Somewhere between Kigali and the UG border

I went to Rwanda for the weekend. More pics later. (Click to view big)

I’m not a morning person, but when I have to be I make sure the camera is handy.

I love this house.

Shot while on assignment for Raising Voices.

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
― J.R.R. Tolkien

Mame is a Senegalese drummer. He’s also the human equivalent of vitamin D. You can find out more about his drumming group, Sabar Percussion, here.

1) Never photograph a man in such circumstances as you yourself would not like to be
photographed in.
2) Certain classes should be tabooed:
a) Public personages travelling incognito.
b) People labouring under physical deformities.
c) People suffering from temporary accidents, e. g., the occupants of a Channel
steamer after a stormy passage.
d) In general, people who implicitly or explicitly express a dislike to be photographed.
3) Never use an expedient to prevent a person knowing he was being photographed,
when, if he did know, he would probably resent it.
4) Never let the fact that the victim “didn’t know” excuse a violation of good taste.
5) Never use a camera as a medium for “a thundering good
practical joke.”
6) Finally, remember that though you may escape without penalty, your misdoings will
be held against the brotherhood in general.

In the interim I have watched a man lose a presidential campaign, broken a very expensive lens and enjoyed the sensation of seeing a photo on the front page of a national newspaper. It has been a heck of a time.

I’ve updated my website and would love any feedback anybody has to offer (anything missing? Too much?), so click over to www.willboase.com and have a look. In the coming weeks I want to turn this blog back into something worth reading, so I hope you’ll stick around.

In the meantime here’s something from the archive- a scan of a negative shot in Nairobi in 2009. I love this picture because of the soft tones afforded by Portra NC, a film which was developed for use by wedding photographers who wanted to capture all of the detail of the bride’s wedding dress. Nairobi may not be quite a wedding dress, but it has its charm.

Downtown Nairobi, 2009. Hasselblad C/M 500, Portra NC.

Fishermen paddling out onto Lake Edward in the evening.

On February 4th Andrew Green and I will be travelling to Nairobi to join the campaign of Raila Odinga, who is vying for the presidency of Kenya. I’ve done political coverage before (here’s a PDF of my work covering the Democratic Party campaign in Uganda in 2011) and now I’m going for the big leagues. Andrew, my caption writer and long-time accomplice, will be doing the writing while I provide the snaps.

I’ve started a funding campaign (or digital begging bowl, whichever you prefer) on Indiegogo, a funding website. I can’t really afford to do this project without some help, so what I’m asking is:

If you’ve enjoyed reading/looking at the nonsense I’ve served up for you over the past four years, please head over to this page here -> http://www.indiegogo.com/kenyapolitics and drop a penny in my hat. I will be forever grateful to you (that includes everybody I’m already eternally grateful to) and you’ll be giving me a chance to do something worth the writing.

Thank you all so much.