Gallery: more than a feeling
The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.
Helen Keller
If you cannot see a feeling, how can you photograph it? The answer is, by proxy. You photograph something that will evoke that feeling in the viewer, and/or you photograph a person evidently displaying that feeling.
Claire is our new host for Monochrome Madness and she’s come up with a cracker of a challenge this week! She asks us to dive ‘into the realm of emotions’. As many of you know, I enjoy taking candid people shots, so I decided to concentrate on a more literal interpretation of the theme, hunting through my archives for images of people who I feel are displaying a range of emotions. I hope you ‘get’ what they’re feeling!
The exception is my feature photo which was taken at Tuol Sleng, the infamous former Khmer Rouge interrogation centre in Phnom Penh, now a museum. No one who visits this place will do so without experiencing a range of emotions from anger to pity to horror and more.
Do also check out Leanne’s Monochrome Madness page to learn more about this fun challenge. Maybe you’d like to host a theme from time to time? If so, do contact Leanne via her page.
All my images were shot originally in colour and edited with Silver Efex Pro. For some I’ve used a sepia or copper filter to heighten the sense of age.
HAPPINESS
At a village wedding in Cambodia
CURIOSITY
Shop keeper in Thamel, Kathmandu, Nepal
DEVOTION
At a shrine in Manakamana, Nepal
AFFECTION
In Tallinn, Estonia
LOVE
In Sofia, Bulgaria
JOY
In the Piazza San Michele, Lucca, Italy
SHYNESS
Young girl playing in Bhaktapur, Nepal
EMPATHY
In Bandipur, Nepal
ANXIETY AND CARE
Crossing a river in northern Laos
PUZZLEMENT
In Phnom Penh, Cambodia
WARINESS
In a park in Tallinn, Estonia
DISGRUNTLEMENT
In the Jemaa el-Fnaa, Marrakesh
LONELINESS
In the Piazza Costituzione, Cagliari, Sardinia
ABSORBTION
In the Piazza Yenne, Cagliari, Sardinia
69 Comments
Annie Berger
Was taken with so many of your feelings photos, Sarah, but especially so with the more upbeat and positive scenes. Intrigued that you chose so many from Nepal in relation to those from other places. Did you just happen to take more candid shots there?
Sarah Wilkie
A good observation Annie 😀 I guess Nepal was a relatively recent trip so easy to trawl through the shots. There are also quite a few from our Indochina trip, one of our longest to date, so the sheer quantity available played a part.
equinoxio21
Excellent pix. A wide variety. Wariness could also have been “stood up”. 😉 (Or “never again”.)
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 😊 Yes, I felt she looked as if she might have been stood up, or at least kept waiting by someone who was running late!
equinoxio21
Hopefully late.
rkrontheroad
Excellent expressive choices. The Cambodian boy could have been in your children grouping, what a face! I can’t imagine how you organize your photos to be able to pull them out by color, children, emotion, etc.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Ruth 😊 I did think about using the colour version of that boy in Phnom Penh in that children’s post but I’ve used him before and anyway had far more than I could possibly include! I do tag my photos these days but hadn’t thought to use emotions as tags so I had to go by memory to unearth these!
Amy
Remarkable black and white gallery, Sarah! More than a feeling, indeed. And, each has a wonderful story behind.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Amy 😊 I’m glad you thought the title was a good fit too!
wetanddustyroads
Perfect Sarah! Your description of each emotion is so appropriate. The one showing ‘joy’ in Italy made me smile instantly. Beautifully captured.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m happy you liked this!
Susanne Swanson
These are marvelous images, Sarah! You really have captured the emotion beautifully!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Susanne 😊
Ju-Lyn
Fabulous captures & captions! Your sensitivity in capturing expressions and the scene … wow. My favourite is “Wariness” – I don’t know if I would ever be brave enough to take a shot like that.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Ju-Lyn 😀 No bravery needed however! I was a long way away, using a zoom lens, and then cropped it significantly tighter. Despite her expression I don’t think she would even have noticed me, let alone realised I was taking her photo!
Ju-Lyn
Ah! Hence the beauty of good tools in hand. Actually, I reckon this takes a whole different skill set – to be able to capture what you want from a distance.
Sarah Wilkie
The main skill needed is observation, to spot the photo ops when not right under your nose!
tiffanyarpdaleo
Beautiful photos, you totally captured the feelings, well done!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much 😊
Christie
A great collection Sarah! You really have an ‘eye’ to capture such emotions, all these photos are so expressive, and the fact you chose to be black and white helps a lot to focus on the feelings.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 🙂 The photos were originally shot in colour but I converted them for this challenge and I was pleased with the results. I often find street photos work best in B&W.
Christie
True!
thehungrytravellers.blog
Great people shots all round. You and your camera must have been very cunning to get sone of those
Sarah Wilkie
Maybe a little cunning but the important thing is to observe – the opportunities then present themselves 🙂
Alison
Such incredible photos Sarah. You take the best shots of people and wonderfully apt descriptions. I wonder why that man looks so disgruntled, maybe because you’re pointing your camera at him!
Sarah Wilkie
Aw, thank you Alison 😊 That man in Marrakesh wouldn’t have seen me on that occasion as I was photographing from a restaurant terrace, but almost certainly another tourist was taking photos within his line of vision!
Alison
You would do well as a paparazzi photographer!
Heyjude
Impressive candid shots Sarah, black and white does seem to make you focus on the expressions more and I love how you have interpreted them. The lady in Tallinn was definitely suspicious of you and your camera.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Jude 😊 I agree about expressions in B&W, perhaps because colour can create distractions such as clothing and hair?
margaret21
This post was made for you, Sarah. Fabulous.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Margaret – I certainly enjoyed putting it together 😊
kzmcb
Beautiful, evocative photos
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 😀
Anonymous
Fine post!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 🙂
Easymalc
Quite brilliant Sarah!
Suzanne
I thought so too, Malc.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you both, Malcolm and Suzanne 😊 😊
Washe Koda
Old old Cowboys call that wire of H… 😉
Sarah Wilkie
Did you read in my text where I photographed that wire? It ‘was taken at Tuol Sleng, the infamous former Khmer Rouge interrogation centre in Phnom Penh’
Washe Koda
Yes I did- I am 70 yrs & losing my shit … sorry 🙂
bushboy
Brilliant Sarah 🥰
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Brian 😀
Teresa
Such wonderful photos of emotions. My favourite is the lonely man, i could really feel his sadness even from afar.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Teresa 🙂 I’m pleased you liked the gallery – see my response to Maggie below re the man in Cagliari …
Teresa
Oh yes I saw it.
Anne Sandler
Great street photography, capturing many emotions. I love the way you capture people and their essence with your lens.
Sarah Wilkie
Aw, thank you Anne 😊 So glad you liked this!
Egídio
Sarah, these are phenomenal photos you captured with a wide range of emotions. Brilliant post and photos!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you so much, I do appreciate that feedback 😊
grandmisadventures
Your pictures so perfectly capture each emotion. My favorite is the child with bubbles- pure joy in the moment 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Meg 🙂 I loved watching that boy play with the bubbles and took several photos there, but this is my favourite because I caught him in a jump! I’ve used it before, in colour, but never thought to try a B&W edit till now. But it was the first shot I thought of when I saw the theme so I had to make use of it!
Ingrid
These are such beautiful images, Sarah. I could feel each photo resonating emotion. Well done!
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Ingrid 😊
restlessjo
Really, a wonderful gallery, Sarah. That poor woman, crossing the river!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Jo 😊 I suspect that woman crosses the river every day, possibly several times, but it must be tough with small children. We were staying in a hotel on the edge of a village, one that works closely with and supports the villagers. There are hot pools in the river right by the hotel and technically part of its land, but the locals were given the right to continue to use them. They’re just to the left of the photo, out of shot. I liked the fact too that the hotel employs almost exclusively people from the village, buys its produce from local farmers etc.
restlessjo
If one of the kids slipped! But I guess they do it from a very young age. There’s not much choice, but it does seem like the hotel is trying to help 🤗🩷
Monkey's Tale
They are all amazing photos that match the feelings, but my heart breaks for the man in the Loneliness picture.Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Maggie 🙂 But bear in mind that on the whole these are emotions I’ve guessed at and attributed, based on pose and/or expression. The guy in Cagliari may be lonely, but he could also simply have popped out for a cigarette / be waiting for a friend / like his own company. We have no way to be sure … However, my impression was that he might be too alone.
Monkey's Tale
I realize that, but you seemed to capture that emotion in him
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 🙂
Marie
Great interpretation Sarah. What wonderful portraits you have in you archives – I’m trying to be as brave as you and start taking photos of individuals rather than things but I usually chicken out and might end up with a rear view at best! I think my favourite here is the river crossing in Laos.
Sarah Wilkie
Aw, thank you Marie 😊 I’m sure the more you have a go at people shots, the more confident you’ll become. But a good zoom makes all the difference if you don’t want to be obvious or feel you’re intruding. Or the confidence to simply ask for a photo, but that way you don’t get the ‘natural’ expressions. A few of these shots I asked permission to take, like the wedding guests in Cambodia and the little boy in Phnom Penh. But most are, I confess, a bit sneaky!
janet
Even in my phone these are wonderfully evocative photos, Sarah. As hot the first, I visited Aushwietz once many years ago. Those emotions are difficult to deal with but if we didn’t feel them, we would be lesser humans.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Janet 😊 I’ve never been to Auschwitz but I can imagine the impact to be very similar to Tuol Sleng. Horrific, but not something we can or should brush under the carpet.
Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter
“Joy” really ticks all the boxes for me.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Anabel – that’s a favourite shot of mine, but this is the first time I’ve tried a monochrome edit.
Mrs. Claire Gutknecht
Wow Sarah, your photos are incredible! You really captured the emotions perfectly, freezing them in time.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Claire 😊 I really loved your choice of theme, as well as your own excellent photos, and look forward to seeing what else for you have for us when hosting MM in the future!