Day 1- Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

Imagine everything you've ever been told about Ho Chi Minh City, remember that Top Gear special that everyone saw... now imagine all of that times by a bijillion (yes that's a word). I got my first taste of this frantic city the night before on the drive from the airport. But nothing could prepare me for the explosion of noise and colours in the early morning as people make their way to work.

Immediately I was assaulted by the Xe Om (Motorbike taxi) drivers that I would soon grow use to. "Miss! Miss! One hour tour! Very Cheap! Where you from? England! Football!" These words I would hear echoed across the country over the next month. I managed to shake them off but a particularly persistant one followed me down the street, whipping out a notebook with messages from old customers scrawled in it. I eventually agreed to hire him to take me to the War Remnants Museum- no more. It would turn out that I would spend the whole day with Tuan.

Tuan, my Xe Om guide

Saigon on a motorbike! There are no words to describe the thrill of it! At first it's terrifying- horrifying. You're certain this is when you'll die. Today is the day. Soon you grow use to the rush and lack of rules. You begin to see the gracefulness amongst the chaos. They don't need rules, they move amongst each other as if they know beforehand what each motorbike will do. Occasionally you brush up against another rider, but it becomes less scary, you can relax and enjoy the ride.

Tuan gave me the full tour of the city. Museums, Pagodas, Churches, Temples, Parks, Art Galleries... Transported to each through these wild streets with the wind in my hair (my sunglasses were ripped free and run over by a bus).

Incense Sticks burn in a Buddhist Pagoda

Woman Burns Candles for Prayer in Notre Dame Cathedral

Eventually however, I was all pagoda-ered out and Tuan returned me safely to my hostel after a long, unbelievable first day.

It wasn't over.

When I had told Tuan that I wanted a full day tour and asked the price, he had told me "You choose, you choose!" So I had worked out how much I was going to give him going by what I had read of the average wage there (I was going to give him far higher for such a wonderful tour). Then he announced, that no, it wasn't my choice. He had a set price. It was astronomical. I refused. He grew angry. No longer sweet, informative Tuan who had told me about his children- I was scared. I shakily handed over almost all of my money (over £100) and fled, not bothering (as my Mother later scolded me for) to check his license plate. Not that that would have helped much- the police there are notorious for being uncooperative with tourists.

So, like millions of naive tourists, I had been ripped off. It was a harsh blow on my first day, but I refused to let it dampen my spirits. I had learnt my lesson- one that proved to be very useful in a poor country where tourists (not unfairly) are seen as fair game. Luckily, my experiences with the people would improve significantly however.                                

So as not to end on a bad note, here's a photo of a man relieving himself freely in public. You can't help but admire his recklessness can you?

                                                     

Sorry Excuses

Soooo, I haven't posted on here in a LONG time.

I had deadlines for Uni, then I spent a month in Vietnam and since I got back... I... nope, I've just been plain lazy.

So please excuse me and I hope I can make it up with what I'll be starting from today.

While I was in Vietnam, I didn't always have access to the internet, and I didn't want to take away time that could be spent experiencing that wonderful country, so I didn't blog.

However, now that I'm back (and woefully unemployed), I'm going to be posting a day by day account of my time there. So when you're reading each days' blog, pretend I'm lazing in a hammock by the Saigon river, not on my sofa in dalmatian-patterned 'onesie' pjs.

The blogs will of course be posted with some glorious (you better think so) photographs.

Enjoy! xx

'Icarus'

As promised, here is my final video piece for my first year at Uni.

The film itself is a semi-dystopian metaphor. We wanted to make a statement about how humanity is slowly losing itself and decided to create a character that would represent this. We wanted a protagonist that was hard to relate to- due to it's lack of humanity with the mask- but was also possible to pity and empathise with.

The name Icarus of course is a simple metaphor for humanity flying too close to the sun- but when we realise, it is all too late.

Some light relief...

After that wordy post, here are some pretty photos by Tim Walker.  I've always LOVED the fairytale element to his work. They're just so nice to... look at.

'The Man Without a Head'

'The Man Without a Head' or 'L'Homme Sans Tete' is a beautiful, bitter-sweet short film written and directed by Juan Diego Solanas and is a part of Cinema 16's European Short films.

I could go on forever about the moral/sociological ideas in this- in fact any one could. The message is what carries the video of course, but what each person takes from it is theirs to take.

What makes this video so special to me is the hyper-real colours and distortion of reality- all making this seemingly dystopian world come to life. And the simple elegance of the protagonist being a 'man without a head'. It creates an eery, sometimes comical and ultimately beautiful feeling in the viewer towards the main character with something so basic. At first we are surprised by him, then warm to him- we connect to him as humans despite something so fundamentally missing- his head. To be able to create a character that an audience can relate to with such an important piece of of their identity and ability to connect with others gone- it's no mean feat. Yet is done wonderfully in this piece.

In the end, we are so emotionally attached to this character, that we follow both his happiness and disappointments deeply and ultimately we are challenged by how we view other people and what is truly important.

To be able to achieve this in 17 minutes is incredible and that is why this is without a doubt among my favourite short films if not at the very top of the list.

For a recent film I made at University, we drew our initial ideas from this film. I hope to post that on here in the next few days...

In hindsight, maybe I shouldn't tell you that! 'The Man Without a Head' is not a film that I would want looked at side by side with my work. Talk about being over-shadowed! Please cast all memories of this flawless film aside when you watch mine!

Sorry about no subtitles. This was the only version I could find on the internet. However, if you can't speak French (like me, though I hope to remedy that) and would like to watch the film properly (seriously do it), then I do suggest getting your hands on Cinema 16s European short films. They are all worth watching and in fact, if you can, try and get your hands on the rest of their collections! I'm still in the process of doing so now.

Hannah Starkey

Recently I've been studying Hannah Starkey... I absolutely love her work. There's something both quiet yet unnerving about her photos that leave you with a deep sense of unease that is hard to shake. To me the women in her work represent the isolation of modern society and a deep seated feeling of un-fulfilment and disillusion with life.

An Awkward Introduction

I've never really blogged before... at least, if you don't count Tumblr. And I don't really count re-posting hoards of Downton Abbey 'gifs' and amusing screen caps as blogging.

So this is something new for me.

I'm going to use this blog as a bit of a mental scrapbook. There'll be photographers that I like/ have recently discovered, books on Photography and Film that I've read, reviews of movies and probably some self-indulgent posting of my recent work. If any of that interests you, then follow away! I promise to try and keep it interesting.

My work tends to focus around documentary/street photography though I don't turn my nose up at portraits and a bit of composed narrative. Those things I enjoy doing. But with documentary, it feels right. I think Photography is an incredible tool that (excuse the cliche) can change the world. But even more then that, it can find the beauty in a world that most have already given up on.

I suppose a good start point would be to show you some of my own work. So here you go, the work of yet another Photography student striving to be different.