Posts tonen met het label Africa. Alle posts tonen
Posts tonen met het label Africa. Alle posts tonen
Gone fishing..
I sort of invited myself along for a fishing session with the boys from the village. Nice to finally dive into the Niger. Looking out over the River from a distance it looks deep and mysterious. Once you get out there on a boat and dive in you realize it's full of huge boulders and not very deep. The current is just strong enough to keep you working the boat to stay in place. I understand why the village fisherman are out here all day and night. This was probably the most peaceful spot I've been to in Bamako.
Once we got out on the water they told me it's better fishing at night. Indeed our catch was not great. This particular fishing technique involves throwing a casting net around a bolder and then diving into the water to drive the sheltering fish into the net with your paddle. No offense to my African peeps who can swim, but these were the first real swimmers I've met in Bamako that could stay under water without panicking. The people from these villages along the Niger are called 'Bozo'. The Bozo are known to be great swimmers and fishermen. So that explains it.
At night they play
Every night the kids come and play and play and play. Some play on beat up sandals, many barefoot. This is my first trip to the African continent. So many impressions come and go each day. My photographic roots lie somewhere in between portrait photography and shooting sports action. I come across new and amazing football pitches here all the time. When I find a good one I have the urge to pull my camera out of the bag and shoot until my trigger finger bleeds. Like anywhere there is a balance here in wanting to get the photo and peoples basic respect for privacy.
Le village de nuit
This post may be a little longwinded, but I think these photos need context to be understood. Bare with me as I try and keep to the point.
I was invited back into the village in the evening. NOTS had visited the village two days prior to train the locals on using the solar lights. My goal was to document the way the lights were being used at night. I could have done a before and after photo, but the 'before' would have been an even darker frame. Truth is some did have lighting before this introduction to solar. Kerosine lamps and battery powered lashlights work fine. The problem with kerosine is that it produces dangerous fumes inside the home plus it costs at least €1 per week to keep the light working. You can buy kerosine everywhere here. The sellers typically package the liquid in old plastic water bottles. It works, but it's obviously not very safe. The problem flashlights is the batteries. Batteries are not too expensive and are readily available. The disposal is the problem. This village currently burns their waste in trash pits behind their land. Our house is located about a ten minute walk from here and we can sometimes smell the plastic burning. I talked about this with one of my guides in the village. He's studying and spoke a little English. I mentioned that battery waste was a real problem. He said yes, it could be dangerous if the children or sheep ate them.
I was invited back into the village in the evening. NOTS had visited the village two days prior to train the locals on using the solar lights. My goal was to document the way the lights were being used at night. I could have done a before and after photo, but the 'before' would have been an even darker frame. Truth is some did have lighting before this introduction to solar. Kerosine lamps and battery powered lashlights work fine. The problem with kerosine is that it produces dangerous fumes inside the home plus it costs at least €1 per week to keep the light working. You can buy kerosine everywhere here. The sellers typically package the liquid in old plastic water bottles. It works, but it's obviously not very safe. The problem flashlights is the batteries. Batteries are not too expensive and are readily available. The disposal is the problem. This village currently burns their waste in trash pits behind their land. Our house is located about a ten minute walk from here and we can sometimes smell the plastic burning. I talked about this with one of my guides in the village. He's studying and spoke a little English. I mentioned that battery waste was a real problem. He said yes, it could be dangerous if the children or sheep ate them.
Amazing to see first hand how technology can change the ways of a very old and traditional world. Yesterday this village did not have a decent choice for lighting their houses at night. Tonight it seemed to me as if they had never lived without it.
Very challenging to shoot these scenes. Modern lens stabilization technology today lets me shoot in situations I would not have been able get a stable hand held photo just a few years ago. My invitation into this village is fragile at best. I can't show up here with a big tripod and tell everything to sit still for 20 seconds.
It's good to be the chief.
First village visit
I was invited to document a solar power initiative in Mali headed by NOTS Foundation. Plenty to read about Mali on wikipedia if you are interested. It must be said that I do not speak for NOTS. These are my observations. In a nutshell the project is focused on setting up a business selling and servicing small scale solar power systems for villages living off the grid. NOTS has been active in Mali for some time. Plenty of NOTS activity in Mali that I have not seen. I can talk about what I have seen in my short time.
It started with a group meeting on invitation from the village chiefs. I came along to document the meeting. This particular fisher village is located inside of Bamako yet off the power grid. Can't speak to how this village lives compared to those in the rest of the country but this village very well organized and traditional. I live in Badalabougou and see these fishermen casting their nets in the morning and evening along the Niger River.
Long story short the meeting was interesting to be the fly on the proverbial hut. As part of the agreement I was allowed to take my camera out of the bag and document the proceedings.
Everyone has a phone. I've seen farmers pull dusty phones out of their pockets to take pictures of their crops. These same farmers also work the land with pick axes and watering cans. I will try to document this once figure out a way to gain access and trust.
It boggles my mind to think about what will happen once these isolated pockets of the world have access to wireless internet. They are jumping over running water, the electricity grid, computers, and straight onto the mobile internet speedway. When the locals stand around my computer as I work we talk about how complicated a computer is. I have explained a few times now that my computer is no more complicated than their phone and that within the next few years their phone will be more powerful than my crappy computer. Always fun to watch the reaction at this point. Then also I tell them my smart phone battery lasts about 8 hours if I'm lucky and then they say 'pas bon'!
It started with a group meeting on invitation from the village chiefs. I came along to document the meeting. This particular fisher village is located inside of Bamako yet off the power grid. Can't speak to how this village lives compared to those in the rest of the country but this village very well organized and traditional. I live in Badalabougou and see these fishermen casting their nets in the morning and evening along the Niger River.
Long story short the meeting was interesting to be the fly on the proverbial hut. As part of the agreement I was allowed to take my camera out of the bag and document the proceedings.
This solar panel is part of the solution. It is capable of charging two rechargeable LED light systems and a couple of mobile phones per day. Perfect family unit size and not too expensive for the villagers.
It was fascinating to watch the mobile phones come out of the pockets at the end of the meeting. Nokia still rules in these parts. I've gone back to Nokia in Africa as well. I get 5-8 day standby on one charge. My smart phone gets 5-8 hours..
It was fascinating to watch the mobile phones come out of the pockets at the end of the meeting. Nokia still rules in these parts. I've gone back to Nokia in Africa as well. I get 5-8 day standby on one charge. My smart phone gets 5-8 hours..
It boggles my mind to think about what will happen once these isolated pockets of the world have access to wireless internet. They are jumping over running water, the electricity grid, computers, and straight onto the mobile internet speedway. When the locals stand around my computer as I work we talk about how complicated a computer is. I have explained a few times now that my computer is no more complicated than their phone and that within the next few years their phone will be more powerful than my crappy computer. Always fun to watch the reaction at this point. Then also I tell them my smart phone battery lasts about 8 hours if I'm lucky and then they say 'pas bon'!
Mali
We have arrived in Bamako. First time on the continent for me. So much to see. Everything is new. More details to come but here's the view from my bathroom window. This is a migrant worker watering his crops by hand. That means filling his water-can from a deep well at least 200 times a day. He's just finished pulling the water-can up from the well here. They come to Bamako during the dry season.
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