Hamoudi Pouring Tea
Morocco 1997
Hamoudi, a Berber nomad, pours tea for me and my guide. His tent was about ten miles from Merzouga. This was back when Merzouga was nothing but a group of mud houses, no running water, no paved streets.
The light was perfect inside the tent and that made this photo easy to print. But I show you a harsh contrast version, just because I can. My photography teacher would not like this version. No detail in the whites or blacks. But it does have drama and it changes Hamoudi’s expression to a rather fierce gaze.
Hamoudi Pours Tea: Full spectrum grayscale
I visited Hamoudi and his family many times over the years and learned that they carried on the old ways, crossing borders at will to buy or raid camels. It was their way of life and had been for centuries. Laws and borders meant little to them.
Rosemary, What I found interesting about this photo is that the subject is looking pretty much at the photographer and still is able to very neatly pour out the tea into the glass without giving it much attention. I know how that would turn out if I attempted it. Jerry
Hi, Jerry. He had never had his photo taken before and was fascinated by the camera. The next year, when I returned and gave him some prints, he took them to the side of the tent and studied them, exclaiming, “Ah, Hamoudi!” To him it was a miracle.
Best, Rosemary