OPEN YOUR EYES: A PHOTO ESSAY

OPEN YOUR EYES A PHOTO ESSAY

It is part of the photographer’s job to see more intensely than most people do. He must have and keep in him something of the receptiveness of the child who looks at the world for the first time or of the traveller who enters a strange country.

Bill Brandt

“Absorbed as we usually are in a world in which the news that reach us from everywhere, sometimes we have the feeling that reality is somewhere else. No need to say that the images of important events, even dramatic ones happening outside the borders of the EU or in the streets of Paris affect our vision of the World. This causes the sensation that our lives occur away from the news.  To people who want to work in the news industry, this could be a bit frustrating, living away from the hot spots.

A media student must read different newspapers, analyse and contrast opposite viewpoints. This will provide him or her with the necessary tools to create their own opinion about the reality that shapes the world.

But sometimes we forget that reality is also something that happens in front of our eyes. Curiosity, learn how to look, walk through different paths of every day’s, showing interest to the people living in our neighbourhood is a good training for curiosity, to observe what is hidden and to find interesting daily routines that sometimes we forget to look at.

As a photographer I use the camera to record this reality. Taking photos of people and objects that are near to my life and that otherwise would vanish as it does most of what we see. There are no highlights, just people, moments, light hitting a face or a rusty piece of fish net that I chose to capture among the rest. Therefore it is worthy having your eyes open.”

Here are some examples

LIFE OF TRADITIONAL FISHERMEN

Marbella is not only Puerto Banús and The Golden Mile. Running away from stereotypes we find La Bajadilla, the fishermen port on the East end of Marbella. It holds a fishermen community that changed very little in its working methods in the three generations that González family has been dedicated to the fishing activity.

Samuel is now (head of family?) the boss of the family. Seven of the eight brothers work as fishermen. Some of them returned to fishing after the economic crisis crashed the Spanish property bubble and let them unemployed.

Their concern is that the captures have been going down steadily, caused by the intensive fishing and contamination.

Samuel in his cabin

Samuel in his cabin

Being traditional doesn´t mean you won´t use modern devices such a GPS system

Being traditional doesn´t mean you won´t use modern devices such a GPS system

Manuel, the sailor of Oscar checks the octopus´ traps at sunrise 

Manuel, the sailor of Oscar checks the octopus´ traps at sunrise

Oscar pulls out a “naza” from the sea

Oscar pulls out a “naza” from the sea

Pescador means Fisherman

Pescador means Fisherman

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coming back to port after eight hours capturing octopus

Coming back to port after eight hours capturing octopus

Back in the port there are work to do…

Back in the port there are work to do...

and time to relax

and time to relax

The port has also beautiful scenes

Sunset

Beatiful scenes

Taking a break

port clothes

port boats

port rope

Shadow