Parth Sanyal: The Kadaiwallahs

Photo © Parth Sanyal-All Rights Reserved

A couple of weeks before the start of my Kolkata's Cult of Durga Photo-Expedition/Workshop, I am particularly pleased to have stumbled on Parth Sanyal's website through a link on Global Post's photo blog PlanetPic, because one of his galleries depicts the Kadaiwallahs (men with large pans), the gold scavengers of Kolkata.

About 200 gold scavengers make an meagre living by collecting gold dust from the narrow lanes housing the small gold factories of Kolkata. They collect the dust in large metal pans, and burn the impurities with acid hoping to be left with tiny gold particles.

Indians consider it auspicious to buy gold during Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, when the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi, is worshipped. The period from October to February is high seasons for gold buying, however with its price skyrocketing, consumers are looking for alternatives, and this impacts the Kadaiwallahs livelihood. Their occupation is an ancient one; they've been doing this traditional and crude means of collecting gold since the 16th century during the Mughal Rule.

Parth Sanyal has been covering South Asia over the last 18 years for various Indian newspapers and global wire services. He has worked for The Independent in Mumbai, The Hindu group of publications and Reuters. His photographs appeared in the International Herald Tribune, Washington Post, New York Times, The Guardian, Time Magazine, Newsweek, Boston Globe, National Geography online and Global Post.

Stephane Sednaoui: September 11, 2001

Photo © Stephane Sednaoui-All Rights Reserved

Out of the many images of the aftermath of September 11, 2001 that were published in the past few weeks, I thought the most compelling were by Stephane Sednaoui featured by TIME's LightBox, which is one of the best photo blogs.. Perhaps it's because I hadn't heard of him nor seen these images before,  and were in many ways different from those I had seen before.

Stephane Sednaoui is a photographer and a movie director, and has also worked as a documentary photographer covering the Romanian Revolution of 1989. He has photographed many music album covers, and directed more than 50 music videos.

Interestingly, Sednaoui's ancestors were originally from Syria, who moved to Egypt and established one of the country's first top notch department stores. The Sednaoui brothers, Samaan and Selim, established the Sednaoui (pronounced 'Sednawee') store in the early 1900s. The store still exists to this day, but is a shadow of its grandeur after being nationalized in the 60s.

The school I attended in Cairo required that all students buy their uniforms; blazers, caps, shorts and keen-high grey socks from the Sednaoui store, and I recall quite well my excitement each year in getting these new uniforms.

Asit: Indonesian Photography

Photo © Asit-All Rights Reserved

Another instance of a talented photographer who neglects to provide full background information on his or her website is Asit. It's a shame because I am certain that photo buyers may want to get in contact with Asit. Having a contact form is insufficient, since a biography provides background information to the buyers and editors. A pseudonym is fine (if warranted) but having no background information signals a disinterest in marketing.

Most of Asit's photographs appear to have been set up very carefully, with meticulous attention and effort given to details, lighting and, in some cases, make up. It's more akin to fashion photography than travel photography.

Photo © Asit-All Rights Reserved

Francisco de Souza: Travel Photography

Photo © Francisco de Souza-All Rights Reserved

The website of Francisco de Souza is populated with galleries of India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam...large images which grab viewers the way images should. None of this silly small photographs to "protect my work" from Francisco. He wants to show his images, and he does.

His biography tells us he was born and raised in Zimbabwe, where he started to photograph his Shona tribal neighbours since he was eleven. Subsequently displaced from his Zimbabwean home, he travelled to many developing countries in Africa, the Indian Subcontinent, and South East Asia. It is there he started to actively work with and support Non Government Organisations in Indonesia, India and Zimbabwe.

Francisco's work has been shortlisted in the Digital Photographer of the Year competition in 2009, and he received a Diploma in Photography from The Photography Institute of New Zealand in 2010.

In his India gallery, Francisco features an elderly woman in a red sari, possibly a Gujarati or Rajasthani tribal judging from her tattoos, being helped unto the back of a truck...a perfect capture in time and motion.