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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Forty-Three: When doors, arches and gates express ideas > High sill, Temple of Literature, Hanoi, Vietnam, 2007
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17-DEC-2007

High sill, Temple of Literature, Hanoi, Vietnam, 2007

Buddhist temples have doors set in very large frames, which almost always means a big step up when getting in or out of them. I spent about ten minutes watching tourists navigating this obstacle and made some fairly amusing images in the process. But none gave me more pleasure than this shot of a very small child struggling mightily to haul herself over the high doorsill. Everything works together here – the worn red door of this temple is hundreds of years old, while the young child has barely learned to walk. Her task is impossible, and her expression is intent. The determined eyes and open mouth say it all. And all the colors complement each other perfectly – pink is a variant of red, and the child wears pink right up to the tie on her hair. All of which tells us to hang around doors if we can – we never know what might come through them.

Leica V-Lux 1
1/40s f/3.6 at 60.8mm iso200 hide exif
Full EXIF Info
Date/Time17-Dec-2007 22:54:24
MakeLeica
ModelV-LUX 1
Flash UsedNo
Focal Length60.8 mm
Exposure Time1/40 sec
Aperturef/3.6
ISO Equivalent200
Exposure Bias-0.33
White Balance
Metering Modemulti spot (3)
JPEG Quality
Exposure Programprogram (2)
Focus Distance

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Phil Douglis22-Aug-2008 05:00
Thanks, Alina -- this image certainly echoes your own expressive cat in the doorway shot athttp://www.pbase.com/image/101884570
Alina22-Aug-2008 01:27
What a cute little kid beautifully framed with old doorway. The girl is so tiny and she is ready for outside adventure as my little cat :)
Phil Douglis26-Apr-2008 19:58
You are right -- this is the way it begins, and indeed continues, for all of us. There is always another sill to somehow struggle over in life. Thanks, Tim, for seeing this metaphor here.
Tim May26-Apr-2008 17:09
Ah well, here he goes again, I see a metaphor for the struggles of life - often we confront our own high sills that we hopefully conquer with the same determination. The fact that this is a child, just beginning her climb through life add a deeper meaning for me.
Phil Douglis23-Jan-2008 01:55
You put it well, Rusty. The subject itself is endearing. And the composition,, colors and light help make it so.
russellt23-Jan-2008 01:19
"it makes me smile". that seems to me as good a reason as any for a photograph to recommend itself. honorable mention can be made here of simplicity of composition, soft painterly colors, and the light.
Phil Douglis20-Jan-2008 01:55
The humor comes from scale incongruity, Mo -- a tiny person grappling with a big door sill.
monique jansen19-Jan-2008 10:21
A touch of humor in this peeking portrait.
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