A Chiang Mai Market Salesman

14 Replies

Salesman, Chiang Mai

While exploring one of the night markets in Chiang Mai I spotted this chap watching over his stall. Or perhaps he is half asleep! It’s hard to tell. Sometimes you get lucky with photography, and this was one of those unplanned moments that I just had to capture. Even if it was a fleeting, sneaky snap!

There are so many things I love about this scene it’s hard to know where to start. The posture, the wooly hat, the facial expression and the less obvious bare foot paint such a vivid picture of this man’s character. And the light source coming into shot from the right worked wonderfully.

I really enjoyed trying some street photography while visiting Thailand last year. Maybe it’s because everything seemed so foreign to me, but there were just so many interesting subjects in every direction. I don’t have the same feeling at all when exploring Europe, but I wish I could recreate it somehow. Wouldn’t that be great?!

14 thoughts on “A Chiang Mai Market Salesman”

    1. Ben Post author

      Thanks Eden. I always struggle with street photography! But this was one of the few shots I got that day which turned out alright.

      Reply ↓
  2. kazg10

    Great portrait of a weary vendor! I looked to my left and saw leather bags and it reminded me of my frenzy in Chiang Mai markets. They were still open at about 2am and I was still there amongst all the leather handbags…. I needed them to close so I could go back to my hotel. I was mesmerized!

    Reply ↓
    1. Ben Post author

      Thanks! Haha, I know what you mean. There is just so much going on in every direction, you never know what you might find! And the night time makes it that bit more exciting too.

      Reply ↓
    1. Ben Post author

      Thanks Marc, glad you agree with the B&W choice. It’s not something I do very often but every now and then in post-processing it just jumps out at me. Especially with street shots it seems, I’m not sure why that is.

      Reply ↓
  4. Jess Carey

    Amazing shot 🙂 and I agree with you that the street photography in Thailand (Asia, really) is so different to what you can get in Europe.. it’s so raw and beautiful.. keep them coming!

    Reply ↓
    1. Ben Post author

      Thanks Jess. Actually I think raw is the perfect word to describe it, and perhaps that’s what makes it beautiful. Great insight! 🙂

      Reply ↓
    1. Ben Post author

      Thanks Judie, you can really find some great lighting at night time. Although it presents a very different challenge to natural light!

      Reply ↓

Leave a comment