Unhappy Girl at Bac Ha Market
Viet Nam 2005
H’mong women lined the road leading to the main market. They sat with their bundles, some selling, but most waiting for a family member to help them carry their heavy burdens back home. A not-photogenic woman sat next to this girl and ruined my shot. Thanks to Photoshop, I could erase the woman and now I have my sad-faced girl in her beautiful costume wearing her cute MaryJane shoes.
I had looked forward to Bac Ha market. But the H’mong were not keen on being photographed. They are mountain people and suspicious of strangers. This girl was not aware of my camera. I’d been rebuffed by others and decided to be surreptitious with my shots.
I used Alien Skin Exposure X to get this wanna-be infrared look. It’s one of my “recipes”. It doesn’t work on every shot but here it makes her large eyes stand out.
Here’s the shot in modified color. Her dress was a bright red but I added a yellow filter to give it a retro look.
Bac Ha Girl