• Overview
  • Commissioned
  • Personal
  • Climate Heroes
  • Video
  • Contact
  • All
  • Work & Behind-the-Scene
  • Engineer & Photographer
  • Travel & Adventure
  • Vision
Previous Post
Next Post
Travel & Adventure

The Mentawai 2/3 – Portraits

July 28 – First portraits with Papak Kerei
The next morning I woke up early to follow the father Papak Kerei in the Jungle to check on some chickens he was keeping in another place by the river. Waking up at 6 am and jumping into your shoes to follow a Mentawai literally flying on the trunks laid down in the mud and across deep ditches and waterholes without breaking your neck while keeping up to speed with him is quite a stressful experience!

 

Blog_Max_Riche-15
Preparing Sagu for the chicken. Sagu is grated from the tree “Sagu” and is the universal basis for food, both for livestock and the everyday meals.

After what we came back to the Uma, and I started the first shoot with him as the sun was rising. Emma and Petrus, our Mentawai assistant, helped me nail this first session down and we continued with a second shoot, in his canoe by the river. Papak Kerei was quite amused at all the equipment I had to take out, and he was obviously enjoying himself as an actor in front of the camera, giving me threatening looks, and faking to threaten me with his machete. We had a good time taking the pictures with him.

 

Blog_Max_Riche-28
Setting up the scene

 

Blog_Max_Riche-25
Making some adjustments with Petrus for the diffuser and speedlights

 

Blog_Max_Riche-23 Blog_Max_Riche-28 Blog_Max_Riche-32

Good fun shooting with Papak Kerei

We then followed him in the forest to get the proper material to make the traditional tribe loincloths. We also stopped on the way to collect worms (called “Tamara”), which you can choose to eat alive or fire roasted…

Later this day the mother went out to catch fish in the river, so we followed her and it was a good move to bring my equipment as I could get a couple of shots of her in the river bed.

 

Blog_Max_Riche-17
Tamara, or big fat worms that you chew alive.. yummy isn’t it?

 

Blog_Max_Riche-37
The mother fishing in the river

 

Blog_Max_Riche-29 Blog_Max_Riche-39
Loincloths drying on a rope. This traditional wear is gotten straight from peeling the bark from one particular essence of tree

July 29 – Rorogot to Badosap
The next day we set off to Badosap, the second Uma where we would stay for the rest of the time. We started trekking in a beautiful forest, and it soon started to rain heavily. A few hours later, after a low and slippery progress due to the mud and covered in leeches, we arrived in Badosap and were welcome by the father and the mother, Pange and Teo Pange. We washed from the mud. I went out to explore the vicinity and spotted another tribe members cutting petty wood in the jungle. I called our guide and we went to meet this neighbor in preparation for a photo shoot the next morning.

The end of the day was rainy too, and we had to hope for a clearing for the next morning, looking at pigs and chickens eating their only and universal meal: sagu, right below the house.

 

Blog_Max_Riche-40 Blog_Max_Riche-41

Blog_Max_Riche-36

Pig skulls kept in the house to remember the spirit of the animals

Share this:
  • An invitation to vote Part II: ad for Nutella!
    Read more
    in Work & Behind-the-Scene 0 comments
  • Amazing long exposure photographs from Space
    Don Pettit is an astronaut, and a passionate photographer. He is the co author Read more
    in Travel & Adventure 0 comments
  • The Rock Warrior Way applied to Arts and Startups
    Read more
    in Engineer & Photographer 1 comments

Leave a Comment! Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Climate Heroes
Instagram
Load More...
Popular posts
  • Review of the Fuji X-E2: moving away from the "predator" photographer Review of the Fuji X-E2: moving away from the "predator" photographer under Vision
  • Hiking Patagonia - Part I: Fitz Roy, Argentina Hiking Patagonia – Part I: Fitz Roy, Argentina under Travel & Adventure
  • Testing out the new Broncolor Move 1200L Testing out the new Broncolor Move 1200L under Work & Behind-the-Scene
  • Hiking Patagonia – Part II: Torres del Paine, Chile Hiking Patagonia – Part II: Torres del Paine, Chile under Travel & Adventure
  • Revive your old analog camera: RE-35 project Revive your old analog camera: RE-35 project under Engineer & Photographer
SING UP FOR THE NEWSLETTER
Receive thought-provoking news on the photography world, updates on projects and latest work -- will keep the frequency adequate.
* = required field
Subscribe to Blog Articles
Max Riché - Blog
Archives
Copyright © 2018 Max Riché. By using this site you agree to the Terms of use.