SkyBlueSky

In Kars

First day of a 2 week plus trekking / photo adventure in the north eastern Turkish city of Kars.  A little rough but welcoming. More to come.

Close

..but no cigar as they say. But I was very pleased to have been selected as a finalist (in three categories) in the Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year. The organizers have been kind enough to post the winners here.

If you happen to be in London (or you're feeling particulary generous and would like to send me) an exhibition of the finalist (including your's truly) are on display at the Mall Gallery through April 29.

Congrats to all the winners. See you next year!

36 Hours in Vientiane for The New York Times

I had not been to Vientiane for years so I was chuffed when the NY Times asked me to head over there a few weeks back to shoot a '36 Hours' piece. Check out the article here and the slideshow here.
Of course, it being Asia I knew there would be changes, and there were (big time). But scratch the surface and what I knew and liked about the place came back. Great people, great food in a (relatively) laid back, funky city. Thanks to all the great people I met on this quick trip. Hope to see you again as a tourist.

Silence, Please.

The lead up to Nyepi is anything but quiet. Like so many celebrations in Bali it is a riot of colors but throw in demonic sculptures that are paraded through towns and ceremonially burned followed by an enforced day of silence and you've turned a New Year's celebration up to 11. These images were taken early March, 2008. (read the full story here.)

Siem Reap, Cambodia

My parents recently visited from the US. It was great to have an opportunity to take them around to a few of the places that I now call home. At the outlying Banteay Srey Temple  a lovely woman serenaded us as we toured the temple complex. I carried her simple tune around in my head for the next several days as the soundtrack to our adventures.

The Blacksmiths of Maraş

On a cold, rain mixed with snow day in Kahramanmaraş I watched blacksmiths and coppersmiths transform crude lumps of metal into knives, kebap skewers, door hinges and tea pots. Brothers worked side by side in shops they had inherited from their fathers. Little was said as the pieces came out one by one, all handmade, all unique to the person that had made them.

 

For more of what I'm up to in Turkey click here for an interview with me in photo agency Wonderful Machine's blog.

Penang for the New York Times

It's always nice to do a story close to home so I was delighted when asked to photograph 36 Hours : Penang for the New York Times. (Go here for the slideshow).

Assignments always push me to do a little more, like knock on complete stranger's door at 8:00am to ask if I can take a photo (above) from their window.

..or to climb on to a fishing boat to see what I can see..

..but mostly it is about trying to see the place with the eyes of a visitor. ..

..scenes that I might sometimes take for granted..

But there really is so much cool stuff here that I'm still finding new things about the place. And the best part is that it seems to still be getting better.

For more Penang check out past work in the NYT here as well as a 'self assigned' series 'My Penang', 

or take a musical tour here.

 

Point A to Point B

Sivas to Malatya with a few stops in between.

(Above : Sivas central market evening and on a very cold morning)

(Goats taking a final stop on the road between Sivas and Malatya)

(Snow gives way to arid hills)

(A brilliant sunset on the high plains)

(A bright new day in Old Malatya)

(Waiting for lunch, Old Malatya)

(Shoe repairmen in Malatya's market district)

(The open road...)

River Deep, Mountain High

I shot the cover and provided content for this month's Singapore Airlines SilverKris magazine where I followed white water rafters down Chiang Mai's Mae Taeng River.

and (gulp) rappelled 55 meters into the appropriately named Anxiety Crisis State Cave where I took the cover shot.

A special thanks to photographer, climber and overall renaissance man Dan Morris (pictured above) and the crew at Chiang Mai Rock Climbing Adventures for their help with this shoot. These guys really do put safety first and trust me, I would not have done the rappell if I wasn't confident that they knew what they were doing. Good folks to know if you're headed that way and want to do some climbing.

Who knew northern Thailand was more than just food.

(Chiang Dao mountain)

(Wat Tham Paplong at the base of Chiang Dao mountain)

Big Sky

Outside of Cankiri, Turkey January 30, 2012.