A Wet Eid al-Adha
It was wet. It rained all night last night and the ground around the city square where the locals gather to pray was soaked and riddled with puddles. The crowds were sparse compaired to past years according to locals. But the faithful prayed on. Note to the squeamish: Below are some rather graphic images. [...]
Rickshaw Pullers of Kolkata
Click on the images to view larger. I lived in India for thirteen years. In that time I only ever flew through Calcutta, or Kolkata as it is called today. This week I find myself in this amazing place. It is significantly different than Delhi and other places I have visited or lived in India. [...]
Kathmandu: Home of the Hippies
Ok, to be honest, I am struggling with Kathmandu. Up till now each place I have visited seems overrun with tourist and shops selling tourist junk. I want to give it a chance and be fare to the city. Today we took the group to Bouddhanath. This is the home of the famous Stupa [...]
I’ve been through the desert…
The first thing I met was a fly with a buzz And the sky with no clouds The heat was hot and the ground was dry But the air was full of sound ~A Horse With No Name Written by Dewey Bunnell, ©1971 As I last posted, we left EBC and drove to Dram. [...]
Shigatse, Tibet
Today we drove 95 kms (60 miles) to Shigatse, Tibet’s second largest city. Shigatse, which sits at 3840m, is home to Tashilhunpo Monastery and 600+ monks. This monastery is the seat of the Panchen Lama, the second most important lama in Tibetan Buddhism. The group had a chance to walk around the pilgrim route that [...]
Lhasa, Tibet Day 1
All I can say is Lhasa is everything I had hoped for and more. The people are absolutely amazing, very friendly and so willing to have their photos taken. The physical environment and the culture seem very familiar to those of us who have spent any time in Ladakh, India. Yet, there [...]
Chuengdu
While waiting for the team to arrive to China, Kesh, a friend and client from a past Lumen Dei, Brian Hirschy and I walked around Chengdu. Chengdu is a massive Chinese city of 12 million. It is a mix of Chinese and Tibetan and I am sure many other ethic groups. We spent most of [...]
Last Day
Click to view larger We leave India tonight and head back to Penang. I leave you with a few images from life in Delhi, India.
The Penesak Jeweler
Tomorrow I leave for India for five days. It’s a quick trip shooting for a client and then home again. My wife decided she tag along and go shopping. So it will be a lot nicer rooming with her than with my fellow photographer Nate Watkins who I went with to Indonesia. Nate will be [...]
Can a Photograph Bring Peace?
Christians protecting Muslims during their prayers in Tahrir Square, Egypt. Photo by Nevine Zaki I have had people come up to me or write to me and say something like, “Wow! Visual Peacemaking – that’s so cool…what is it?” It’s as if there is a ring of truth in the term “visual peacemaking” but they [...]
Wallpaper: February ’11 – Happy Chinese New Year!
Chinese New Year is all about prosperity, blessing, luck, lanterns and red! Everything around here is red. Red banners, red signs, red dresses, red lanterns and more red lanterns. There are so many red lanterns when I close my eyes I see red dots! The town is completely decked out in red lanterns. So here [...]
Color and Beauty
Today is a crazy day for me. I have so much going on today that I have not even able to go to the last part of Thaipusam. I still hold out hope that I’ll be able to make it later. But other things are demanding my attention. In fact, I won’t even be able [...]
Thaipusam ’11, Day 2
Thanks for all the positive feedback yesterday. Thaipusam is a festival, a party, as well as a pilgrimage by foot. To me, today seemed to be about movement. As photographers human beings we get caught in patterns, ruts and favorites all the time. I am no different. But, this doesn’t have to be a bad [...]
Thaipusam 2011 Day 1
You might remember a couple years back I posted images from the Hindu celebration of Thaipusam that takes place here in Penang. Last year I was in Iraq and not able to cover it. But this year I am home with camera in hand. To get the full story on Thaipusam watch and read THIS [...]
Hoi An, Vietnam
I woke up early today to visit the Hoi An morning market. It was my first look at the city and I was enthralled. I got goosebumps and was gobsmacked by all the yellow walls with blue shutters, ladies with conical hats sitting selling their vegetables or fish. It was the Discovery Channel Vietnam! All was bliss [...]
When Culture Collides With Your Camera
I received this email yesterday from Victoria, a student in my Introduction to Photography class held here in Penang. I thought I should share it with you as a great reminder how traveling photographers need to be aware of the culture around them and always try to be sensitive to the local norms and traditions. [...]
I shoot for mostly NGOs and nonprofits. I photograph images of the unknown, the forgotten and the helpless. These are often the stories that most people overlook. 
