Intensity, Malacca. Malaysia by Phil Douglis

Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Fifteen: Making travel portraits that define personality and character. > Intensity, Malacca. Malaysia

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02-SEP-2007

Intensity, Malacca. Malaysia

This woman was engaged in a long and intense discussion just inside the entrance to Malacca's historic Cheng Hoon Teng Temple. She knew that four photographers were shooting her simultaneously yet showed no signs of either self-consciousness or annoyance. The light streaming through the open door to our left illuminated her face. By putting half the face in light and half in shadow, I create abstraction that
suggests her character without fully describing it. I use my spot-metering mode to expose for the lighted side only, allowing the rest of the face to vanish into the shadows.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/80s f/3.6 at 36.2mm iso100 hide exif

Full EXIF Info
Date/Time	02-Sep-2007 13:19:51
Make	Leica
Model	V-LUX 1
Flash Used	No
Focal Length	36.2 mm
Exposure Time	1/80 sec
Aperture	f/3.6
ISO Equivalent	100
Exposure Bias	-0.66
White Balance
Metering Mode	multi spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Program	program (2)
Focus Distance

other sizes: small medium large original auto

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Phil Douglis		06-Jul-2008 20:02
I have always felt that expressive images can ask questions and demand answers from their viewers. I wanted this emotional, intimate portrait to do just that, and am glad it does its job for you. If I am able to make my viewer think, feel, and wonder about my pictures, I am doing my job as a communicator and story teller. Thanks, Celia, for coming to this image. You photographed this woman side by side with me in Malaysia (http://www.pbase.com/cecilialim/image/98082791 ) -- you use frame, shadow, and soft-focus to abstract her, and express a moment of quiet reflection that draws the viewer into the image. Just as I am doing, your image makes the viewer an active participant through an interactive dialogue.

Cecilia Lim		05-Jul-2008 22:27
Phil, you tell us that images that are expressive make us ask questions, and that is exactly what you do here to make an expressive portrait. Her intense and anxious gaze, with that touch of perplexity in her frown, leaves us with many questions about the issues she seems to be discussing or dealing with. This image is like an open-ended discussion and it draws me into her world by questioning what she is feeling. The deep shadows also add to her mystery. We don't know anything about her, but you make us want to know her.

Phil Douglis		15-Oct-2007 05:04
It is rarely that I make portraits as head shots, Patricia. However in this case, I was able to abstract the face because of the back and side lighting, and she was extremely involved in a conversation which, as you say, reflects her inner world.

Patricia Lay-Dorsey		14-Oct-2007 05:19
Yes, this is perfectly photographed, especially for this woman. Something is deeply disturbing her and by having her half in shadow, you reflect that feeling. She looks still but inside she is churning over something about we will never know. By focusing in tight on her face, you show us that it is not her environment that is important, it is her inner world that we must try to see.

Phil Douglis		01-Oct-2007 18:13
Glad you link the nature of this place with the nature of her response, Melvin. I don't know what answers she was seeking either. But she did spend a lot of time here -- long after we finished photographing her, I saw her talking to people she knows. She may even work here. Perhaps she is part of the temple staff itself? In any event, she certainly was expression her passions.

Guest		01-Oct-2007 14:05
Another exceptional portrait Phil. Her ignorance or un-bothered attitude of the photographers show her determination and concentration on the spiritual. She is looking for answers to her problems that man cannot provide, only heaven can. The light represents the spiritual.

Phil Douglis		28-Sep-2007 05:00
Those are "catchlights," Alina. I always look for them when I make portraits. They add a spark to the soul. Once again, you have a very special way of summing up what I've tried to say: "A little bit of light and she is in all her beautiful." You speak simply and from the heart and it exactly what I try to do in my photography.

Alina		28-Sep-2007 03:35
This is masterpiece Phil. I keep looking at the sparkles in her eyes. A little bit of light and here she is in all her beautiful.

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