Faces of Mali

The warmth of the people of Mali rivals the temperatures there. They were most gracious even when we were invading their privacy. They faces of the little ones were more often than not filled with the joy of living. The older children showed the gravity of their responsibilities while still wanting to be silly. The young adults often held a wistful look on their faces. The faces of the elders were typically heavily lined but still included laugh lines. Few faces showed exhaustion or hopelessness.

It was hard, though, to get clear shots of people – if they knew you were taking a picture of them, they would ask you to pay for that privilege. Some shots were worth it. Other shots that I took were done ‘from the hip’ by keeping the camera on, holding it by my side and clicking the shutter button with the hope that I had the camera angled correctly to catch my target. Got lots of pant leg and dirt/sky shots that way! Many great pictures were missed, though, when it was inappropriate to shoot. (Ginger had a habit of saying “Now, THAT’S the picture you want!” way too late to even try.)

Several children were curious about the camera and asked for their pictures to be taken. It was great fun to show them their photos – they giggled and joked and asked for more.

I’ve posted a bevy of faces from Mali. Some of the pictures have captions to give a bit of description while others are there just to enjoy. I was captivated by the women carrying things on their heads as well as the babies on their backs.

Will pull out some scenery shots next.

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