Untitled Fluidity: Wandering

Untitled Fluidity is an ongoing column that aims to give insight into the creative process I work through while shaping, defining and producing a long term photo essay. My principal intent is to offer the viewer both an educational resource and inspirational tool to motivate one's self to get out there and simply create. 

Let me start by stating that projects, in general, always begin with an idea. We all have ideas, both good and bad, but most of us never get off the couch or out from behind our desktop to get a move on and make them happen. As a photographer I'm just as guilty of this as anybody from any line of work. All too often I sit around with my homies and talk trash all day long about my next Magnum opus. Then I sleep...

Ah man, what to do? 

I'll tell you, grab your expensive geeked out photo-j camera with that new fancy fixed lens and sit back down on the couch. No, but really, grab your phone, no I mean camera, wait aren't they one in the same these days? Ok, whatever the case, grab your weapon of choice and get out the damn door. Don't wait to win the next highly coveted grant so you can spend the money you made from your last winnings, just get out that door. 

Ok, so hopefully you're not reading this anymore because you're now staring at your favorite dish of food at the local Mexican dive as you procrastinate to go start your opus. If you are staring at your plate go ahead and snap a photo with the latest photo app and post it on Instagram. This act will give you a head start in the race as your peers and other professional photo-j intellectuals will waste time debating if its ethical or not to use filters on news photos, blah, blah, bladidity blah blah. 

For me, Untitled Fluidity, is aptly named. Essentially it is my pet project and more than likely not my opus. Like a lot of my personal projects, once I get out the door I just start to wander around with no real purpose other than to have fun. Well that and to have a justifiable excuse to leave the dull glare of my 27'' iMac, iPad and Macbook Pro. Yeah, I'm a walking cliche of photo-geekdom - more of that another day. 

Anyway, yesterday I did just this. I started a new project. My goal is to hit the streets of Portsmouth, VA and meet my community. Let me back track here, I grew up for the most part in an area referred to by the locals as the Seven Cities. Of those seven I grew up in Virginia Beach and Norfolk. I never really knew much about Portsmouth. It's sort of always been treated like a step-child by the other six cities. It's an armpit of a town, at least in many eyes. Personally, I really don't know much about Portsmouth, hence my new project.  

Now that I'm a grown up and own a home in Portsmouth I thought it was about time I actually found out what this city was/is all about. Right now the goal is not so much about being an objective observer but more so about hunting and gathering visual information. I don't have the facts, I don't have any intent, I don't have anything, just me and my eyes. 

I like taking on projects in this manner. It's liberating and good wholesome living. 

Let me tell you a little about my time yesterday... I jumped in my truck and drove around (I prefer to walk but this town is not really all that walkable), after the first 30 minutes I was ready to give up. Yeah, self doubt is an ugly friend. However, I pushed on and in the next hour and half I met a wrinkled school building, an 80-year-old retiree Corin Canady who rode a lawn mower for transportation after his license was taken away from him, a mother of seven Manervia Simmons and her son Reverend P.C. 

The images below are from my first time out testing the waters. 

On a side note, I don't think that the images shot with the Hipstamatic application at Mrs. Simmons' home work. Why? Well, they're sloppy, soft, and lack the quality of images I aim to make. However, I'm posting them because I want to give a sense of my work flow and thought process. Initially I'll take a lot of sketches with my camera - since the Simmons family have given me an open door policy to come by whenever I like I know I can perfect the photos later. Of course, it's always ideal to get great photos from your first attempt but sometimes I take it easy on myself. 

Lastly, I should also mention that I do have a reason and intent for using two different cameras but I don't want to divulge that information yet. 

Enjoy, and feel free to bash my pictures or my ideas, its good for you and me to communicate. 

P.S. Click on the photograph to view it larger. 

Opal Noor...

The first time my wife proposed the idea of natural child birth I admit I was taken aback. I was concerned about the safety for my unborn child and my wife. She stands at 5'1" and is all of 90lbs. Yes, she is not petite she is itty-bitty. So you can understand my cautious approach in supporting her decision. 

However, after reading up on the subject, educating myself and meeting with our doula I was convinced. It's amazing how so many of us are conditioned to believe that birth requires so much medical intervention. It is indeed false. I could go into the details but I won't. All I can suggest is that if you and your loved one decide to have a child please do your own research and weigh your options. 

The following images document the experience and then some. I shot very little, mostly in between contractions, back rubs and words of encouragement to my wife. Since having a home birth is against the law in the UAE we eventually made our way to the local hospital. 

Our baby girl Opal Noor arrived just under two hours after our arrival. Med-free. She went home the next day. 

My wife is a Champion! 

Darshana Ganga: In Print

My personal project Darshana Ganga made it into print a little over a week ago in the United Arab Emirates' M magazine. It was rewarding to see a selection of this work spread over six glossy pages. Thanks to photo editor Clint Mclean for initially picking the work up and M photo editor Rob Evans for following through and getting the images published. Cheers. 

Darshana Ganga: Continued

One of my ongoing personal projects is a look at the daily life, culture and heritage along the Ganges River. This sacred river runs over 1500 miles through India. The birth of the river starts in the Himalayas, flows until it reaches the plains in Haridwar, eventually breaks into a cluster of deltas north of Kolkata and finally finds rest in the Bay of Bengal.

This last trip I found myself in the Haridwar, an important pilgrimage city, Rishikesh, the yoga capital of the world and Devprayag, where two rivers converge to form the Ganga. 

Each trip to India never ceases to leave me saturated with a raw appreciation for the ancient culture that exists along the Ganga. 

Visit my website to see the updated essay. I wish I could share all of the outtakes from my last trip but as the saying goes "less is more."

Until next time... 

A PHOTO A DAY...

Head over to APHOTOADAY and check out their homepage today to see one of my images, if you don't, it'll be gone by tomorrow. 

For those of you not familiar with APAD, it is essentially an online community for photojournalist. Each day photo geeks from across the globe post one photograph they have shot under various circumstances ranging from daily assignments to personal work. From the massive amount of images that flow through the list each day APAD founder Melissa Lyttle selects an image and posts it onto the ever changing section front.  

The two images above are a couple of previous fronts from fellow Apaders Bryan Derballa and Matt Slaby.

If you've never stopped by to check out the site you definitely should! The range of talent over there is inspiring. 

Cheers.

ISTABSIR: AL SATWA

ISTABSIR is a photo column that runs weekly in The National. The title is derived from an Arabic verb which means to attentively reflect on and contemplate with respectful consideration. Unlike most photo columns The National runs a photo essay per column. Each Sunday, the series receives an entire page (w/o ads) in the news section of our publication.


*You can view more images from this ongoing essay at my website. 

AL SATWA: IN A CHANGED WORLD

IMAGES & TEXT BY: RICH-JOSEPH FACUN

Reflections about the current status of Dubai’s historic community “Al Satwa,” can be found scribed on the walls of alleyways and abandoned villas. Silent messages spray painted in graffiti along textured sand toned walls elicit a running commentary. One anonymous voice summarizes what many residents may in fact already be feeling as towering developments encroach into their backyards, "Satwa is in a changed world."  

Empty lots and skeletal remains of old villas weave throughout the streets of Satwa intertwining with meticulously manicured homes creating a stark contrast of one another. A constant visual reminder of both the past and future for those who still reside within this prime real estate property slated to be razed. Despite the undeniable demise of the community “to let” signs remain abundant. In Satwa multiple fliers posted on the spaces of both local grocery store bulletin boards and street posts create a collage of names and numbers. 

Despite the fact that many new arrivals to Satwa are simply seeking affordable accommodations the story is not the same for other community members. Many of these residents are from a long lineage of families that stretch back for decades. Satwa's residents include Emiratis from the Bloushi tribe who have been there for many decades, Iranians who have been in the Emirates for over 60 years, and migrant workers mostly from South Asia.

Eventually, this area of several square kilometers between Sheikh Zayed Road and Satwa Road will be cleared of all old houses making way for “Jumeirah Garden City.”  In the meantime the charming quiet nature of Al Satwa will remain a present reminder of Dubai’s yesteryears where life was rooted in a sublime simplicity.  When asked what he will do if his home is razed, Obeid Jamil Mabrouk, a resident of Al Satwa for 37 years, said "No matter if they break it down we'll still be here."