Farmer's wife, a photo from Tashkent, East

Photographer's Note

I haven’t posted a portrait for a while so today I am posting this photograph of a country woman taken on the steps of Chorsu Bazaar, one of the largest farmers’ markets in Tashkent. The woman was standing in front of some enamel bowls filled with tomatoes and cucumbers – which I assume were from her own farm or vegetable garden. Although most of the produce is sold inside the market from stalls that are numbered and no doubt subject to some government procedure of allocation, many people line up around the steps and alongside the pathways outside of the market to sell small quantities of vegetables. The farmers’ markets are held in many different parts of Tashkent, and each day the farmers send their wives into town to sell what produce they can. About 60 percent of Uzbekistan’s population still lives in rural areas.

Many of the farmers’ wives wear these brightly coloured coats made of a velvet-like fabric, with a headscarf – I suppose you could call this their ‘traditional dress.’ The fabrics are very gaudy, but perhaps that is a way of brightening up their lives in Uzbekistan which is still a very poor country. Most of the population (88%) are Muslim, so many women wear headscarves, but their dress looks more like 1960s Russian style than Islamic.

I tried cropping this much tighter, but I decided to leave it in this square format so that more of the coat could be seen – because I felt that the gaudy coat was as much a highlight of this composition as the portrait.

Usual PP: cropped, adjusted levels, contrast, saturation and USM.

yazdi, Philippe, cjmm, don_narayan, gaby, capthaddock, richtersl, ChrisJ, vincent24, Didi, Luan, Schultzy, cpolus, Mistral, aralda, jkos, MLINES, david, hispic, sergie, Albrecht, ewasting, salvator, gmg, ruisc_pt, henrytf, kri54, orme, batalay, Fiddlee, gonzalezcheryl, vishaal heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

sebautourdumond (3108) 2005-12-15 11:37

Hi davis,
Thanks for your note. I like colors, composition with this beautil women and others women on the background.
Well done
Seb

yazdi (460) 2005-12-15 12:00

Hi David;
A beautiful shot with beautiful woman and beautiful composition ...well done.
Regards!
Jamal

Philippe (11836) 2005-12-15 12:06

Hello, David. A very sharp portrait full of vivid colours. The people in the background make it very lively. Good DOF. And an interesting note.

Gerrit (62042) 2005-12-15 12:14

Hi David,
intruiging portrait. I wonder what she's doing or thinking. Is she talking to someone right next to her?
Very special clothing for a farmers wife indeed.

Thanks and regards, Gerrit

cjmm (4479) 2005-12-15 12:26

Hi David,

Very nice and strong image. Beyond technical aspects (which I find flawless) you captured the moment very well.

It makes think that I would not have liked to be in the famer's skin if his wife was waiting for him like this :-) !

You captured the expression in the precise second!!

Liked a lot your note, too.
Regards,
Carlos

don_narayan (2014) 2005-12-15 13:28

Hi David. A beautiful portrait of a beautiful woman. the colors are great, the natural expression is very nice and great DoF. nice job... I would love to see more of your Uzbekistan photos.

Narayan

gaby (19819) 2005-12-15 14:31

David bonsoir - "que c'est beau" - beautiful woman, great DOF and superb tones : this is perfect my friend - I like a lot for my favorites -
Thanks
Rgs
Gaby

Drzoana (1122) 2005-12-15 14:41

Very interesting expression on this woman's face. It demands attention! However, I am not sure if I'd crop the hand. I think it is an important part of her posture/body expression.
rgds
Joanna

aloyho (6798) 2005-12-15 20:26

Hi David,
Indeed a lovely portrait with the perfect DOF which focused our attention to the lady. I like your capture of her facial expression which is unique. You are right about her coat adn it played its role beautifully here. Well done!! Have an exciting day.

bpelvan (3798) 2005-12-16 0:33

Hello David,
A good portrait. The self confidence of the woman can easily be felt here. Very sharp, well composed colorful image with wonderful shallow DoF.
Good job. Thanks for sharing...
Regards
Bulent

kensimage (8563) 2005-12-16 1:33

She looks like an Uzbek farmer's dream--strong, sturdy and tough, yet attractive. (Just don't cross her!) You caught the decisive moment with that expression for sure, David. The framing is great, definitely no more cropping needed.

No headhunter jokes this time.

Regards, Ken.

saamb (1008) 2005-12-16 2:28

i see nice colores by "Nikon D100", and your good composition, choose, and note. thanks

capthaddock (28790) 2005-12-16 12:59

Hi David - fantastic portrait, the expression and the colouful coat are wonderful, I'm glad you didn't crop it out, and the people in the back also look like they are in traditional dress, something not typical of my experience in Tashkent, but I did not go out of the russian city centre and only spent a day there.

richtersl (3546) 2005-12-16 18:09

Very good DOF, David! I'm glad you left the gaudy coat in the composition. That and the clashing scarf do show her attempt at brightening up her life.

PixelTerror (0) 2005-12-17 5:29

HI David,
Nice portrqit this woman stands out very well thanks to the DoF and her colorful clothing, colors are vivid qnd details excellent, I don't know exactly why but I'm not too fond of her arm's position, not so bad I like the photo seen as a whole.
Have a nice week end,
Jean-Yves

fadingstar78 (420) 2005-12-20 12:40

perfect focus, great portrait. interesting note... I love the coulours of the clothes!!!

sergio1 (12152) 2005-12-21 12:41

Hola david
Genail este primer plano llebo de color y con una gran definición.
buen trabajo
Regards and Merry Christmas
Sergio

ChrisJ (171822) 2005-12-22 3:57

Hi David

Wonderful use of a narrow dof with good sharpness. The vibrant color of the costume is exceptional & really grabs attention. Well done!

poulinp (4528) 2005-12-22 7:09

Hello David. I like much this portrait. The face is very clear and she is very pretty. Moreover, coloured clothing adds much to the photograph.
Good DOF too. Good work!

vincent24 (9060) 2005-12-27 15:49

Hi David,
Technicaly close to perfection i especialy like her face expression and the details we can see,sure she was also a good subject with the colorful coat she wear,
good job,thanks for sharing,
vincent

keribar (43841) 2005-12-30 0:30

Hello David,

Looks like a simple one but I can assure viewers it is not easy to get such a strong picture with assets such as the look of the women and the other elements so well scattered around. The DOF is also excellent. Congratulations on this one and all the pretty other pictrue syou sent us during this year.

Happy 2006 yopurs friendly - Izzet

jbweasle (9393) 2006-01-02 4:00

Hello David, this is a wonderfully colourful and detailed portrait. I like the angle of her head and expression on her face - you have caught her in a natural working pose. Godd off-centre composition and good use of shallow DOF.

elmec (12210) 2006-01-02 13:47

Hello David!
Her face is so expressiv!
The colors and composition are great!
Very good work!
I like it very much!
Regards!

Didi (61589) 2006-01-15 14:32

Bonjour David
Une capture instantannée du visage de cette femme qui semble pas très contente.
Je note que le portrait est parfaitement isolé de l'arrière-plan.

Hello David
An instantaneous capture of the face of this woman who does not seem very content. I note that the portrait is isolated perfectly from the background

Luan (12971) 2006-01-19 8:03

Hello David,
Lol, I can imagine what she was thinking ;o), nice shot, you have caught such a nice expression.
Excellent portrait, the low DoF make us focus on the subject and on these lovely colors.
Well seen
Luan

Schultzy (5446) 2006-01-21 4:33

Hello David,
That's a great shot !
I like this very expressive face. Perfect composition and DOF. The colors of the clothes are really nice.
Well done,
Have a good week-end !

cpolus (187) 2006-01-21 5:41

I think you have captured her in a good moment. She has a very strong expression in her face. Good note! I like having background info and the thoughts of the photographer when taking this shot. I also like the women in the background that you can see from behind, as in contrast to that the woman in front is frontal. I think this is a very interesting shot that tells stories.

Mistral (15416) 2006-01-21 7:39

Hi David,
like very much colours, composition and note with technical details of your image,
Good use of DoF too!
A smile
Luca

aralda (1240) 2006-01-24 12:01

Hello David,
Quite a successful portrait you've got here. I like her headscarf and the way you can see two other headscarves in the back.
Your note is also helpful. One can make out velvety quality of her coat in your image.
Thank you for sharing,
Raluca

jkos (981) 2006-01-30 6:54

Great colors. I like the expresion at the woman's face. Very good use of DOF!
TFS,
Joel

MLINES (12516) 2006-01-31 1:51

Excellent capture of a far away place. Having not been there, it is most interesting to see your photo and read the story about what goes on there. Fit for a Lonley Planet guide. Well done.

BlaiseCendrars (0) 2006-02-05 6:47

Hello David,
I remember these colourful women very well from Uzbekistan. You have presented this one in a perfect fashion - her detail, colours and, especially, expression on the face are spot on.
Great work!
Thanks and best regards,
Chris

david (3992) 2006-02-16 8:00

amazing colours david. i really feel drawn into this shot ... and it tells an interesting story. nice dof!

the only thing that is disappointing is that we can't see what she's doing with her hand ...

hispic (9658) 2006-04-15 4:30

Hello David,
This portrait has fascinated me for a long time.
A reason might be brightly colour of coats made of a velvet-like fabric, but I like the expression of the beautiful woman with no make-up.
Great work!
Cheers,
Hisashi

veronika (6058) 2006-05-27 11:42

Hello David,
this picture is between my favourites for a longer time already and comment comes just today (shame on me:)
I was thinking too much what to write here, but still i have on my mind the same two words: "woman power" :))
- that was first and last thing what i thought when i saw the farmers wife and her face :)
Great portrait, rich in colours, i love!
Nice weekend,
Vero

sabyasachi1212 (19779) 2006-06-30 11:44

Hi David,
I like seeing more and more portraits on TE. This must rank somewhere in the very top of the portraits I have seen on this site. Excellent composure of this woman. She may be a farmer's wife but she seems to carry herself with certain dignity.
With Greetings from India
Sabyasachi

eloisa (186) 2006-07-24 4:16

excellent picture! i agree with you, the yellow of the coat and the drawings... are simply fabulous.

aydindoruk (167) 2006-08-05 11:37

really, very nice photo and very beatiful ozbek woman

kvananthnaag (487) 2006-09-02 19:45

She's taking somone to task!!! nice pretty face..witha questioning look..good one :)

paulalex32 (4) 2006-11-10 13:23

I really like this shot. The woman has a natural beauty that you captured very well and I believe the colours of her clothing offset the serious look on her face. It's a great capture.

Albrecht (11283) 2006-11-10 13:29

Hi David
Nice and good portrait using DOF anmd POV very well/ The colourful clothes as contrast to the woman in the BG are well placed. Very good job you did here.
grs.Albrecht

Ulishna (2268) 2007-01-09 4:17

Wonderful work, David.
So many strong colors and very impressive woman's face.
Julia

ramthakur (1559) 2007-02-20 12:32

This highlighted picture of yours on the home page drew my attention like a magnet, David.
I am an irregular visitor to TE now and look at it only occasionally.
Your portrait of this Uzbek woman is just marvellous. My God, what realistic rendition of colours, skin texture and other details! It is unbelievable.
Moreover, this woman has a personality which you have brought out very successfully in this classy portraiture.
I am looking for a lens for my D200 in the same range and I guess I would go for it, though it is the man behind the lens and not the lens itself that matters :-)!
Best regards,
Ram

ruisc_pt (11594) 2007-02-20 13:00

Fantastic lite and vivid colors. Very interesting note.
TFS

salvator (19110) 2007-02-21 3:33

Hi David,
Your photo is so typical of Uzbek women, where I have spent almost a year and a half. The portrait, with her bright colored dress and the look is really magical. The blurry background and the clear foreground makes this a textbook portrait, and my God is it nice.
Best regards. Salvator.
I'll be back tomorrow.

kri54 (1515) 2007-03-20 16:53

quelles couleurs, quelle netteté alors que l'arrière plan est tendre et flou, j'adore

orme (7219) 2007-03-23 1:35

This is a great portrait shot, David, with an excellent depth of field. The expression on the woman's face is priceless. Beautiful colours too. Well captured.

batalay (41261) 2007-04-01 10:21

Hello David,

This is a most sympathetic, lovely and hardy personality you've captured. I love the proximity of her right eye (on the left side) so close to thhe vertical centerline. It would have been difficult to put it right on the line, considering her right arm sticks out, indeed beautifully. The asymmetry works perfectly. It is also good that she is not interacting with the camera, but just deep in thought. The colors and definition are superb!

Warm regards,

Bulent

nata (488) 2007-05-15 5:56

This is a very beautiful picture. I like it a lot.

kokanasth79 (18) 2007-05-28 23:44 [Comment]

Show Comment

ykumar (45) 2007-08-06 10:00

Beautiful colours. Excellent Depth of Field. Overall superb.

Dyerco (10185) 2007-08-06 10:01

Great exposure and nice and sharp. Was this a vertical when you shot it? If so it would have been nice to see the hand. Portraiture people always suggest that appendages should not be cut off at the elbows or wrists and / or knees or ankles. The background is nicely out of focus but we would not know what she is doing if it wasn't for the write up (which was excellent by the way)

Phil

archimatica (20648) 2007-08-06 10:13

Hi David.
Maximum impact!
Regards
Renzo

figenya (2852) 2009-12-09 1:54

Hi David,

I must say, I believe there are moments which seems ordinary but which creates miracles, this one is a good example for that. Her body language, her selfconfidence and face expression all are marvellous.
Cheers to you...

I also liked your intro:) Light and composition: right

Regards

figen

bloublou (144) 2010-04-08 7:52

nice portrait, full of colors and expressions