My lucky An Cuu River:
Sharing another panning photography adventure that happened on its embankments.
This type of photography adventure: manual mode on Nikkor 50mm on an evening embankment under a street light with a cool background and a parked car to partly hide me. But only partly: some people could notice me and, thus, enrich the image with the surprise on their faces.
This is what I mean.
And this.
Guess what is in this image? A man came to his parked motorbike; he noticed me taking images in the dark and lit the gates with his motorbike's headlight to help me. It was very kind.
More riders. I have no idea what their story is, but I feel like I sneaked into the thick of someone's life.
What about this?
I believe some of these people were returning from an expensive restaurant or from some event or celebration, that's why they were so charged with positive emotions.
Twenty meters away from the place. (I didn't want to post all these portraits in motion with no breaks since it would make some viewers bored so that's why.)
There was a stream of parents with children on motorbikes at some moment. There is no public transportation within Hue city so people rely on motorbikes only that's why all those families on the two wheels.
Traveling on bikes has become a tradition so, when authorities start public transportation in a city, few people use it: the popularity of public buses is low in huge Saigon (so different to Bangkok) and people ignore buses in Da Nang with a population of almost 1 million people.
Kimono? Coming back from karate class with dad?
Another evening class, a birthday party?
Mom and kids? Or mom's best friend and kids? Or aunt and nephews? We will never know.
Watching the moon?
The same embankment, amazing old gates.
Grab is Uber for motorbike taxis in Vietnam. The passenger looks talkative.
These guys were having a talk in motion.
Bambi boy flying home on his bicycle.
During post-processing, an idea struck me: what if black and white? The colors were so yellowish and random, the palette was so disturbing in most cases. Removing the colors was liberation. That's how this series appeared.
More stories from Southeast Asia will follow! Check out my previous posts on my personal Travelfeed or Worldmappin map.
I took these portraits with a Nikkor 50mm on a full-frame DSLR Nikon D750 on October 18, 2024, in Hue, Vietnam.
So many lives passing before your lens and I am sure it is interesting to watch them pass by thinkinh about their stories and moods. Looking at people reminds the diversity of life even when watched from a single spot! Great post @x-rain, and b&w edit really seems to liberated the characters...
Thank you!
Sure. It's also a way of communicating with people and being an actor too. Like, they see you as a mysterious foreign photographer staying in the dark, and you must be this person on the stage of life - you can't be "I am just David" 😄 Anybody can stop the bike and come to you and start talking... If I have the proper mood for taking images of strangers, this process makes me excited and slightly high because street photography is also a performance you offer to strangers.
That's totally correct. Here is a saying I like:
Nice shots; Asians love motorbikes. I used to ride one, but I lost my confidence after a friend died in an accident. Our first family transport in the Philippines was a motorbike, and my dad could fit us all on it when we were little (5 of us plus my mum, haha! ) to see my nan; the road was empty then, with hardly any cars. Road regulations weren't as strict in the 1980s. When I visited the Philippines earlier this year, there were more motorbikes on the road, and we even saw accidents with school kids thrown out of the motorbikes; there are so many pedestrians now, and the road doesn't look safe as it's crowded with cars and pedestrians. 😊💗
That's an interesting thought. What they have in Vietnam appeared at a time when fewer bikes were present on the roads. And now it needs a change, and it is actually happening but slowly... They have drawn zebras on every street in Vietnam as the first step, and, one day, they will start using them... Saying this as an unhappy pedestrian who is totally happy in Thailand. Can't compare it with the Philippines however - never been there.
Thank you!
Your photography is amazing, WoW!
Thank you, @sunscape! 😊
definitely black and white ! the only way to show the motion and expressions without disturbing vibrant colors.
beautiful observation .
Yep, the color was pain in this case, and removing it was the healing. Thank you!
hahha fully understand you!
i feel myself much better in the BW colorspace
The S.E Asians, seem to be fearless when it comes to personal travel options, Great shots, love how some of them are staring down the lens.
Yep. Vietnamese are reckless but this is how they see and feel the world.
Thanks!
you're welcome
Fabulous Photo gallery, dear, @x-rain 👁️👁️
Gracias!! 😊
I see all these motorcycles and it reminds me of my country Venezuela, which now has more motorcycles than people practically hahahahaha. Excellent shots and greetings !
Yes and no 😄 South America is a superpower about football. Southeast Asia is a superpower as for motorbikes 😁
the source
But Vietnam is #1 for one plain reason: Thais are richer and many families have both a motorbike and a car; thus, much more cars in the traffic in Thailand than in Vietnam. In Vietnam, everything happens on motorbikes, the whole country is a swarm of motorbikes. 😄
Thank you! Have a nice day!
AMAZING B&W street stuff @x-rain friend!
!discovery 40
!PIZZA
Happy to hear that!! 😊☀️☘️ Have a great day, @jlinaresp!
These photos are exquisite! Wow! 😍
Thank you! 😊☘️
nearly everyone in Vietnam has a motorbike , however driving it in peak hours is just crazy with millions flooding roads and other road users having trouble to cope with the very heavy traffic and no road rules
Agree. Vietnamese traffic is hell compared even with other Asian countries.
как будто побывал в 80-х годах )
Traveling to the 1980s sounds like a compliment to the images! 😎 Я б не отказался посетить ЮВА 80-х. 🙂
Wow nice photographs. Amazing keep doing 👍
Thanks! 😎
You can check out this post and your own profile on the map. Be part of the Worldmappin Community and join our Discord Channel to get in touch with other travelers, ask questions or just be updated on our latest features.
Congratulations, your post has been added to the TravelFeed Map! 🎉🥳🌴
Did you know you have your own profile map?
And every post has their own map too!
Want to have your post on the map too?
- Go to TravelFeed Map
- Click the create pin button
- Drag the marker to where your post should be. Zoom in if needed or use the search bar (top right).
- Copy and paste the generated code in your post (any Hive frontend)
- Or login with Hive Keychain or Hivesigner and click "create post" to post to Hive directly from TravelFeed
- Congrats, your post is now on the map!
PS: You can import your previous Pinmapple posts to the TravelFeed map.Opt Out
$PIZZA slices delivered:
@jlinaresp(9/15) tipped @x-rain
This post was shared and voted inside the discord by the curators team of discovery-it
Join our Community and follow our Curation Trail
Discovery-it is also a Witness, vote for us here
Delegate to us for passive income. Check our 80% fee-back Program
Congratulations @x-rain! You received a bright smile from TravelFeed. Our eyes were beaming while reading your post. 😁
Thanks for using TravelFeed!
@for91days (TravelFeed team)
PS: Did you know that we have our own Hive frontend at TravelFeed.com? For your next travel post, log in to TravelFeed with Hive Keychain or Hivesigner and take advantage of our exclusive features for travel bloggers.