.
And the reciprocal one that I took of Anne
Hey - we have to act like tourists at least once during our excursion!
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Robert and Anne,
You are doing a wonderful job. What can I say. Just the wedding, the man in a wheelchair fixing motorbikes or the traditional wagon wheel maker would be a great contribution for anyone here. Your work is in the class of David Eves. Have you followed his saga?
Asher
You are doing a wonderful job. What can I say. Just the wedding, the man in a wheelchair fixing motorbikes or the traditional wagon wheel maker would be a great contribution for anyone here. Your work is in the class of David Eves. Have you followed his saga?
David J. Eves
Location: Point Hope Alaska
High in the Arctic !! Eskimo....!
I was faced with the ultimate challenge.. Develop 60 rolls of color film, in the arctic, w/ no running water. My only source of water was to melt snow, and it took me over six months!
25 years later, these 6 x 7 negatives are still in pristine condition & flawless!
I live in a tiny whaling village of 750 Inupiat/Inupaq Eskimo's. The lifestyle / culture revolves around the Bowhead whale.
This is our way of life. We live out on the ocean ice pack for two months. We sleep outside @ temps of - minus 40 below or colder with no tents!
Point Hope Alaska is the oldest continually inhabited settlement or village in all of North America
life can accurately be traced back to this one spot for many thousands of years.
Read the entire thread and see the amazing pictures of this whaling village here.
Thanks, Robert for sharing your photographs and bring them and the real wonderful people and their lives here to our small community. Location: Point Hope Alaska
High in the Arctic !! Eskimo....!
I was faced with the ultimate challenge.. Develop 60 rolls of color film, in the arctic, w/ no running water. My only source of water was to melt snow, and it took me over six months!
25 years later, these 6 x 7 negatives are still in pristine condition & flawless!
I live in a tiny whaling village of 750 Inupiat/Inupaq Eskimo's. The lifestyle / culture revolves around the Bowhead whale.
This is our way of life. We live out on the ocean ice pack for two months. We sleep outside @ temps of - minus 40 below or colder with no tents!
Point Hope Alaska is the oldest continually inhabited settlement or village in all of North America
life can accurately be traced back to this one spot for many thousands of years.
Read the entire thread and see the amazing pictures of this whaling village here.
Asher
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Thank you Asher
I haven't followed the thread you mention. I will definitely check it out.
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
This morning I received a good question about the Ox Cart pictures I have posted:
That is a good question. Anne will be doing her Journal post on the Ox Cart Manufacture sometime today (Saturday at www.asifweknow.com) - while she probably will mention about the heritage of all the bright colour, she may not and so I will mention to her that it may be something she wants to include.
Anne is not up yet (5:45AM) for me to ask - but quickly going over her research from last night that is sitting on the table, I see this:
"In many cases, oxcarts where a family's only means of transportation, and at times even served as a status symbol. Thus, the tradition of painting and decorating the carts commenced in the early part of this century. Originally each region of Costa Rica had its own particular design, enabling one to identify from which part of the country the driver lived simply by observing the pattern on the wheels."
Anne's slant and stories are always different than mine and she will be using pictures that are different than the ones I posted here - - - including a shot of an original wheel.
-----
That is a good question. Anne will be doing her Journal post on the Ox Cart Manufacture sometime today (Saturday at www.asifweknow.com) - while she probably will mention about the heritage of all the bright colour, she may not and so I will mention to her that it may be something she wants to include.
Anne is not up yet (5:45AM) for me to ask - but quickly going over her research from last night that is sitting on the table, I see this:
"In many cases, oxcarts where a family's only means of transportation, and at times even served as a status symbol. Thus, the tradition of painting and decorating the carts commenced in the early part of this century. Originally each region of Costa Rica had its own particular design, enabling one to identify from which part of the country the driver lived simply by observing the pattern on the wheels."
Anne's slant and stories are always different than mine and she will be using pictures that are different than the ones I posted here - - - including a shot of an original wheel.
-----
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Anne's article on the Ox Carts is now completed and posted on her Journal. She had far more information than I was aware of . . .
. . . including info about the bright colours - - - but also that unique sounds were given to the carts by a metal ring hitting the center hub nut (kind of like we used to do with a cloths pin and piece of cardboard on our bicycle wheels when we were young - I suppose).
You can get informed about the Ox Carts here - http://asifweknow.com/index.php?crnt=1&entry=22
She took some video too - which we'll get posted before long. ALL OF THE SOUNDS OF THE WORKSHOP INCLUDING THE WATER WHEEL AND THE SAW SLOWING DOWN UNDER STRAIN
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. . . including info about the bright colours - - - but also that unique sounds were given to the carts by a metal ring hitting the center hub nut (kind of like we used to do with a cloths pin and piece of cardboard on our bicycle wheels when we were young - I suppose).
You can get informed about the Ox Carts here - http://asifweknow.com/index.php?crnt=1&entry=22
She took some video too - which we'll get posted before long. ALL OF THE SOUNDS OF THE WORKSHOP INCLUDING THE WATER WHEEL AND THE SAW SLOWING DOWN UNDER STRAIN
-----
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
I HAVE NO IDEA WHY . . .
but people of Costa Rica, in general - - - are aware of cameras (and caucasian I'm sure) and find ways of providing me with great pictures and opportunities.
Of course that has been evident to me along - but these recent experiences made me much more aware of it.
While shooting out over the harbour at this small fishing town, I saw a small boat passing by me. I was quite a distance away and not terribly visible being behind trees shooting from this vantage point:
I took my shot of them sorting out their fish - and a few subsequent ones as they passed by:
Then I saw the man at the back bend down as they moved away from me:
Only to return upright - turn towards me with an example of his successful catch that day:
but people of Costa Rica, in general - - - are aware of cameras (and caucasian I'm sure) and find ways of providing me with great pictures and opportunities.
Of course that has been evident to me along - but these recent experiences made me much more aware of it.
While shooting out over the harbour at this small fishing town, I saw a small boat passing by me. I was quite a distance away and not terribly visible being behind trees shooting from this vantage point:
I took my shot of them sorting out their fish - and a few subsequent ones as they passed by:
Then I saw the man at the back bend down as they moved away from me:
Only to return upright - turn towards me with an example of his successful catch that day:
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
And then another somewhat similar situation yesterday while Anne and I were wondering through some of the "back streets" of the capital city San Jose . . .
. . . I noticed this packed and cramped meat market and decided to take a shot from outdoors of the Kaos. I no sooner got in to position and a few of the fellows behind the counter started yelling at me and hollering "foto foto". I grabbed the shot as they were doing so and then entered squeezing in front of the patrons to get the shots they wanted of them handling their goods.
Unfortunately I was not as prepared as I normally would have been - as I had my aperture set to f6.3 for more DOF for the from the hip street shooting I was set up for and doing. I took the shots in the moment and then when I left, realized that shutter speeds were very low and may have been too slow to get the shots successfully. Most however turned out fine - benefiting from the IS (image stabilization) feature of my E-510 and E-3:
All shots taken with Olympus E-510 : 12-60mm f2.8/4 : f6.3 @ 1/15'th to 1/40'th : 800 ISO
. . . I noticed this packed and cramped meat market and decided to take a shot from outdoors of the Kaos. I no sooner got in to position and a few of the fellows behind the counter started yelling at me and hollering "foto foto". I grabbed the shot as they were doing so and then entered squeezing in front of the patrons to get the shots they wanted of them handling their goods.
Unfortunately I was not as prepared as I normally would have been - as I had my aperture set to f6.3 for more DOF for the from the hip street shooting I was set up for and doing. I took the shots in the moment and then when I left, realized that shutter speeds were very low and may have been too slow to get the shots successfully. Most however turned out fine - benefiting from the IS (image stabilization) feature of my E-510 and E-3:
All shots taken with Olympus E-510 : 12-60mm f2.8/4 : f6.3 @ 1/15'th to 1/40'th : 800 ISO
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
And then there was this fellow who I noticed while walking in the Central Market. I took this shot and then he came up and grabbed Anne - implying that I take a picture - - - after showing him the shot on the back of the camera, I started to walk away when he came after me insisting that I take his business card. I soon noticed that he was pointing at his email address on it and was wanting me to send him a copy of the foto (which I have done):
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
One Year Later
About a week ago Anne and I received an email through our Travel Virgins Contact Page with a message entirely written in Spanish. While our Spanish isn't massively improved over last year, we were able to roughly decipher the message. In Spanish it was:
We figured out that it was one of the fellows in a Photo that we took on our last day saying Good Bye to the city of Alajuela when we left last year. We popped into a Pizza Hut downtown that we had not tried and got a great photo story of the mechanics and delivery fellows working on their motor cycles outside the front door. I also took a couple of shots of the staff inside and then left never to go back.
We also gathered from the email message that it was the man with the glasses and that he and the lady in the white top were either now married or would be getting married. I sent a reply email with "Gracious" as I knew no Spanish sentences to reply...
. . . Here is the picture from last year that he had come across on the web (I may have written down the url for him on a piece of paper last year - I'm not sure):
------
Well - Anne and I had to return to the Pizza Hut this afternoon for a Deep Dish Personal Pizza - - - hoping that we might recognize the people in the photo from last year and see if they remembered us. Of course I had my Olympus E-510 around my neck to jog their memory.
While we did not see the man in glasses (that emailed me), the female Manager with white blouse was there. We smiled at each other and then with the help of a waiter that knew a little English - he explained to her that we were the ones who took their picture last year. She (and a few others who were there at that time) remembered well and were excited to see us.
We just had to do an updated portrait for 2009. Next thing I see is the Manager (in white blouse) on the phone. I picked up that she was phoning the man in glasses (her fiance it turns out) and next thing I know he shows up in a van and reaches out to shake my hand and tell me that he had emailed me (at least I think that is what he was saying). Here is the updated 2009 portrait with some of the same faces:
About a week ago Anne and I received an email through our Travel Virgins Contact Page with a message entirely written in Spanish. While our Spanish isn't massively improved over last year, we were able to roughly decipher the message. In Spanish it was:
We figured out that it was one of the fellows in a Photo that we took on our last day saying Good Bye to the city of Alajuela when we left last year. We popped into a Pizza Hut downtown that we had not tried and got a great photo story of the mechanics and delivery fellows working on their motor cycles outside the front door. I also took a couple of shots of the staff inside and then left never to go back.
We also gathered from the email message that it was the man with the glasses and that he and the lady in the white top were either now married or would be getting married. I sent a reply email with "Gracious" as I knew no Spanish sentences to reply...
. . . Here is the picture from last year that he had come across on the web (I may have written down the url for him on a piece of paper last year - I'm not sure):
------
Well - Anne and I had to return to the Pizza Hut this afternoon for a Deep Dish Personal Pizza - - - hoping that we might recognize the people in the photo from last year and see if they remembered us. Of course I had my Olympus E-510 around my neck to jog their memory.
While we did not see the man in glasses (that emailed me), the female Manager with white blouse was there. We smiled at each other and then with the help of a waiter that knew a little English - he explained to her that we were the ones who took their picture last year. She (and a few others who were there at that time) remembered well and were excited to see us.
We just had to do an updated portrait for 2009. Next thing I see is the Manager (in white blouse) on the phone. I picked up that she was phoning the man in glasses (her fiance it turns out) and next thing I know he shows up in a van and reaches out to shake my hand and tell me that he had emailed me (at least I think that is what he was saying). Here is the updated 2009 portrait with some of the same faces:
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
I had to get them in the mood and so started having fun with this man slicking back his hair so he'd look good:
That led to some fun shots of the bunch:
including this final one where I rubbed my hair slicking it back - so that he would do the same:
That led to some fun shots of the bunch:
including this final one where I rubbed my hair slicking it back - so that he would do the same:
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
Rob,
With the story of the Pizza folks, you address a considerable issue with digital photography in general and travel photography in particular. It's now so easy to take pictures of folk one meets that debts of promised pictures can mount up in no time. It's good to see that you made an impression and you followed up with the pictures, but how many of our pictures don't get back to our subjects?
Returning as you have, is particularly impressive when you can complete the circle, find out how they are doing and update the pictures for them. Still, there's a lot to actually delivering the images!
I commend you. How many pictures and email addresses get separated from each other?
Asher
With the story of the Pizza folks, you address a considerable issue with digital photography in general and travel photography in particular. It's now so easy to take pictures of folk one meets that debts of promised pictures can mount up in no time. It's good to see that you made an impression and you followed up with the pictures, but how many of our pictures don't get back to our subjects?
Returning as you have, is particularly impressive when you can complete the circle, find out how they are doing and update the pictures for them. Still, there's a lot to actually delivering the images!
I commend you. How many pictures and email addresses get separated from each other?
Asher
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Thanks Asher
I actually am very good at keeping records of the people (names and locations) of everyone that I shoot - at least the ones that I am able to. Last year I spent a fair bit of money just on small 4x6 prints to deliver to all that I was able to - - - and this year have learned to appreciate the value of getting an email address as so many people have them. This makes it much easier to get the images to them quickly - - - and from their perspective, I believe that the digital files (resized for web) are more valuable to them and easy to send to their family and friends. There is a value to prints of some of my images however, and next year I will be purchasing a printer down here so that I can make up some custom prints to take to those people where the print turns out great.
My personal view is that it is my responsibility to look after those who have looked after me by being so accommodating to me. Also in our posts on the Journal, we like to use the names of the people involved - and so make every effort to get those first names and write them down. Here is a picture of my well tethered small notebook that goes everywhere with me in my shoulder backpack. It has everything in it related to the things, people and phrases that we come across or have researched and want to visit or document:
I actually am very good at keeping records of the people (names and locations) of everyone that I shoot - at least the ones that I am able to. Last year I spent a fair bit of money just on small 4x6 prints to deliver to all that I was able to - - - and this year have learned to appreciate the value of getting an email address as so many people have them. This makes it much easier to get the images to them quickly - - - and from their perspective, I believe that the digital files (resized for web) are more valuable to them and easy to send to their family and friends. There is a value to prints of some of my images however, and next year I will be purchasing a printer down here so that I can make up some custom prints to take to those people where the print turns out great.
My personal view is that it is my responsibility to look after those who have looked after me by being so accommodating to me. Also in our posts on the Journal, we like to use the names of the people involved - and so make every effort to get those first names and write them down. Here is a picture of my well tethered small notebook that goes everywhere with me in my shoulder backpack. It has everything in it related to the things, people and phrases that we come across or have researched and want to visit or document:
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I am guilty of reading and looking at all of this and not responding.
I have very much enjoyed your journey through your photos. Having spent quite a bit of time in Central and South America it makes me remember how friendly and honest MOST of the people were. I bet parts of it have changed since I was there 25 and more years ago.
My cousin moved to Costa Rica many years ago because he liked it there so much. He said parts of it were getting to geared to tourists and has since moved to Honduras.
Thanks for showing your work.
I have very much enjoyed your journey through your photos. Having spent quite a bit of time in Central and South America it makes me remember how friendly and honest MOST of the people were. I bet parts of it have changed since I was there 25 and more years ago.
My cousin moved to Costa Rica many years ago because he liked it there so much. He said parts of it were getting to geared to tourists and has since moved to Honduras.
Thanks for showing your work.
Mike Shimwell
New member
Robert
I've just read through this entrie thread, and now see why Asher has challenged us to view it! There is a whole range of lovely work here, but I think the key to it's success is seeing it as a whole and not just the individual pictures. It is as though you have given us a book, or your selected images on your return from your travels. Your engagement with the people you have photographed, even with the language barrier, has brought them to life and the mechanics make a lovely story.
Thanks for sharing all of this.
Mike
I've just read through this entrie thread, and now see why Asher has challenged us to view it! There is a whole range of lovely work here, but I think the key to it's success is seeing it as a whole and not just the individual pictures. It is as though you have given us a book, or your selected images on your return from your travels. Your engagement with the people you have photographed, even with the language barrier, has brought them to life and the mechanics make a lovely story.
Thanks for sharing all of this.
Mike
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Walking the streets in a small town : The Human Element
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
----
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Close Encounters
A Woman resting on her door enjoying the activity on her street
This very small Street Vending Tent framed the man interestingly in the lower corner amongst his many hats
Always a Sleeping Dog - and often at bus stops where you want to sit. You just have to work around it
A Woman resting on her door enjoying the activity on her street
This very small Street Vending Tent framed the man interestingly in the lower corner amongst his many hats
Always a Sleeping Dog - and often at bus stops where you want to sit. You just have to work around it
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Wandering the Jungles : The Animal Kingdom
All taken with Olympus E-3 and 70-300mm Zuiko lens
A Little Gecko sitting beside us watching the waves crash in on the Carribean Coastline
Sloth perched high high up in the tree tops
Very small Deadly Viper wrapped around a branch just feet away from where we walked
All taken with Olympus E-3 and 70-300mm Zuiko lens
A Little Gecko sitting beside us watching the waves crash in on the Carribean Coastline
Sloth perched high high up in the tree tops
Very small Deadly Viper wrapped around a branch just feet away from where we walked
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Capuchin Monkey sitting just over my head, appearing to be saying "No Photos"
Howler Monkey having a snack
Impressive Colours of a Toucan
Howler Monkey having a snack
Impressive Colours of a Toucan
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Crabs popping in and out of their holes as we approached
Heron snatching up food
Beautiful Carribean scenery entering Cahuita National Park
Heron snatching up food
Beautiful Carribean scenery entering Cahuita National Park
Asher Kelman
OPF Owner/Editor-in-Chief
The Animal Kingdom All taken with Olympus E-3 and 70-300mm Zuiko lens
A Little Gecko sitting beside us watching the waves crash in on the Carribean Coastline
Capuchin Monkey sitting just over my head, appearing to be saying "No Photos"
The Gecko has now become famous for selling insurance! The monkey say "no photo" seems to be the only individual objecting to your pictures!
I hope the richness of these various beautiful creatures will be protected!
Asher
A Little Gecko sitting beside us watching the waves crash in on the Carribean Coastline
Capuchin Monkey sitting just over my head, appearing to be saying "No Photos"
The Gecko has now become famous for selling insurance! The monkey say "no photo" seems to be the only individual objecting to your pictures!
I hope the richness of these various beautiful creatures will be protected!
Asher
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
DOWN TO OUR LAST FEW DAYS IN COSTA RICA - only a few more posts to endure 
Men playing dominoes by the sea side
A local sitting at the base of a tree, with his bicycle resting on a fence in behind
I asked this man about his guitar - if he could play it for me - but I guess he couldn't
Men playing dominoes by the sea side
A local sitting at the base of a tree, with his bicycle resting on a fence in behind
I asked this man about his guitar - if he could play it for me - but I guess he couldn't
Rachel Foster
New member
One could spend days absorbing this.
Thanks for highlighting this thread, Asher.
Thanks for highlighting this thread, Asher.
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Thank you so much Ron, Mike and Rachel (as well as Asher) for your nice comments and encouragement.
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
A few sights as we walked through a jungle area yesterday
Kind of wild being just meters away from wild crocodiles cruising around the river edges alongside the path we walked on:
These brave birds shared the same water space and would move back a few inches as crocs swam past (Roseate Spoonbill are the pink ones - and the Black Bellied Wistling Duck):
A Pygmy King Fisher watches on from the sidelines:
Kind of wild being just meters away from wild crocodiles cruising around the river edges alongside the path we walked on:
These brave birds shared the same water space and would move back a few inches as crocs swam past (Roseate Spoonbill are the pink ones - and the Black Bellied Wistling Duck):
A Pygmy King Fisher watches on from the sidelines:
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
An oddity was the Boat-Billed Heron:
Male and female Red-Legged Honeycreeper feeding on Mango Fruit (male is blue and female is green):
We came on this indescript and ratty looking Hummingbird nest hanging from a small palm tree above our heads:
Male and female Red-Legged Honeycreeper feeding on Mango Fruit (male is blue and female is green):
We came on this indescript and ratty looking Hummingbird nest hanging from a small palm tree above our heads:
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
Passing by this little woodworking shop on the main street of a coastal town - it made me think that this would be the way the I and many others probably fantasize about running their little business or practicing their trade. Wide open doors, easy pace, minimal cloths, using materials and resources that are local convenient and free, etc, etc.
I just about missed that anything was going on at this place, with the dark interior:
I went up to the door and asked if I could take a few photos of the 2 men working as they layed each piece of wood limb up against the other taking measurements manually for a perfect fit:
I just about missed that anything was going on at this place, with the dark interior:
I went up to the door and asked if I could take a few photos of the 2 men working as they layed each piece of wood limb up against the other taking measurements manually for a perfect fit:
Robert Watcher
Well-known member
The small dark shop walls and floors were lined and filled with logs, sticks, twigs, and projects in various stages of completion:
and huge thick slices of tree trunk with incredible ring patterns, for the tops:
and huge thick slices of tree trunk with incredible ring patterns, for the tops: