Malay Fishermen

Click or tap to view larger.

Returning to the many images I have yet to edit, this one came up today. It's of a Malay fisherman tending his nets in a local village. 

It looks a little like a studio portrait shot, which is a shame because it isn't. I also wish I'd asked him to take off his glasses as they don't seem to fit somehow. And it's not at all clear he's a fisherman. But, anyway, I quite like the shot nevertheless. 

I love his expression and the bokeh behind him is wonderful. Click or tap the image to view it larger to see the effect better. This old Summicron 35mm lens is special and creates something magical from the white fishing net behind him. A very unique lens.  

Below is a wide shot and you can see the chap above sitting on the right mending the nets in exactly the position I took the above picture. Against the light and with no fill, it actually was a tough shot to get. Especially as I got tangled up in the nets and nearly fell into the water a few times.

This was taken in a remote fishing village that tourists don't see. I was warned to be careful before I went, as the native Malay's may not take kindly to someone snapping their pictures. But as it turned out, I greeted these chaps with a smile and in a mixture of sign language and broken English, got them to pose for my camera. They were a bit bemused but seemed to enjoy the experience almost as much as I did.