The Spirit of Cambodia, a photo from Phnum Penh, West

Photographer's Note

This is how I will remember Cambodia...

For me the main attraction of the country were not the temples of Angkor, but all those kids running around me, laughing and posing in front my camera, so friendly, full of energy...

on my second day in Phnom Penh my moto driver said "now I will take you to the village of poor people"... this village is in Phnom Penh, near the Russian embassy. The time I spent there was one of the greatest moments of my trip.
those people there were maybe poor, but I am sure they were happy, all those laughs and smiles...

eleparc, jhonny_blue, mimi, paguru, avigur_11, ChrisJ, PechePassion, cool_s15, Steely, orme, Ginebra, smael, ricopin has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

clodreno (0) 2004-04-17 5:27

A regular scene in Asia.. Well caught.. This is why this continent is so beautiful..

By the way, did you manage to meet Philip Cogan??

Darren (6823) 2004-04-17 5:32

This is really good Maciek and fits very strongly with my memories of Cambodia too. very nice capture of an energetic group. An even wider angle might have worked as well. Good shot Maciek, how many photos did you take during your 10 days?

manny (22032) 2004-04-17 5:48

I like this Maciek. How you filled theframe with faces is so good. And they are not wearing shirts too. They are that miserable? I have seen similar scenes in the Philippines or in Vietnam or in Thailand. Europe has them too. They are everywhere. Just like you, I don't dwell on the misery but on their youthfulness. Nice way to remember Cambodia.

I have a similar shot of Vietnam kids which i will post sometime later.

jhonny_blue (4956) 2004-04-17 5:49

Simply Wonderful Maciej !
The kids expressions are great ! Very lovely moment !
Congratulations

pts tomorrow

eleparc (24063) 2004-04-17 5:53

great group portrait maciek. I really like how the whole picture is built around this kid eating some kind of green candy.. or whatever it is anyway. he is distinctedly somewhere else or interested by someone outside the frame and it gives a good feel to this photo IMO. technique wise i like the DOF on the foreground and slight bur on the kids at the back, the construction in a triangle and above all this joy that emerge from this photo. thanks for sharing that with us. and welcome back;-)

ianmcall (1213) 2004-04-17 6:01

Delightful. Kids are such anarchists, they aren't looking the same way and all have different expressions, The one boy eating adds a nice touch of action to this.

Looking forward to more of these. My family will be in Cambodia in February.

Steely (895) 2004-04-17 6:24

very good study here
Lot of cute looking kids, all with different expressions. The one that catches my attention over n over is the little girl at the back, the V-sign she's giving is so out of place wtih her solemn expression, and it made her so special...

Good shot!

Josh ! they got V-signs in Cambodia too!!

Joffre (527) 2004-04-17 7:34

Beautiful composition & expressions... well captured!

mimi (2325) 2004-04-17 10:09

Great shot, great faces, great framing! I especially like the kid behind the one with the popsicle who looks like he's trying to get more of his friends to come into the shot.

paguru (1056) 2004-04-17 12:49

As always, I enjoy your photos very much. Thanks for showing!

avigur_11 (22553) 2004-04-17 18:31

They sure look happy, Maciek, a wonderful shot. Good picture of children always make a good job, and you got plenty of them in one frame. Excellent.

ChrisJ (172378) 2004-04-17 23:12

Composition is great, but focus is just a tad off.

PechePassion (483) 2004-04-18 3:28

Oui ca fait plaisir de les voir plein de vie et de joie devant la photo comme une f皻e pour eux.
j'aime bien ce type de photo ou beaucoup d'enfant sont rassembl� car on y voit beaucoup d'expression diff廨ente.

bgladman (1153) 2004-04-18 4:24

What can i say Maciek other than how fantastic this shot is. I admire the way in which you capture the emotion in your subjects. Getting a group shot like this is extremely difficult, but you make it look easy. Well taken

cool_s15 (4050) 2004-04-18 5:43

wonderful and lovely photo here!
I really like the tight framing of these children, espacially their action. Very wonderful shot.

orme (7219) 2004-04-21 22:19

Great photo, Maciej. I like the way you have filled the frame with kind faces. It is just a pity you did not get the eyes of the child in the top right corner. I also like the energy that you have captured in this shot. A great advert for Cambodia. Very well done.

Ginebra (0) 2004-04-22 4:17

I have the same feeling, that's why I love India. People may be the poorest on earth but so happy and friendly! This is just the kind of picture I love! Beautiful!

smael (2878) 2004-04-23 19:23

Nicely framed and that boy in the lower left corner makes for a good resting point for my eyes. Wonderful playfulness described here. I agree very much about this being cambodia... I've posted one my self ;)

Terje

kinginexile (2598) 2004-10-23 2:17

This one takes the cake. Here, i think the kids are almost like little fishes coming out on the surface of the water, and i do not mean to belittle them, on the contrary. Cambodia was submerged in an armageddon of destruction, and somehow, this pix pix is like it's showing its head again and its will to live, which often kids in their carefreeness can only really convey so powerfully.

osh (402) 2005-11-24 17:37

what anamazing photo full of life and love its really touching!

vidrone (97) 2006-12-07 0:56 [Comment]