Faces of Cambodia

Khmer people look peaceful and joyful but it’s like there is something that is hidden, out of reach for any outsider. Academy awar winner Haing Ngor in his memoirs “Survival in the killing fields” wondered how could people so respectful of the traditions show so much hatred and violence against their own people during Khmer rouge regime. This may partly confirm the mistery in Khmers’ looks but there is much more.
Unfortunately I have not stayed long enough to earn their trust and understand them better. The these shots are a mere attempt to capture something more of their essence.

 

Life is movement

Panning refers to the rotation of a still camera in time with a moving subject. By keeping the subject in the same position of the frame for the duration of the exposure the background gets blurred. The length of the exposure must be long enough and is function of the distance from the subject and background. The faster is the subject the shorter will the be the shutter speed. This is why I used 1/20th for this photograph whereas for a runner around 1/40th would be sounder.

What I enjoy about panning is the perception that the subject becomes completely disconnected from its environment and becomes physically self-explanatory.

ISO 320 F22 1/20