Splashy Fen

I was a little apprehensive on my way up to Splashy Fen. I had not been to the music festival held in the Drakensberg mountains since 1999. The tent was packed, the tins of curried vegetables rattled behind my seat on the dusty roads and the prediction of rain heavy on my mind.

I have had so much fun. All of the excuses I have made for being out of touch with music seemed silly! The music on the whole has been amazing and varied. Last night Cape Town band Bed on Bricks fronted by Mike Hardy (pictured above) cooked. I am sad to say having lived in Cape Town until recently, this was the first time I have seen the band.

It has been great to get back to my other passion which is music and make photographs in the same instance. And next year I'll be back.

A wing and a prayer

For one reason or other I have been doing some thinking on death over the last month. And then I found this picture which I had filed away and not edited. I nearly let it slip by without seeing the light of day.

This picture and a few other coincidences have left me thinking that life lived honestly and completely is beautiful once that same life has gone.

I am not ready to go yet though. And I am not afraid.

Mannequin holding cell

This scene tweaked my sense of humour. I had to make the picture. I have seen mannequins abused in pictures before, but this was too good an opportunity to pass by.

To be honest I have little to say. I just wanted to post this new photograph.

I have had a lot of time to think lately. Work is coming in slowly but surely, and I am looking for some good projects to sink my teeth into. Much of the work I have been doing is of bread-and-butter variety, and is not what got me to pick up a camera.

And then you see something that has almost no relevance to the job at hand. In between the speeches and handshake a moment you hope to do justice to when you fire the shutter.

Look for it, because it is usually there.

A New Chapter

This is start of a new chapter. I have finally left my job and have made the move across the country to KwaZulu Natal. The choice was easy to make as this is what I really want to do, but also difficult because I had a good job on the newspaper and we were in a comfort zone.

Moving the furniture and the cats, driving twice to get both cars here and all the other unplanned obstacles and has finally ed. We are living in a small country town between Pietermaritzburg (KZNs capital) and Durban (KZNs biggest city) and I do not miss the traffic, shopping centres or the wind.

So what is it I am going to be doing? I am going to be doing more social documentary work wich is the reason I started photographing in the first instant. I feel that I am ready for the next challenge and that is to make my dream job my real work. I will also be freelancing, hoping to do more editorial work and less corporate work.

Although I am taking a break I have been doing a little work on the annual Shembe pilgrimage. Tens of thousands of pilgrims dressed in white walk for three days to a holy mountain where they spend nearly two weeks praying and dancing. It is fascinating to witness and will make for great AV shows when I get the gear.

Getting to the point

I have about seven working days to go in Cape Town before I join my family in kwaZulu Natal where we are starting from scratch. I have been a little pensive lately as I am not moving to a job but will freelance in a place we have been away from for close on seven years. I am a little nervous to say the least.

It is at a time like this when inspiration in some form is needed, and mine came in the form of a little girl called Zintle Ndindwa who turns three years old today. During a dance workshop for which she was too small to be a part of, she showed the most incredible interest. She loved just being there! Thanks for reminding me that sometimes it is good enough just being there Zintle.

And so I look ahead to our relocation wondering what lessons there are to be learnt, and from which incredible teachers those lessons will come.

On the road

A curious find from along our travels. A book shop window with Nelson Mandela's book sitting next to Magnus Malan's in Plettenberg Bay.

Thanks to Candy and Zane for the place to stay and great company.