AUSTRALIANPHOTOGRAPHY.COM 3
EDITOR’S NOTE
AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHY + DIGITAL SEPTEMBER 2015Just One Shot
I
t was just one photo amongst thousands I took on
a recent trip to Sri Lanka, but it set me thinking.
In photographic terms it wasn’t even anything out
of the ordinary, a little under-exposed and made in
poor light. I’d been invited to photograph a cricket tour
going to the country and though it was an extremely
packed schedule, it also proved a great chance to make
images of the locals and the amazing landscape.
As well as photographing the Under 17s squad games,
I occasionally got out amongst the landscape to capture
both it and the friendly locals.
We were staying just north of Galle on the southwest
coast when the chance arose to jump into one of the
ubiquitous tuk tuks (small trikes which can carry three
passengers) and head along the coast. Around dusk
I visited a temple and as I strolled along a series of
adjacent stalls I spied an old man in a sparsely furnished
timber booth, with just a couple of tattered posters on
the wall behind him and an almost empty table in front
of him. He spoke no English, but his face spoke of many
hard years of work eking out a living. When I indicated
my interest, he smiled and stepped up to the table,
straightened himself, and allowed me to snap a couple of
frames. I thanked him and was about to move on when
he motioned to see the image.
So I showed him, and his reaction was remarkable.
I’d been told earlier that some locals may never haveseen any photos of themselves, and certainly by his
reaction he could have been one of those individuals.
He was delighted to see his picture. His wife moved
close to look, as well as a handful of others. They were
all animated and pleased. Then he made gestures to
indicate he’d like a copy. Of course he had no computer.
In fact he didn’t even seem to know what I was talking
about when I tried to explain it was a digital image.
But his wife seemed to have some idea. So he walked
with me to a nearby security office and borrowed a
pen, carefully printed out his name and address, and
enthusiastically indicated I should send him a copy
when I got back.
Later I thought about the ocean of “selfies” f loating
around the web, the endless images on Facebook
which members of our touring party had posted
without a second glance (or maybe even a thought),
and the multiple thousands of digital images our
group had taken, most of which we’d probably never
look at again, and I recalled how significant one
photo, taken in the right circumstances, can be.
Maybe that makes up for the digital deluge we all
now find ourselves in. Back home, I made the time
to get down to one of our increasingly rare local
labs to get an 8x10in print, and I posted it off to
Wimaalajeeva Ranathilaka. I hope he likes it,
and maybe now he even has it on his wall. ❂LEFT
A quick snap
of a local
resident by
the editor
carried greater
implications
for the subject.Robert Keeley,
EditorIMAGE BY ROBERT KEELEYESTABLISHED IN 1950EDITORIAL
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