Moochin Photoman
Iron Market food hall
The main reason for my trip here is to document the market to produce a book. I’m spending around 3-4 hours a day here and for security reasons we are mixing up the times I do spend here…keep em guessing by never showing up at the same time.
I gave out some 6×4 prints last week and have more to be given out today. This has helped me to get the portraits and to gain trust and acceptance from the stall holders. The craic has been mighty I have to say.
I’ve photographed around a third of the stall holders so far and continue to do so but one of the things I’m also trying to do is to portray the market as is in candid unposed shots much like this one. The traders seems to understand this and i have been by and large able to get more of the candid shots. Lurking as the only white fella in the building is not such an easy thing but I am fairly happy with the results to date.
I have met a few foreign workers who have been shall we say more than a little disparaging about the Haitians, calling them lazy, sleeping all day. What they do not seem to realise is that people do get up before sunrise to travel to work or to get the goods to sell, so if they want to have a nap during the hottest part of the day who can blame them.
I do struggle to understand the mentality of some folks who travel to foreign countries and fail to try to grasp even a rudimentary understanding of how the country ticks. I have heard the phrase “these people” a couple of times…..I have bitten my tongue and not responded. I suppose traveling to work overseas is a purely monetary thing for some. Sadly knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing is a worldwide thing. As is ignorance.
Editor’s Note: Text by the photographer.
Blog photograph copyrighted to the photographer and used with permission by utata.org. All photographs used on utata.org are stored on flickr.com and are obtained via the flickr API. Text is copyrighted to the author, jamelah and is used with permission by utata.org. Please see Show and Share Your Work
