Everest Uncensored

Imagine strangers invading your neighborhood, burning your house to the ground, ransacking your local grocery store, and taking over your town.

Could you make a living in a foreign culture that invaded your world? Could you hold your family together?

Could you survive?

Miners by the thousands invaded the Sierra Nevada (Yosemite) foothills during the gold rush from 1849 to 1851. Some Indians struck back and raided a trading post, killing several miners. In 1851, a band of volunteers formed the Mariposa Battalion, sanctioned by the state of California, to rid the area of the perceived threat of Indians. When they entered Yosemite Valley, they burned villages and food supplies and forced men, women, and children away from their homes. When the Indians returned, Yosemite was no longer theirs. New settlers had claimed it as their own.

Surviving communities

Captain Paul (Yosemite Indian)

The Yosemite people did whatever they could to survive in this strange world in which they found themselves.

[ - Adapted from the Yosemite Museum text ]

Yosemite and Photography

Yosemite has lived along with the history of photography and photographers. Pioneer photographers started taking pictures of the Yosemite as early as 1800s. They carried all the equipments and chemicals all the way up to the mountains and setup temporary darkrooms with the help of tents. Those were the “mammoth” cameras capable of producing 18 inch by 22 inch glass plate negatives. Carleton Watkins (1829 – 1916) is one of the notable photographers of that time whose stereoviews of Yosemite influenced on establishing Yosemite as a National park in 1864. In the 1900s, Ansel Adams (1902-1984), one of the most celebrated photographer, took many visionary photographs of Yosemite. His works have made a huge impact in the popularity of the Valley as well as shaping the people’s relationship to nature. Ansel mostly used the large format camera (black and white) which was comparatively far more flexible than that of Carleton’s but still way large and inflexible compared to present day SLR and DSLRs. In the contemporary era, another generation of photographers explored the color version of Yosemite. Galen Rowell (1940-2002), Michael Frye and Keith Walklett are some of the photographers distinguished by their daunting pursuit of capturing Yosemite at its best.

Today hundreds of photographs of Yosemite are being taken everyday by visitors and photographers from around the world. Preservation efforts and maintenance of the natural wilderness are executed at its best possible way. It seems Yosemite will continue to bewilder its visitors for many years to come.

Yosemite Falls

This cascading Yosemite falls is the highest measured (2,420 ft) waterfall in North America (6th in the world). It has actually three sections – upper falls, middle section and the lower falls. This one is a view of the upper falls as seen from the Ansel Adams Gallery, few blocks north from the Visitor Center.

Mirror Lake and the Half Dome

I was expecting Mirror Lake would be some kind of a lake. But when I arrived there, the lake has merely enough water to be called as a lake.  This seasonal lake is actually close to disappearing due to sediment accumulation.

Water, Wind and the Rainbow

This is a close view of the Lower Yosemite falls. She was pretty dynamic in that morning. I tried to reach closer to her from her left side but there was so much rain coming down. When I came to the other side then only I could see the rainbow kissing her feet!

Technical Note:
Canon 40D with Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II
Cokin GND, ND and CPL filters
All most all of the photographs are shot RAW. None of them are HDR

I was amazed to see this He & She involved in pre-sex stormy ritual between this pair of house sparrow. Apparently it’s foreplay of its own kind.

Location: My Home, Kathmandu
Camera: Nikon D200
Lens: 28.0-200.0 mm/f/3.5-5.6

Open Your Mouth HA HA HA

Do Comment on this snapshot by Anubhav Nepal as your verdict. Good snapshot or bad? Like it or loathe it?
Your verdicts could be one of ‘3 Best Verdicts’ of this snapshot.

The Aim of this series:

1. To help viewers to view picture in a photographic perspective.
2. To help aspiring, hobbyist, or amateur photographer to have constructive feedback on their work.
3. To create an interactive platform for everyone who are fond of photography here in EU.
4. To motivate viewers to make constructive comment.

If you have ‘Snapshot’ like this send us at euvv@everestuncensored.org and get feedback from EU Viewer’s as their Verdict. It may help you to improve your photography skill. While sending please attach only one picture in JPEG format per email. Do not forget to mention where and why you took the photo. Please maintain the size of your picture at good resolution for better viewing. And yes don’t forget to name your snapshot (caption).

Every snapshot in this series gets Shutterbug’s constructive comment in next month’s “3 Best EU Viewer’s Verdict” series.

Recalling a post on 169th World Photography Day from ‘Life in Nepal’ Everest Uncensored, I would like to extend a warm greeting to all photographers who have contributed pictures here in EU and LIN. ‘A Happy World Photography Day’.

I know most people don’t know 19th August is a very special day for PHOTOGRAPHERS. On this very day, it was publicly announced that photography has been invented in the year 1839 in Paris. Since then this day is celebrated as World Photography Day throughout.

In 1827, Frenchman Joseph Nicéphore Niépce made the first breakthrough in fixing an image—but it took him eight hours to do one image (see below). Around the same time, a fellow Frenchman Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre was experimenting on image capturing, but it took more than a decade by the time he was able to reduce the exposure time to less than 30 minutes. And keep the image from disappearing. It is beyond imagination then and the reality now, that we can shoot picture at the speed of 1/8000 of a second.

View from the Window at Le Gras, the first successful permanent photograph created by Nicéphore Niépce in 1826, Saint-Loup-de-Varennes. Captured on 20 × 25 cm oil-treated bitumen. Due to the 8-hour exposure, the buildings are illuminated by the sun from both right and left.
(Photo Courtesy: http://fosgrafe.wordpress.com/2007/11/09/primeira-foto-do-mundo/)

Life is confusing even for us who are considered ‘normal’ and can think and function on our own. So no wonder it is a big puzzle for those who do not have the intelligence other people their age have. And it gets harder for them when they are not treated with affection and the care that they require and instead are looked upon as a burden to the family and society.

It was year 2007 I did one photo assignment for Mentally Retarded Rehabilitation Center located at Kharelkhot in Kavre, a village 57 kilometers from Kathmandu. Sujana Uphadhayay was with me and we did this social project to collect fund for this rehabilitation center which was established in year 2006. The center was established with the aim to reach out to and help as many children with a low IQ as possible.

I have spent two days in that rehabilitation center photographing whatever routine children follow every day. It was a great learning experience for both Sunana and I to know how happy those children are with their limited world they have in the center. And for me it was the journey I learn to ‘care’ for needy children like them. My short stay in the center was truly a spiritual experience of what it takes to live life being a people of lesser God.

Here I would like to share some of pictures from that assignment.

WE ARE FAMILY:Children sitting outside the Rehabilitation center.

Being a physical or mental disability in traditional societies like Nepal becomes a dependent on the family and the community makes their life a miserable experience. But progress that human civilization today’s have achieved both scientifically and technically in greater field, we must realize that any disabled can also become a productive member of the society and can look back on their life with satisfaction. All it takes is our little ‘CARE’ and help them find a place in the mainstream of our social life like us.

FRAME ME TOO: Saroj peeking from Rabin’s back.

THINKER: Rosina trying to figure out what I was doing with camera.

It cannot be over stated that these children need love and affection from other people. But then, who doesn’t? It is therefore important to realize that these children have no less thoughts and feelings than any of us. And they are not incapable of learning. They just have a different, and a slow, way of learning.

WAIT FOR DAWN : Early morning children waiting the Sun to rise.

The progress the Rehabilitation Center had with some these children is proof to this. Most of the children before coming to the Rehabilitation Center were made to live in unthinkable conditions. Some were even tied along with the cattle, where they ate hay, just as the animals did. Part of this was due to the ignorance on the side of the parents, while some of it was due to the poor economic condition where they could not afford anything better. Those children before coming to the center had no sense of being human beings at all. And seeing them now, befriending each other and learning new skills everyday, the faith the center have in their ability to learn and grow strengthens everyday.

CIRCLE FOR ME: Muna Ama making circles for children so that can stand for morning prayer and parade.

The mentally retarded from childhood experiences unusual difficulties in learning which affects their capacities for adjustment in day to day living.

HERE WE STAND TOGETHER : Children doing parade.

MORNING WORKOUT : Children doing morning parade along with Muna Ama.

In year 2001, government introduced the concept of inclusive education in Shree Bahgwati Higher Secondary School. The purpose of the special class in the school was to enroll 10 mentally challenged children at a time and teach them basic life skills with the aim to prepare them eventually lead a normal life. But it was stated that each batch of 10 students would be taught for 5 years, after which they would be sent back home.

The five years of specially formulated education program did help the children make some improvements from their initial stage. However, given their limited learning ability and their need for constant guidance and support, removing them from the class and sending them back home would mean pushing them back to square one. The first batch of students completed their allocated time by the government during late 2005.

Hence, in order to help them continue learning and to reach out to more than just 10 children at a time, Mentally Retarded Rehabilitation Center was established.

It was a tough decision to make given the lack of funds and support from government, but it was an important one. The center was registered as a non-government organization committed to help improve the life standards of mentally challenged children by the only teacher in the program then, Ms. Muna Silwal and some parents of the children.

The center is being run by the NRs 10,000.00 ($138.00) that the Nepal government provides each month and the limited financial support that the parents provide. Most of the children come from families in villages where their parents are involved in farming as a profession. Hence, give the low economic standards; it is very difficult for most of the parents to even fill in the basic fee of the center.

The center’s future plan is to run a full-fledged center with all the facilities that the children need and bring in and support as many of them as possible. Also, we aim to be able to eradicate the concept people have of “mentally retarted” children and make them understand that they are just a little different, but in other ways are very much like us.

The society should be made aware of the need to recognize the mentally retarded persons and give enough care to make them as independent as possible. There is a long way to go, and the journey, along with it challenges, has just started.

Some facts of the center which we have collected previously. It may differ by now:

There were a total of 16 children now from all parts of the country.

• * There were two full time teachers and two full time support staffs with the children at all times.
• * A room was allocated in Shree Bahgwati Higher Secondary School where the children attend their classes.
• * They stay in a hostel, 10 minutes from the school and are well acquainted with the ways – to and fro.
• * The children were divided into three groups, depending on their learning abilities and study programs have been designed and followed.
• * The children were taught skills to help them earn their own living in the future. Some of them are able to make envelops on their own.

MORNING PRAYER: With Rosina in the morning I did prayer (Saraswati Bandana) and parade with them.
Photo by: Sujana Upadhayay

Report: Sujana Upadhayay/ Shutterbug

Photographer: Puspa Shrestha
Name of Snapshot: Let’s go for a long ride.MP.
Camera: Sony Cybershot 6

I took this snap at home and while I was taking some snaps of my family this gleeful moment got unfolded and I simply can’t stop snapping it as a funny memories. These home team is my nieces and nephews having fun on my bhauju’s scooter.

First: Kishor
June 17th, 2009 at 10:05 pm

“The ideas which photographer gets from comments by viewers from different walk of life definitely prepare her/him to snap well next time. ” Shutterbug said it very well last time, and here I’m making this comment considering the same.

It’s obvious that we tend to comment on pictures regarding what we see and how we like to see. In this snapshot of Puspa Shrestha, the expression in the faces is very nice and candid. It certainly gives a good feeling to viewer. What this picture lacks is proper composition. This picture would look wonderful if photographer would have included front part of scooty, avoiding blank space on the rear side, which is a bit distracting.

To see lot of pictures and try to understand the idea behind the image always helps to improve us. All the best to the photographer and happy clicking.

Second: Suresh
June 17th, 2009 at 7:12 pm

Mood, concept and expressions every thing is great. But not a great composition.
Some space in the right and bottom to tightly framing the whole scooter along with the children would have made this shot WOW…

Third: Samir_insurer
June 25th, 2009 at 8:47 pm

Everyone smiling in the picture also made me smile pleasantly. Different Smiley Expressions of the children are the one of the most attractions in this shot. Don’t know whether it was a planned shot or a snapshot.

Had Mr/Mrs/Ms. Puspa Shrestha composed the shot by cropping the excess spot in the left side & upper side with a bit of low angle it would have been a “Technically Correct Shot”. Subsequently, excessive white & bright colors in Background sometimes make picture bit harsh unless it was taken in front of excessive whitish lights, snowfalls, Sea bla….bla….. But, Mr/Mrs/Ms. Shrestha might not have got plenty of time to think all about during the shot. Keeping all those notes in view, I give my both “Thumbs Up” to Mr/Mrs/Ms. Puspa Shrestha. Keep on Photographing.

Nice capture and very hilarious which I guess is a joy of candid photography. You just need to go with the flow and the results are full of surprises which tickle viewer’s humor. Dear Puspa Shrestha! My thumb up.

It’s a candid shot and candid photography is all about capturing the spontaneity of a moment. I know it is not easy to get perfect shot at the right split second of time but thinking, planning ahead and anticipate what is about to unfold in front of you that you can greatly increase the chances of getting some great shots.

Well three Best Verdicts above by Viewers have already suggested some better ways how this snapshot could turn into Wow! snapshot. I also agree that the composition could be improved. I have tried other better options to improve this snapshot by cropping and also recomposing in Photoshop to give better ideas.

As I have cropped and recomposed it for better composition, it would be simply so perfect if faces of these 2 riders (1 and 2 yellow circle) were also more visible while Puspa snapped it.

One more tips, whenever you get chance to snap pictures try different perspective, not just from this normal height (ie shooting from 3 feet height instead of 5 or 6). Such different perspective put more interest for viewers to view your snapshot.

Good effort and well thought. Keep snapping.

Costa Rica has been declared the happiest country in the planet earth. It has topped the HPI chart (Happy Planet Index). Nepal is standing at 37 with the HPI score of 51.6. Interesting enough, large and developed countries like USA and UK are found at the bottom of the chart (USA at 114 and UK at 74). In the indexer’s words “The Happy Planet Index reveals the ecological efficiency with which human well-being is delivered. The index combines environmental impact with human well-being to measure the environmental efficiency with which, country by country, people live long and happy lives.” Like one of my friends comment, I think what it essential means is the index of ‘living in harmony’.

At the philosophical side (if you hate philosophy you can safely skip this paragraph ), I have been thinking for a while – that ultimately the essence of the goal of life is the happiness. People may believe in different routes to reach that state. Some may find it in wealth and power and others would see it in the intellectual attainments. Some may find it in the religious devotion and others may take the path of self realization. Some would find happiness staying at the ‘giving end’ while others would enjoy the ‘receiving end’. Some finds happiness solving the problems while others find happiness just by ignoring them. Whatever the way it is, the attained happiness is priceless. Happiness in a lavish lifestyle is in no way superior to the happiness farmers find with their successful crops. There are different believes, ideologies, ethics and standards whose job is to define which paths to happiness are right and which are wrong but still they are all dealing with the ultimate goal of life which is to be happy. There should have been a God of Happiness. Just a thought.

With all this in mind I recalled the feelings I had last month when I was in my remote village Majuwa at Bhojpur. No road, no electricity, my village is really deprived by the Nation’s development process. But in the other side, I met many more happy people there than I usually meet in the cities. Genuinely happy people.The trepidation of the current recession cannot even touch them. This is a place where even a 10Rs bill can bring a pouring happiness.

Let me share some happiness straight from my village

(The village Majuwa)

‘real people real need’ is a Photo Exhibition organized by UNHCR: The UN Refugee Agency and curated by photo.circle on 20-24 June 2009 in Kathmandu concluded yesterday at Bhirkuti Mandap Exhibition Hall. The photo exhibition was organized to mark World Refugee Day.

Here are some photographs which I took yesterday hoping to share here in EU among those who nourish similar interest as me. I have also excerpted opinion by some journalists, writers and photographers to give some wider perspective on this photo exhibition.

A critically ill women in Kibati camp, close to the North Kivu capital of Goma. The International Rescue Committee estimates that 1,250 Congolese die every day from war-related causes, including illness that in peacetime would be treatable. Photo: Christian Als.

The photographs especially in black and white exude the sheer power of a dismal energy. The refugees in such photographs look like people sculpted in dark caught between stillness and mobility, human and subhuman avatars, dignity and humiliation, defeat and resolution. I shuddered for a moment to think what might happen in the lives of the people of Nepal if political workers and parities miss the great opportunities of peace, progress and reconciliation and take wrong decisions. The fate millions is in their hands. I repeat, and optimist is like a lonely flower plant buffeted by fast currents of water. As an optimist, I try to couch my fear in questions that also yell out some answers because they have to reach out to many responsible indifferent ears. — Abhi Subedi, The Kathmandu Post, 24 June 2009.

Portrait of an old man as a refugee. Photo: Saiful Huq Omi.

The Disowned and the Denied:
Saiful Hug Omi Photographer

The people of Bangladesh know what it is to be a refugee. In 1971, around 10 million Bangladeshis sought safety outside their country in what was probably the single largest and most rapid displacement in history.

Bangladesh has hosted refugees for over three decades. Today, 28,000 refugees for over three ethnic, religious and linguistic minority, commonly known as the Rohingya — are living in the camps of Nayapara and Kutupalong in the south-east district of Cox’s Bazar. Over half of them are children – many of whom have only experienced life in the camps. They live in one of the most prolonged refugee situations in the world today. The Government estimates that an additional 100,000 to 200,000 unregistered Rohingya are also living in the country.

Like refugees around the world, the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are survivors! They are living in transience, waiting for the day they can go home in safety and in dignity. Until then, like any other person, they aspire to live a life free from violence and exploitation. They want to receive a proper education, earn and living, and contribute to Bangladesh which continues to generously host them.

What is a refugee?
Article 1 of the Convention defines a refugee as “A person who is outside his/her country of nationality or habitual residence; has a well-founded fear of persecution because of his/her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political nationality, opinion; and is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country, or to return there, for fear of persecution.

There are 42 million uprooted people across the world today, of which 15.2 million are refugees and asylum seekers, according to the United Nations High Commission for Refuges (UNHCR). The global credit crunch and recession means nothing to them. For them, a domicile could mean a small hut, a bamboo shed, a corner or the street, or even the roads. It is believed that nearly 15, 000 people are displaced everyday from homes. Despite these people seem to have in common I hope- that one day they will return to place called HOME.
– Vijayshree Sunkhani - The Kathmandu Post, 21 June 2009.

“As a photographer, I toured the camps in search of sadness but found hope. I searched for photogenic misery but found bright eyes and easy smiles. I searched for fatalism but found a vibrant community. I looked for loneliness but dound friendship. In Beldangi, I came across a wedding. Life carried on here. ” — Ashok R. Shakya, Photographer.

Sher Zaman, 50, squeezed 10 people into his LPG-powered auto-rickshaw on his flight from Swat Valley to the city of Mardan. The vehicle usually carries five, including its driver. Sher Zaman now stays in the tent city of Skeikh Yassin, Pakistan, where more than 15,000 refugees are living. Photo: Edwin Koo.

Years of brutal conflict take their toll on an elderly women (left frame) in Mugunga, west of Goma. Photo: Christian Als.

Women in the traditional hijab queue up for medicine at a dispensary in Shah Mansoor camp, Swabi, Pakistan. Many refugees suffer from diarrhea and heat-related illnesses as they fail to adapt to life in the sun-baked Plaines. Photo: Edwin Koo.

Pictures in the Exhibition are by: Ashok R. Shakya, Kari Collins, Kashish Das Shrestha, NayanTara Gurung Kakshapati, Edwin Koo, Zalmai, Christian Als, Saiful Huq Omi, John Lehmann, James Giambrone and H.E. Nancy Powell

Have your verdict on this snapshot by Puspa Shrestha.
Good or bad? Like it or loathe it? Try some riddle of photography.
Your verdicts could be one of ‘3 Best Verdicts’.

The Aim of this series:

1. To help viewers to view picture in a photographic perspective.
2. To help aspiring, hobbyist, or amateur photographer to have constructive feedback on their work.
3. To create an interactive platform for everyone who are fond of photography here in EU.
4. To motivate viewers to make constructive comment.

If you have some best ‘Snapshot’ email us at euvv@everestuncensored.org and get other EU Viewer’s Verdict to learn photography. Please attach only one picture in JPEG format per email and include your full name and write which type of camera, where and why you took the photo. Please maintain the size of your picture at good resolution for better viewing. And yes don’t forget to name your snapshot (caption).

Every snapshot in this series gets Shutterbug’s constructive comment to enhance your photography skill. This will be publish in next month’s Shutterbug: EU Viewer’s Verdict series.