Monday, May 27, 2013

Great Photo Ops / Street Musicians Hawaiian Style

A   L   O   H   A  !
Lots to see by clicking on this photo:
" When you play, 

never mind 

who listens to you."

 Robert Schumann


When I spotted 
the tourist boys above
with their first ukuleles, 
outside the music shop
in Waikiki,
I knew it was a
Wonderful Photo
waiting to be ruined.

How I Operate
in such a situation

DO NOT LOOK AT THE SUBJECT
Walk on Past

I faced away from them,
just one of many camera toting
people in a resort.



I decided on my settings,
a bit of zoom,
swept the area,
camera to my eye,
pausing, and snapping
JUST in time
to catch the above.

They never knew
what hit them!

I rush to add:
we are all photographed
numerous times a day
in public places.

That is modern life,
permissible
under law.

Morally,
personally,
my rules are:
1) to make no one
uncomfortable,
2) to present no one
in a way
that would embarrass
should we become
friends
(this happened to me
on FB
when I photoed/posted 
beach shot 
of a cute girl!
A mutual friend saw it!
Don't worry,
she loved it
and friended me.
So don't play 
with these rules.)


Those boys 
are in a great 
Hawaii Tradition.

Perhaps some day
they will be like
these senior citizens
playing and singing
at Ala Moana 
Shopping Center:
(Link)



The Hawaiian Flag 
on the back of the T Shirt,
the red/white Palaka pattern
 on the guitar man,
and the Longs bag
are all iconic!
Note the lap-played
steel guitar.
Palaka stands for
"workers"
like "Blue Collar"
does on the Mainland.
Actually,
both cloths and
concepts
seem to be fading
along with unions
and average
workers
throughout America.
More about Palaka HERE


One day, Siddhartha heard
an experienced musician
teaching young musicians:

 
" If you tighten the string
too much
it will snap
and if you
leave it too slack,
it won't play."

Suddenly, Siddhartha realized
that these simple words
held the great truth,
and that in all these years
he had been following
the wrong path.
We call him Buddha.
LAMA NORBU 
This post dedicated
to ALL Creative People!

Especially
to a dear friend
who brought the
grandchildren
to musicianship
where they are 
flourishing in
fun and confidence.

My friend is a sly dog,
knowing that each note 
they play 
throughout life
will not only 
bless them
and others,
but bring up
sense memories,
heart memories,
of the one
who started
it all
for them.

Thanks
for being
my friend;
which is 
another word
for "Blessing"
                                                   cloudia




33 comments:

the walking man said...

Can you even imagine living in a place with no buskers and no one with a camera to photograph what isn't there?

Birdman said...

Good rules to follow. The afforded you a great image.

Anonymous said...

Mahalo for the tour. That orange/brown aloha shirt on the youngster has been in shops for at least 10 years. My son has one when he first saw Hawaii at 15 years old, and his second one at 25! Cool town, cool music. DrumMajor

Akelamalu said...

Great shots Cloudia. x

PerthDailyPhoto said...

The hard thing in life is the balance, once you achieve that, you're set. Wise words my friend..

Brian Miller said...

ha. its a cool thought that maybe one day those boys will grow up to be those men...

aloha from va

Maria said...

Those children are so cute, but I hope they don't burn up in the sun.

TexWisGirl said...

loved the boys' image. and really liked your rules, too. you do shoot a lot of people, so respect is key, for sure.

Adam said...

happy memorial day

The Weaver of Grass said...

A good way of taking photographs Cloudia - then people do not try to pose - they just look natural.

21 Wits said...

Such a sweet ending, to a wonderful moment in your world! Those boys just might journey along through life- but gee whiz boys SMILE! Ha! Just had to say that. I follow your same rules in picture taking, hehehehehe!

Hattie said...

Have a wonderful, fun and peaceful week, Cloudia.

LOLfromPasa said...

More helpful advice. Thanks, Cloudia! Love that top shot :).

Charles Gramlich said...

One of Hawaii's Ukulele players has played a role in our lives lately. We went to see him in Baton Rouge and he was amazing. We watched a special on him the other night.

sealaura said...

Have a great holiday. Lovely images, wish I was there.

Cloudia said...

Thanks friends!

LONDONLULU said...

I like your street photography rules very much! I think back to the great photographers in our past, like Cartier-Bresson, and where would be be if we couldn't enjoy their many candid street shots? Terrific one (and nice showing the shirt and Longs bag!:)

Hilary said...

I like these photos. I always have a tough time snapping pics of strangers. I miss many good ops because I'm shy about it.

Franz said...

Molto belli i bambini,una splendida foto!
Ciao,buona settimana!!

Teresa said...

Wow! Your posts just keep getting deeper and deeper.

Myrna R. said...

Oh how I love reading what you write. Thanks for the info on legalities of picture taking. The quote is wonderful,

Lori Skoog said...

I totally prefer photos where the people are not posing. More wise words from Cloudia!

Cloudia said...

Jolly!!!


I love you guys!

SandyCarlson said...

Let's hear it for what you do! Thanks for this image and for the thoughts that brought you to this image. Life is beautiful, delicate, and amazing. Your post reminds us of this. Thank you so much.

Elephant's Child said...

Big smiles. And I loved the happy bare feet of the young musicians.

christopher said...

Good thoughts and messages to share again.

Anonymous said...

What a cute shot! Over here in Sweden, you're not allowed to put up pictures of kids under 15 unless they or their parents say it's okay.

Reader Wil said...

Great post and photos, Cloudia. Here in my village there are no people with cameras taking photos, but after ten minutes walking, you come across the river by ferry and there are lots of tourists. I was there yesterday with one of the American/Dutch bloggers and her husband. We went to see the windmills. The weather was wonderful! It all was very pleasant!
Have a great day!
Wil, ABCW Team.

Commander Zaius said...

Love the picture of the kids.

Bob Bushell said...

Beautiful pictures and the things you have said are truly right, cheers Cloudia.

Indrani said...

I agree with you on photographing people, that is why i prefer them to look straight in to my camera and smile if possible.

Tammie Lee said...

i love the beauty and wisdom you share with us!

Jenn Jilks said...

You are a sly dog! I love you!
What an amazing person you are.