[Leica] Faces of Guizhou

[jplaurel at spectare.com (Jim Laurel)]

Wow, thanks everyone for taking the time to look at my images.  I am
flattered by such comments coming from a group as accomplished as this.

These images were taken during a trip my wife, Karin, and I made to Guizhou
province in the Southeast of China this April/May.  Most of the people in
the photos are from an ethnic minority called the "Hmong", who can be found
in North Vietnam, Northern Burma, in addition to Southern China.  The Han
Chinese often call them "Miao", which some consider to be a derogatory term.
This shot was taken in a Hmong market in North Vietnam:

http://www.spectare.com/gallery/laosvietnam03/source/laurel_j_21.htm

We went specifically to photograph the many spring festivals that happen in
the area during that time of year.  We did some light trekking into several
villages, usually staying overnight in private homes.  The people we met
were very kind and generous to us, and very open about being photographed.
On the surface, you see that they have few material possessions, but they
are socially very wealthy.  They live in tight-knit village communities,
surrounded by friends they've known all their lives and generations of
family.  And unlike the urban Chinese, they are allowed to have 2 children.

It was a great experience, though I became ill with a respiratory problem as
a result of drinking out of the communal horns, bowls and other containers
that the villagers use to drink rice wine at these festivities.  When we
would arrive at a village, the women would literally attack us with the rice
wine, insisting that we drink.  It would take as many as 12-20 drinks in
some places before you'd clear the gauntlet of merrymakers!  And you
couldn't fake.  If they saw that you hadn't drunk the wine, they would force
it into your mouth, and any you couldn't drink would be spilled all over
you.  One of my cameras still reeks of wine!

The photos were all shot on M6 cameras.  In this particular group, many were
shot with 50mm lenses, primarily the Noctilux and some with the Summicron.
I also used the Summicron 28, 35, and 90 ASPH lenses.  But mostly, I shoot
with the 35 and 50.

Everything was shot on Fuji Velvia 100, scanned on a Nikon Coolscan 4000,
channel mixed down to monochrome, then converted to Quadtone.

That's pretty much it.  I adjust levels for each image, and try to get a
good solid color image to start with, then using the channel mixer, I adjust
the proportion of RGB until I get the B&W look I want.  Then, I convert to
Quadtone using some Pantone colors selected based on trial and error.

--Jim Laurel