Needs Cheese: April 2011

Thursday, 14 April 2011

In Japan

I'm travelling in Japan at the moment, but still as ever available for assignments both here and around the region. I have no mobile number here so if you need to get in touch with me please use the email address over there on the right there.

Wedding: Jason & Diane

Jason and Diane took a 40-strong group of their relatives and friends on a cruise aboard a luxury Bhaya Junk in Halong Bay for their wedding celebrations. After the evening's religious ceremony on the sun deck everyone had dinner and frequently, and very loudly, toasted the bride and groom. Then, lanterns inscribed with wishes for the couple were lit and floated off into the night sky, and everyone danced til the wee hours.

Wednesday, 13 April 2011

Holga Bleak

Trying out double and triple exposures with my Holga - some rather bleak looking pictures coming out.

Van Ho Ba

The Van Ho Ba streets are bustling, narrow alleys which skirt the edge of Lenin Park. Here are a couple of shots from the area, including one of what could even be the proprietor of what seems to be an abandoned and unbelievably dusty antique shop.

Wednesday, 6 April 2011

Halong Wedding Preview: Preparations

I'll be posting some pictures of the wedding in the near future - once the bride and groom have had their dinner and slideshow - but until then here are some shots from the preparations aboard the Bhaya Cruises Junk prior to the ceremony.

Recent Tearsheets

Tearsheets from the April issue of The Word Hanoi. Thanks again to Julia for the work, and also to Ian for making the layout for the traditional theatre article look extra feisty. And, as she's leaving, a special, extra thank-you to Julia also for all the support and encouragement she's given me over these last months, she will be greatly missed.

Tuesday, 5 April 2011

Portrait Reflections

As I mentioned in the previous post I've been doing a bit of work for my fried Dieu. Last week we went to visit her grandmother, Ba Nguyen Thi Nhung, at her home on the outskirts of Hanoi. Dieu's grandmother is an inspiration to her and she learnt to cook by watching her grandmother in the kitchen. She's 88 years old now, although she looks much younger, and I'm told that if you were to give her a whole cow, she could cook every last bit of it.

Dieu's Cuisine

My friend Dieu is expanding her delivery service and opening a restaurant on the shores of West Lake, and I've been taking photos of fresh produce to decorate the walls. Normally when I go to the market I concentrate on shooting the people, or the people with their produce, not often do I focus on the produce itself. But looking over my pictures of various fruits, vegetables and spices taking centre stage I think this may change. Here are three of my favourites; chilli pepper, red cabbage and tamarind.