Friends from Papua, a photo from Papua, Irian Jaya

Photographer's Note

These are our friends from highland of Papua, taken at a small village, about 10 km from Wamena, the capital of Jayawijaya Regency, Papua Province.

In Wamena, some of the local community are still wearing this traditional 'clothing' while some others already wear modern clothing. It is a 'unique' mixture of both.

Hunting for food is still part of their culture, but they also do some farming, growing sweet potatoes, taros, and a bit of vegetables. Pigs are also seen around their village.

PS: Too bad that we are recently hear a fight between tribes in Papua, but the fight is not at Jayawijaya highland.

parbo, oochappan, berek, evanrizo, ndb1958, postvikram, izler, everlasting, siolaw, Bluejeans, isabela_sor, goodwill, veve, gabrielpat, MLINES, s_a_s_h_a, deano, bakes888, Uhu, Joffre, mbasil, Wanda1, stefi, pady, turkamerikali, arturo, anducina, darrasin, banyanman, loic-jaouen, prasadpaul, Jason_teale has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

battousai (827) 2006-08-11 21:10

Hi Benyamin,

I like your picture. However, I think you could take some more time for post-production. I assume you've got rid of most of the background but there are still some places that need to be corrected: space over right arm of the third guy (starting from left) and space over left arm of the middle guy. The whole thing looks nice, but a little bit not natural. Framing is good as well, but I would not use blurred frame myself. Moreover, those guys could be a little bit sharper and colors less saturated.

Sorry for my criticism...

Best regards and thanks for sharing

parbo (11092) 2006-08-11 21:27

Hello Benyamin,

This is an extraordinary photo and I understand some of your touch on it. Their poses, looks, positions... really great with your very informative note. Well done. Congratulations

Best Regards,

Parbo

berek (50518) 2006-08-11 23:54

Hi Benyamin,
super triple portrait. so interesting traditional clothes and detail. thanks for your sharing . have a nice weekend from the Istanbul .
Berek
my overall evaluation -> :-))

ndb1958 (9289) 2006-08-12 3:13

Hi Benyamin,
an impressing image of this impressing and strange culture (for my western eyes).
The way they look is cool.
A very nice triple portrait.
I like the composition, the POV and the colours.
Nino

postvikram (1199) 2006-08-12 3:29

Nice caprute..Interesting note.
good framing to make this similar to a Nat Geo Capture.

TFS - Vikram

izler (8) 2006-08-12 3:29

hi benyamin
amazing and interesting cultural photo. good exposure. colours, pov, sharpness, details and frame are great.
tfs
regards
izler

everlasting (19680) 2006-08-12 4:08

I am not sure about the frame, but the image is wonderful to look at. This fine trio with their interestign adournments. I like the bold contrast. Good note too.

wanna_yu (0) 2006-08-12 5:24

Hello Ben,
this is amazing shot reflecting culture that is completly unknown to me. Colours and contrast are very good, I like framing also :) Thank you for sharing :)

Have a nice weekend
Ivana

hay_kes (31439) 2006-08-12 5:28

Merhab Benyamin,
Great Mans capture.Wonderful colours.
Very well composed.
Great work.
Greetings.
hAyAti

siolaw (38294) 2006-08-12 6:21

Hi Ben,
Funny friends you ve got there!!Good contrast, strong coors and nice framing
TFS
Laurent

Bluejeans (64251) 2006-08-12 7:35

Ola Benyamin , impressionante foto as cores , os rostos dos nativos tem um ar de assustador , uma bela foto

isabela_sor (47748) 2006-08-12 8:23

Powerful grup portrait,Ben..Everything seems just right, the focus, the sharpness, colors,frame..and the note,too...Congratulations
Have a nice week end
Isabela

goodwill (4274) 2006-08-12 8:41

Hi Benyamin,

Man, this is not an ordinary presentation, it has value with the wonderful ornaments and three different gazes in three different directions.
A new chapter will be included in the books of photography now, chapter--"eye uncontact".Ha ha ha
A different POV, a totally different frame and a superb shot
Well done,
Rajeev
but...Where is Sabyasachi??

veve (4189) 2006-08-12 14:35

Hi Benyamin!
Interesting shot!
Very good portraits,composition,pov,sharpness and details!
Good note.
Regards,
Veronica

lucski (3691) 2006-08-12 16:10

well done Benyamin
great, amazing, ravishing
realy nice shot
greetings
lukasz

oochappan (4880) 2006-08-12 20:34

Hi Benyamin
a fine trio, very impresionant men witht their ornamentations. A curious bordering but not bad at all, matching the rather white ground.
Henk

MLINES (12516) 2006-08-12 23:03

Hi Ben, This is real life at the edge. It seems these people have changed very little since being seen by overseas people. It is likely they could survive longer than the rest of us when it comes right down to it. Good colours and a fine note. TFS. Murray
Did you catch malaria in this part of PNG?

rafid76 (0) 2006-08-13 1:19

wounderful picture but i dont like the frame, but still thx for sharing

gelor (3233) 2006-08-13 3:33

Bonjour Benyamin,
Une image impressionnante de ces trois personnages ! Les couleurs sont superbes aucun noir n'est bouch�. Le cadre donne encore plus cette impression de myst鋨e. Excellent !
G廨ard

s_a_s_h_a (607) 2006-08-13 9:08

Hi Benyamin,
Beautiful triple portrait. I like you shot. Faces, composition, colors and black background makes a photo.
Great work

Alex

dcawker (5717) 2006-08-13 10:36

Excellent! I really like the rich, dark tones and the composition is top-notch too. Really well done. Regards, Doug

EOSF1 (1944) 2006-08-13 12:55

Very good portrait Benyamin, well done. Thanks !

Mario

jwmunro (286) 2006-08-13 14:36

Good day Ben -

This is by far one of your best. Well Done! Three tough looking guys I am surprised you got them to pose for you. It is a well composed image but I think a lighter background would have given the guys a little more definition. Because of their dark skin tones and the black background they tend to blend together. The lighting is very flattering and there are no dark shadows on the faces.

Well done, thanks for sharing

Flavia (10352) 2006-08-13 14:50

Hi Benjamin,

Perfect composition. I like the dark backgroung and the strong conrast. It's nice to see such a good picture from this distant exotic country.

Best Regards,

Flavia

deano (178) 2006-08-13 16:24

Hi Benyamin, great shot. Good colours, details and atmospheric lighting. Well done and TFS.
Dean.

*sorry turned off the points system so can't give smileys*

bakes888 (18499) 2006-08-14 0:19

Hi Benyamin. Your friends don㦙 have very big smiles but they are dressed to perfection. Excellent portrait of these three gentlemen, great handling of the light and wonderful composition. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Paul.

Joffre (527) 2006-08-14 20:09

Hiya Benyamin, wonderful portrait, great lighting and colours, wonderful details, particularly the gourds! Classic composition and framing, very nice capture!

mbasil (2129) 2006-08-14 21:26

Wow, an amamzing opportunity, Ben. I think this is a great shot, but I would just like to see this as big as possible. I would suggest minimizing the frame as much as possible (both in size and simplicity) so we can concentrate on the faces. With all the black you should be able to get this up to the full 800 pixels.
Mike

Wanda1 (15142) 2006-08-15 1:26 [Comment]

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stefi (1230) 2006-08-16 4:29

Thank you for this shot, that witnesses one of the most incredible culture in the World, in Papua. I like the close portrait even if the knees are cropped, it stress the unity of these three men.

teutza (10590) 2006-08-16 5:46

Hello Benyamin,
wondeful composition, my friend!
i like the expresion on her faces, they are surely not so friendly:)
great light, frame and colours!
hugs
teo

thor68 (5586) 2006-08-16 16:34

ooh, they look like they are going to eat you, ben! *g*
excellent composition of the three men and their amazing expressions and poses.
great low pov, perfectly sharp and with nice strong colors -
did you do some blackening in the bg?
well done & take care, thorsten.

poulinp (4528) 2006-08-18 20:24

The light is well managed here to create a wonderful portrait. I like the square format for close portrait. Well done.

agbonavita (0) 2006-08-18 20:44

You have very pretty photo here in TE Benyamin. That one call my attention. nice portrait of the "3 hombres" (3 men).

I like the few but saturated colors that brings our eyes to the men faces.

Thanks
Andre

worldcitizen (16106) 2006-08-18 22:56

Hello Benyamin,
Wonderful photo of some very expressive faces. I like the composition, with the three men crouching down and a plain, black background. Good, tight crop and nice colors. These are faces that won't easily be forgotten. :-)

tinamunk3 (6408) 2006-08-20 14:16

Hi Benyamin,

Really nice portrait and I like how you chose a black background. You could have done it just a little bit better - around the heads of the men. I'm going to Indonesia for 2 months from the middle of October and I'm thinking about going to Irian Jaya - seems to be a very interesting place.

:) Tina

pady (4800) 2006-08-20 15:38

Very interesting culture I'm not used to see in my country. You well captured the expressions of these men and it shows something very different. I'm very impressed that these customs are still alive.
Greetings
Pierre-Andr�

turkamerikali (3291) 2006-08-20 19:14

Hi Benyamin,
This is one excellent photo my friend.
I like your pov,their expressions,colors,note,framing,focus,sharpness and contrast.TFS
Tolga of Indianapolis

arturo (31) 2006-08-23 10:33

Hi Benyamin,

WOW!!...one on its own...it has almost an archival feeling written over it...simply a kick...thanks for sharing...cheers, arturo

anducina (8407) 2006-08-23 13:34

Very interesting photo, I like the expressions on the faces of those people. I like the colours, the brown of their bodies against the black background, the red head ornaments. They give me a feeling of strength and authenticity.
Nice framing, too.
Andreea

darrasin (2860) 2006-08-25 19:32

This is wonderful. This is what TE is all about. Superb shot and wonderful note too! I like the lighting in your photo very much.

thanks for sharing

-Doug

twofun (1480) 2006-08-26 18:52

3 mans have very interesting face and style.
colors and perspective amazing.
also border...
t.f.s.

photosettle (1554) 2006-08-31 22:41

Your intro says 'your not a photographer'... well, this image shows otherwise. Incredible portrait. Perfect exposure and gradation from near black in the background to the highlights in the foreground. Very nice!!!

Swissguy (154) 2006-09-02 1:23 [Comment]

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banyanman (7797) 2006-09-17 13:37

A striking triple portrait, Benyamin, but I think your frame overpowers it. It愀 good that you got down on the same level as your subjects - it wouldn愒 have looked so good if you were looking down on them. Cheers . . . David

loic-jaouen (204) 2006-09-29 19:44 [Comment]

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prasadpaul (297) 2006-12-02 23:59 [Comment]

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Jason_teale (717) 2007-02-14 20:10

this is a great photo! I am not so sure about the frame but I really really like this photo! The expressions on your friends faces are great and powerful. I think that using a less powerful frame would bring more attention to the photo.

Thebigben (61) 2007-10-13 7:19