March 15 - Penang Fishermen

March 15 - Penang Fishermen, originally uploaded by wasabi_peas.

I think there's more going on in this look than I'll ever know. A little curious, a little amused, a little disdain for a tourist pointing a camera at him. I love the softness of the colors, the shallow depth of field.

I used the 75-300 for this, and I like it a little more after taking the filter off. Still soft, but the only way I could get this shot, or another shot I took today of a white-belly sea eagle.

I think..... I think maybe this look is the look that haunts me about being a tourist here. So far, everyone here has been more than polite, friendly, and welcoming. And maybe it's not even what the locals think of me, but my knowledge that I live a life of such incredible privilege in comparison.

When I say haunted, I do not mean I am afraid. More that I feel guilty. For what, I don't know what to say. Our lives are different because of the different worlds into which we were hatched. I know that had I met these two men rather than taken their photo from a passing boat, I'm sure we would have had a very interesting conversation in as much as we could find the words to share.

I just can't escape the fact that we go home to houses in two completely different worlds. And while we both work hard, love our families, enjoy time with friends, and rocked today in the same sea -- our lives are so different.