The Alpujarras are a magical mountain range beyond Granada and the Sierra Nevada… See more photos here… Podcast to follow soon…
17 Responses to “South from Granada – Alpujarras photos”
Note: Comments are closed on posts after 14 days to keep the sp*mmers at bay.
Stuart
12 Nov 07 at 6:55 am
I’ve always felt uncomfortable taking these types of photos. Do you ask first, being polite, and lose the essence of the photo by doing so, or do it you just take it, no apologies given?
Aurèlia
12 Nov 07 at 11:16 am
I felt the same, Stuart. I often choose not to do the photo, unless the person demonstrate that doesn’t have any problem with that. But sometimes it’s difficult to know it
Jules
12 Nov 07 at 11:54 am
My father is a keen photographer who in his earlier most productive years had the ability (or cool nerve) to shoot endless candid shots – something I can’t do.
Andrew
12 Nov 07 at 12:05 pm
The problem is that if you ask a subject for permission beforehand often the moment passes or they will pose awkwardly and the quality of the photo is diminished. I do think that this lady looks less than happy to be snapped and I wonder if she would feel her privacy had been invaded by it being posted on the web for all to see? I think I’d be quite annoyed but then again I’m not as photogenic as this señora.
Aurèlia
12 Nov 07 at 12:34 pm
Hi again! My father also is a photographer, and he was accustomed to take photos as this one, many years ago… You have reason Jules, they were shooting without fear, with a cool nerve that we have not inherited… Greetings!
Ben
12 Nov 07 at 2:19 pm
Well, normally I am very bad at taking people shots – I also find it embarrassing. I have a few photographer friends who don’t mind at all, and I always envy them the shots they get. In this case I was photographing her back, I didn’t realise at the last minute that she had turned round!
Feeling caught out, I said “Errr, lovely fruit and veg!”, to which she replied, “Well buy some then!”
Stuart
12 Nov 07 at 3:50 pm
I almost never take photos of people for the same reason as most of you. I feel embarrassed and I feel I’m being rude.
Three photos I have taken of people (who saw me) that I like very much are.
http://enperu.blogsyte.com/gallery/viewblogimage.aspx?p=1726&b=172&exp=1
http://enperu.blogsyte.com/gallery/viewblogimage.aspx?p=1734&b=172
http://enperu.blogsyte.com/gallery/viewblogimage.aspx?p=1737&b=172&exp=1
As you see, two of them were children! I’m a coward, I know.
Edith
12 Nov 07 at 5:51 pm
In some cultures, people strongly object to their pictures being taken – in some countries, you have to be extra careful. But I guess Spain is not one of those.
These are great images! True, those small villages are often not as idyllic as we think, but out there time does seem to pass at a much slower pace… no rat race, no traffic jams.
Jan
12 Nov 07 at 6:51 pm
This lady is my neighbour. In the 3 years I have known her she has always had this stern facial
expression but once you get chatting with her she is lovely.
Frank
12 Nov 07 at 8:11 pm
“As you see, two of them were children! I’m a coward, I know.”
Not so sure about coward, if it was UK, I’d say brave! Generally photographing kids in UK has now become a definite no no. I frequent several photo forums, and the number of people being accused of being paedophiles is incredible, just for innocent pasttimes, like taking a few snaps of their kids at a football game.
Also most agencies won’t touch a photo without a model release form. I doubt if Ben got permission, or a model release, but if she saw it and didn’t approve, you’d probably find yourself in trouble. I do it all the time, I have supplied a lot of photos for magazines etc, and I never get a model release. If I’m asked for a photo of a particular beach, I can’t ask everyone on the beach if they are happy for me to have it published. I supplied a photo of a surfer and it’s plastered all over the side of a local bus, I just hope he likes it if he ever sees it. Photography has become a legal minefield.
Andrew
12 Nov 07 at 8:19 pm
“This lady is my neighbour…”
What are the chances of that! Bet you were shocked to see her photo here. Let us know what she says when she sees it.
Stuart
12 Nov 07 at 8:46 pm
Maybe it’s best no-one shows it to her… Ben’s been worrying enough about copyright issues to worry about model releases.
@Frank, the UK has become a places full of weirdos and freaks – that’s before we even begin talking about paedophiles. I hope I don’t even need to return. I remember a couple of years ago that parents didn’t like the idea of taking their kids to be coached football… because the after-school coaching was run by an older man who likes to spend time with children, the very idea of which is now ‘wrong’.
Ben
12 Nov 07 at 9:05 pm
Ha, Jan, that is classic! I wish I’d bought some of her fruit, I feel guilty now!
Jon Hundt
12 Nov 07 at 9:13 pm
is this one of those typical English things? being a bit embarrassed about taking pictures…?:
“I feel embarrassed and I feel I’m being rude.”
“I’ve always felt uncomfortable taking these types of photos. Do you ask first, being polite?”
“I often choose not to do the photo…”
“I also find it embarrassing…”
“I feel embarrassed and I feel I’m being rude…”
Thank heaven that there are others who aren’t so squeamish, or photo-journalism wouldn’t exist! If you guys want to be “photographers” I think you better work on getting past this!
ValenciaSon
13 Nov 07 at 2:27 am
She kind of looks like what I would imagine Harry Potter’s grandmother to look like, which makes sense after all since the Alpujarras are a magical mountain range.
Costa Tropical Internet
14 Nov 07 at 9:31 am
Great shot! So typical of the region.
Costa Tropical Holidays
7 May 09 at 8:13 pm
To boost the foreigners having Costa Tropical holidays I was just reading that the Spanish government are just introducing a course to help the locals look happier (I think it is available throughout Andalucia including the Alpujarras) – it is part of their drive to boost the flagging tourism industry in southern Spain. I must admit I am used to these looks and it is part of the character of some of these old towns. If you had grown up in a town of 200 people and had probably not travelled further than to Granada on the coast just a half hour away (although it used to be the better part of a day when this lady was in her forties) but were now seeing 200 strangers a day walking past your front door you probably would not be too happy with life.