Women in La Habana

[Inkanyezi]

Hi Urban

Sorry to hear you got dengue fever, and am glad you're recovering. I didn't see Santiago, as my trip was too short. Hopefully I'll get back there before too long and spend more time there.

Tony

There are Iberia flights to Santiago from Barajas, by far the easiest way to get there. Santiago is very different from La Habana, people there say: "Santiago no es una ciudad, Santiago es una aldea." (Santiago isn't a city, Santiago is a village.)

The process of tidying up the mess that's gone on for 50+ years has already started in Santiago. Before long, the dilapidation will become invisible.

[Manfred M]

Very nice shots, Tony...So going on the conversation between Manfred and Mike, I would presume you have relations in Cuba. We all know that Urban does...My favourites are #1 and #3 for all the reasons already stated -- I like the conversions too, #2 is a little bit too dark for me.

Actually Izzie, the embargo is USA only. Anyone else can visit Cuba without any restrictions. If you live elsewhere and don't have US citizenship, you can go. In the winter the place is full of Canadian and European citizens looking for an inexpensive "fun in the sun" break.

I've been to Cuba three times, but haven't been there in almost 10 years.

[Manfred M]

The problem is that Americans without family in Cuba can't legally go there on their own except in one rather extreme situation that even then requires for practical reasons knowing someone there who can help them find places to stay. That's the only situation that Americans are legally allowed to determine their own itinerary. In all of the other situations the itinerary must be part of a tour group and the daily itinerary must be pre-approved by the U.S. to comply with certain highly rigid criteria having to do with participation in programmed cultural exchange.

As far as I know, there is no another country in the world with such strong travel restrictions imposed upon Americans by America. North Korea might be another country but I'm not sure.

The political power of the Cuban exiles in Southern Florida comes through. I've seen a number of photo workshops done in Havana and wonder if these would qualify as cultural tours. I suspect the best legal alternative would be to be on the first plane when the embargo comes down and before the money pours in to "update" the infrastructure and American car collectors snap up the vintage cars that are still running there.

[Shadowman]

Lots of articles related to the eventual change, just read one titled "Where to Drink in Havana Before it Becomes Margaritaville".

[Donald]

Lots of articles related to the eventual change, just read one titled "Where to Drink in Havana Before it Becomes Margaritaville".

Same on this side of the pond. All the travel articles in newspapers etc are saying that now is the time to go if you want to see the Cuba that we have all come to know since the excessive and unfair sanctions imposed on it over the last decades. It will become unrecognisable. And, as always, it will be the poorest who lose out the most as big money, which is only interested in big money, comes pouring in.

Brilliant pictures.

[rachel]

Go to http://www.tony.marshall.name/life-in-la-habana to see some more.

Somne great photos there. I have just accepted a job in Cuba for the next school year - very excited and will spend some time this weekend having a better look at these.

[Mike Buckley]

The political power of the Cuban exiles in Southern Florida comes through.

That political power is rapidly waning, which explains why the embargo was recently eased. The Cuban-Americans who are my age were exiles as children and their families lost everything when they exiled. (I went to Miami High school, which was about 95% Cuban.) Most of the people in that generation want the embargo continued because they are still very bitter about everything Castro did then and has done all these decades. The later generations of the exiled families feel less strongly about that; the more recently a generation was born, the less that generation desires to have the embargo continued. In other words, time more than anything else is decaying the political power in favor of continuing the embargo.

[DEAN01]

Great series. Your captures reveal the dignity of the subjects.

[Tony M]

I would encourage everyone to “view the images large” to fully appreciate the tonal register and texture.
...

Thanks William for your detailed comments. They're all useful and interesting.

I’d be interested to know your aims (your “final vision”) for the task of re-processing these image files - or is it that you do not have any particular aim for the images but rather you just want to see what the new software can do?

I don't have a final vision: I first want to see what it can do. I've already used it on other kinds of photos and would like it to be my main tool for B&W.

And regarding the shutter speed: it was definitely too low. I usually do landscape or architecture photos, and shutter speed isn't as critical for sharpness (unless there's enough wind). Fortunately these subjects were still while shooting!

Regards

Tony

[Tony M]

Great images Tony. Havana is always a place I've wanted to go, but have never quite managed to get there as something has always gotten in the way.

Your images do have that classical "street photography" look, other than perhaps the #2 which has more of a portrait feel to it. Is there any particular reason you decided to go B&W instead of colour, as I find the beautifully painted walls in doors of that part of the world particularly interesting elements for photographs?

Thanks Manfred.

I think that B&W really captures the run-down appearance of the area. I found that the colour detracted from that. Some other photos I took really do look good in colour or B&W, and I may post a couple for comparison on a new thread.

Tony

[Tony M]

Lots of interesting comments about travel to Cuba in this thread.

I would presume you have relations in Cuba. We all know that Urban does...My favourites are #1 and #3 for all the reasons already stated -- I like the conversions too, #2 is a little bit too dark for me.

Izzie, I don't have family there. I travelled on a British passport (I also have a New Zealand one) and so I only needed a visa. Citizens of the USA are the unlucky ones.

That political power is rapidly waning, which explains why the embargo was recently eased. The Cuban-Americans who are my age were exiles as children and their families lost everything when they exiled. (I went to Miami High school, which was about 95% Cuban.) Most of the people in that generation want the embargo continued because they are still very bitter about everything Castro did then and has done all these decades. The later generations of the exiled families feel less strongly about that; the more recently a generation was born, the less that generation desires to have the embargo continued. In other words, time more than anything else is decaying the political power in favor of continuing the embargo.

I hadn't thought of it like that; I wondered why the Americans were so dead-set on continuing the embargo for so long. I talked to Cubans whose older relatives had benefitted from the appropriation of properties and other assets. However, like the younger generation of US citizens, the younger Cubans also want relations with the USA to thaw. I also think it's time to put the past in the past. The Cubans I spoke to seem to acknowledge that their political system isn't working, although some are still proud of their past and their education and health systems. But there are so many people sitting around in the streets doing nothing that I wonder how they survive.

I made this trip to Cuba because I thought that the warming relations with the USA would soon change the place. There are already lots of foreign tourists there, and I wanted to see it before many more turned up (no offence - I do like the Americans!). Now is definitely a good time to go!

Tony

[William W]

. . .Thanks William for your detailed comments. They're all useful and interesting.


I don't have a final vision: I first want to see what it can do. I've already used it on other kinds of photos and would like it to be my main tool for B&W.

Ta. Understood. Good idea.

And regarding the shutter speed: it was definitely too low. I usually do landscape or architecture photos

You mentioned that Street Portraiture was outside your norm of experience: but it was obvious to me that you were experienced behind a Camera - those two reasons were specifically why I mentioned Shutter Speed even though I saw no Subject Movement . . . it is very disappointing to realize one has made that fundamental error, well for me it is and it still happens occasionally due to tiredness or small lapse of thought.

WW

[Mike Buckley]

I wondered why the Americans were so dead-set on continuing the embargo for so long.

Florida has long been a state that can make the difference between winning or losing a presidential election. The area in Florida that has the single largest population is also the area that has the most Cuban-Americans. So, the politicians in both parties have largely bent to the Cuban-Americans who wanted to continue the embargo for fear that if they didn't their party would lose a presidential election. That perhaps partly explains why the embargo was first eased during the final term of Obama's presidency; he wouldn't be allowed to run again so he perhaps felt personally less at risk by easing the embargo.

It's interesting to me that a former governor of Florida and a current Senator of Florida are presidential candidates, yet the policy about the embargo has never become an election issue, at least not that I know of. I wonder if that's because there are simply fewer and fewer Cuban-Americans who feel so strongly about continuing the embargo. Even so, it might become more of an issue when we get close to the Florida primary election that helps decide who the two presidential nominees will be. That election takes place March 15.