How Russia looks like in 1910

Ever wondered how things look like 100 years ago? Street documentary has been one of the crucial tools for historians to look at social changes through the years, so the common snaps on the street or of your family and friends may serve to be important evidence of our current lifestyles more than a hundred years later!

Photo and copyright by Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii

Photographer Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii went on a huge a photographic survey of the Russian Empire, supported by Tsar Nicholas II between 1909 and 1910. He documented various Russians, from leaders to peasants. You might imagine crummy black and white photos, since the photos was like 100 years ago. But you'd be very surprised to learn that the photos are actually in colour! The photographer used a technique to make quick successive exposures using three coloured filters, which can then be combined later during printing to create colour photographs. Because the original negatives were monochrome, they were very stable and did not suffer the colour fading that you associate with old colour photos. You can read more about the digichromatography process if you're interested.

Take the time to check out the works of Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii, and I assure you it's well worth your time. It's like a time travel machine, as you view Russia a century ago, as if the photos were just taken yesterday!


Click here to visit gallery.


 

Eat your seafood, or else...

These burly fishermen will punch out your lights out. But seriously, most of us see our seafood as well... seafood! We assume that the fishermen caught them sailing in the nice seas, with machines hauling up the nets and all they have to do is sail the boat into the right waters, right?

Well... it happens that the right waters for some of the seafood happens to be really cold, frigid and stormy! Did you know fishing for Alaskan King Crabs for example, ranks as the most dangerous job in the USA (Wikipedia reckons that one crab fisherman dies weekly during the harvesting season)?

I came across the works of Corey Arnold, who did a really nice job of documenting life on board a fishing boat. The journalistic value of the photos is high, and you almost feel like you've been on the boat during the fishing trip. The icy conditions and the camaraderie among the fishermen were plainly brought across in the photos. And yes, these guys sure have a great sense of humor too!

Check out his works in "Fish-Work Bering Seas" section of his portfolio at http://www.coreyfishes.com now.

The Underwater Project

There have been many great shots of surfers riding the waves, but it's much rarer to see the world beneath the waves. Check out the photography works of Mark Tipple, an Australian documentary photographer who captured the wonderful world of underwater photography in his new series "The Underwater Project".

Rays of sunlight bursts through the water in a spectacular fashion, creating a luminous cloud within the water, as the surfers lay suspended in motion while the waves roll above. The surreal scenes are captured brilliantly by Mark Tipple, who happens to be an avid surfer himself. Check out his stunning works of underwater paradise below...

Hong Kong and Vietnam gallery added!

Hi folks,

It's been a busy time for me, but hey... photography remains an important part of my life! These photos of Vietnam and Hong Kong were taken quite some time ago, but I've not shared them in the public domain as a collection yet...

The contrast between Hong Kong and Vietnam can't get any further... the slickness of the former British colony stands out against the war-ravaged past of the former French colony. The fast paced lifestyle of Hong Kong pits one another into working faster and harder than the person next to you, so you can really feel the buzz in every street of Hong Kong.

The charms of Vietnam appear immediately as you leave the airport, with quaint French styled houses lining the roads. Because each house is taxed according to the land area occupied, houses in Vietnam are built on narrow strips of real estate, and total floor area is maximized by building more levels. The Vietnamese are toiling hard to rebuild the economy after decades of war, and results are starting to show in the cities. But the charm of Vietnam remains in many parts of the country, and it is difficult to imagine such a beautiful country and wonderful people being embroiled in such a long era of conflict.

Visit my new photo galleries of Vietnam and Hong Kong at www.nelsontan.com (click on the Gallery section). Leave some comments here on how you like the photos as well!

1-in-8 million photo essay by New York Times

New York is a large metropolis consisting of 8 million inhabitants. Most of the people you meet in a city are faceless individuals whom you recognize only as a fellow human living in the same area. But yet, everyone has a story to tell, regardless of the role they play in their daily lives.

The New York Times has a very interesting photo gallery showcasing the life and story behind the common people. Aptly named “One in Eight Million”, photojournalists photograph and interview New Yorkers who are socially insignificant, and yet these are the people whom make up New York city. Each segment is a short video clip showcasing the daily lives of each individual, accompanied by the narratives of those being interviewed. I love the insights gleaned from the videos – on the subject’s occupation and their take on life. The photography and editing of the video is amazing too!

(Hint: click on the Series Index on the top left of the window to see more interviews)


http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/nyregion/1-in-8-million/


Photo credit: Griszka Niewiadomski

Aerial photos of World Trade Centre collapse unveiled

                               Image copyright property of NYC Police Aviation Unit

One of the most dramatic events happened on Sept 11, 2001 with the collapse of the World Trade Center twin towers, forever changing international relations and sparking off a series of conflicts and terrorism acts. The intense drama and rivers of human emotions ran deep, and scores of photojournalists documented the aftermath through their lenses. However, one of the most dramatic photo documentation was captured not by a photojournalist, but by a police detective high up in the sky.

NYPD Detective Greg Sermendinger was in a police helicopter hovering above, and in what's probably the world's most haunting aerial photos, he captured the city of New York being engulfed in a plume of dust when the tower collapsed. These images were classified until recently, and they were immensely useful to the investigations of the towers' collapse.

See the series of images at http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/slideshow?id=9763032

Amazing French landscapes

I came across this series of astounding landscapes by Italian photographer Juza Ea, and I knew that I must show it to you readers. The images are breathtaking and very inspirational. Although this is a gallery and there are no details on the techniques, Juza’s website has some interest articles and reviews for you to read up on.

Check out Juza’s landscape of France at Juza's website!