Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Portraits










Here aree just a few of the portraits I took during both trips to Cote d'Ivoire. The last two are of Benjamin, one of the local bodybuilders. Along with Said, who won the Mr. Ivory Coast a few days after my arrival, Benjamin took great care of me.
(For that matter, the portrait of the fellow wearing all the gold at thew beginning of this blog is Benjamin, too.I wanted a photo that would reflect royalty and something very special, so we rented the gold -- yes, you can do that in Cote d'Ivoire - and spent a morning trying to get two or three really great photos. I think we succeeded, but you be the judge.)
Both Ben and Said were very solicitous of my welfare. Since Benjamin and Said are quite a bit larger than the average fellow in Cote d'Ivoire, when I walked along with them the crowds parted.

When traveling in a foreign (to me) culture, I have always made it a point to have a local guide who could keep me out of trouble. If you're ever to travel to Cote d'Ivoire, I strongly suggest that you get in touch with me and I'll put you in touch with Benjamin or Said. They're honest, careful and trustworthy folks who can show you the sights and keep you away from problems.





2 comments:

Billy said...

I love these photographs! Great quality. What type of camera did you use?

Unknown said...

Billy, I've been using a Canon Rebel Xti. I am very happy with it. I shoot in RAW mode so I can go in and change the exposure and oither things when that is necessary. If you don't know about RAW, find out. It is like being able to set your camera AFTER you have taken the picture, come home, and are sitting at the computer.