2012 Deck – Week 20

On June 16, 2012June 16, 2012 By themichaellamcollectionIn 2012 Deck, Photography1 Comment

Aday.org had come up with an idea to present “A day in the world” through photographs, they wanted photographers worldwide, from amateurs to professionals, basically anyone with a camera, to take a few photos on May 15th and upload them to their site. They had so many uploads they quickly got problems handling it and I am still not sure if my photos are there and if they are eligible for the final project, I think a lot of the information went AWOL during the upload. At the time of writing this blog-post, they are still sorting out everything to relaunch the website.

I took a few photos within the city to contribute, and I am choosing one of those to share as my photograph for Week 20 of this year.

Its a very familiar scene in Georgetown, this was “after-work” and these people are most likely workers on their way from their jobs to get transportation home, and I used City Hall as a backdrop for some added familiarity 🙂

Click on the image to see it better in the Gallery.

2011 Deck – Week 29

On August 13, 2011August 13, 2011 By themichaellamcollectionIn 2011 Deck, Photography6 Comments

Several weeks ago my Deck photo was an exterior photograph of the Saint Barnabas Anglican Church. That church is now in the process of being demolished, but luckily, I got to take some photographs of the interior just before that. I happened to be on the outside of the church doing some more exterior shots with the wide-angle lens when I was approached by another local photographer, Amanda Richards, recent winner of the local chapter of the PAHO Safe Motherhood Photography Contest, she was awaiting the priest to open the church for the Deconsecration Ceremony. So fate stepped in, and I got to go inside the church to photograph parts of it before all the items were removed.

This photograph was pure luck! I was facing the altar taking a photograph, when I saw the area lighten around me, on turning around, a man was opening the doors at the back and just at that moment Ms Marjorie Kirkpatrick walked across the aisle. And there it was, one of my favourite photos of the set.

I called the photograph “Final Entrance Opening”, referring to the doors themselves and to the final service to be held there.

I will do a later blog-post on the rest of photos from that set. 🙂 I promise.

2011 Deck – Week 24

On June 18, 2011June 18, 2011 By themichaellamcollectionIn 2011 Deck, Photography18 Comments

Earlier this week I saw a Facebook Note from a local Journalist, Neil Marks, about the St Barnabas Church being sold, I always find it sad when any place of worship is sold, even more so when there is historic significance to the site (as is the case with most of them as they usually go back several generations).

Nikhil and I took a walk there hoping to find it open, we really wanted to get inside. As it was closed, we settled for taking a few more photos of the exterior from outside the fence. I went to the website of the National Trust of Guyana looking for more information on the site and found that there was pitiful little there.

2011 Deck – Week 19

On May 19, 2011May 19, 2011 By themichaellamcollectionIn 2011 Deck, Photography12 Comments

City Hall.

I can’t seem to ever get enough photographs of this building, a heavy weight descends upon me when I go closer to it and see the effects of the neglect, the signs of disrepair, and the toll that the sun and rains take from this glorious wooden structure.

For last week I had not taken a single image for “artistic reasons”, I did do a snapshot of some newspapers for a Road Safety blog for The Alicea Foundation, but that’ wasn’t very artistic 🙂

Most of my HDR images usually use a fairly static scene, no moving elements, this week I decided to try one that included some movement, and try out the “ghost reduction” that Nik HDR Efex has built in, I think it worked very nicely.

Take a look at it larger in the gallery.

Compton

On January 20, 2011January 20, 2011 By themichaellamcollectionIn Photography15 Comments

I recently put this image on Flickr, and I got some favourable responses, and because I haven’t blogged in a few days I thought I should put it here as well 🙂

I was sitting in the vehicle waiting for my wife to finish up in a Supermarket on Regent Street, I was reading on my phone (at this time it was “The Witching Hour” by Anne Rice), and in my peripheral vision I say some movement in the distance. Yes, it’s a busy street, but I’m sure you get my point.

His name is probably not Compton, but amidst the multitude of things adorning his attire is a name-tag proclaiming him to be Compton. He is a colourful character, and you seldom see past the spectrum of colours, the purposeful stride and the “insane” air about him.

I hurriedly put the phone down, reached into the back-seat for the camera, and quickly composed and clicked to get my shot. I had to wait two seconds while the camera took the shot since I had forgotten to reset the timer from the previous night, so he is two seconds out-of-focus.

Aunt Yvette

On July 14, 2010July 14, 2010 By themichaellamcollectionIn Commentary, Photography6 Comments

Everyone leaves a mark in this world, everyone, without exception. They may be remembered by one or my many, for good or for bad, but they are remembered. At least, that is what I like to believe, in time we will be eventually forgotten, but just for a moment, we leave a mark upon the lives of others, these are the moments that matter.

Aunt Yvette always referred to me as Comrade Hinds, no doubt referring to someone else she remembered working in this building. Many may have called her a beggar, but she always asked very nicely if we could “support local”. And there were many a time when after giving her what we had, she would return at a later time with gifts for us; a comb, perfume, hand-sanitizer, a myriad of things. While I may not be able to cherish any of her gifts, I cherish the memories.

She sat on the pavements or on our door-stoop, when she walked it was in an almost completely doubled-over posture, apparently a combination of age and health issues, although I had heard rumour of an accident that left her so. She is reputed to have been a school teacher in her younger days, she certainly had an artistic flair, evidenced in her drawing, she sewed her own clothes and even did some crochet. She was an avid reader, many times collecting old magazines from us, and she loved to do Word-Find puzzles. She also carried on lengthy and complicated conversations with person (or persons) whom only she could see, always an entertaining event.

This was the only photograph I remember taking of her, I am sorry I never took more.

She was apparently in the compound of the Sol Service Station on Regent Street yesterday when she was struck by a vehicle and died, another victim of reckless driving. Maybe the driver did not see her in her bent over position, but then it could have been a child he hit if that is his excuse. I don’t know how many people’s lives she has touched through the years, but she touched mine and she will be remembered.

Rest in Peace Yvette.