Ben Wilhelmi

scenes in bush villages, Tanzania

 

Masai warriors, posing and playing, Tanzania

 

the street of Arusha, photography

 

One street corner on Sokoine road, one of the main streets.

 

Angry punk at his portrait taken. Since I have no more respect for him and his colleagues as they have for me and the rest of the traffic, I really don’t feel a bit sorry for his feelings.

 

As opposed to what we are used in Europe, these guys here are legal, they’re not ready to pack their goodies in that large piece of cloth of run for the police in a second….

Flying Medical Service, operating in the rains

 

Rains in Tanzania are quite interesting. Personally I enjoy flying in these seasons. Since we don’t have the same constraints as commercial operators, flying with Flying Medical service gives me various and challenging opportunities…

Rain showers and storms can show up with hardly no notice, be quite violent for a brief period before the sun shines again, airstrips get flooded and out of use within one hour, clear skies get obscured and dangerous in no time, dramatic lights and changes in vegetation are to be enjoyed…

 

This pond in the northern Serengeti area is usually dry. But filled up as it is here is being enjoyed by everybody, cows and herders of course, women and girls can use the water for cooking and washing everything without walking the usual long miles to the next water point, baths are not a luxury anymore…

 

Not sure these ladies and kids will make it home before the clouds crack open.

 

Flooded areas.

 

Obscured by clouds…

Rare full river…

 

Interesting intersection between 2 rivers bringing their own colored muds.

 

This is Monik not a chick but an airstrip partially flooded in lake Natron area. Yes you’re looking at the airstrip…. Luckily a large strip so the side could be just used. Just…

sepia portraits, Tanzanian women

 

I personally find this Sonjo woman particularly pretty! Beautiful eyebrows for instance.

 

recently excised Masai girl. She will be ready for marriage soon. The baby is not hers but she insisted to pose with him.

 

Masai warriors playing and posing

 

Flying Medical Service again… this place Ololosokwan on the northern edge of the Serengeti had seen  a new batch of warriors, freshly anointed. Proud is a euphemism to describe these guys. After all, this is the best part of their life starting: fighting, chasing girls, roaming the bush, collecting cows (that includes theft, hence the fighting), playing with lions, and spending time time looking trendy and handsome. And to deserve this, they had to go through circumcision, without flinching without showing any emotion!

So whereas these warriors are not so happy to pose for tourists, they got to know me and trust me to bring many prints.  So just like girls who’d have a chance to loot a Prada shop for a photoshoot they posed for me on various occasions, exchanged clothes and jewels, and varied their composure, a  lot! Here is a selection where I hardly had a word to say.

Funny how some jokes are universal huh?

Paris, Street b/w photography with a Rolleiflex

a 1961 Rolleiflex 3.5F medium format to be precise.

The advantage of a ‘weird’ Rolleiflex Twin Lens Reflex is that it looks so special that people don’t see it as a threat. Maybe these 2 pretty girls wouldn’t have posed and smiled at me had I been pointing with a bulky modern digital reflex and big lens… then they may have seen the link between my vintage camera and their vintage Vespa?

 

this other pretty unaware model didn’t even notice me. Special feat of the Rolleiflex: the usual position to shoot is to hold the camera on your belly. People sometimes don’t even notice you're snapping away. 

 

on the Trocadéro scene.

sepia portraits in the Tanzanian bush

 

when I don’t have to help the medical staff nor fix something on the aircraft or the airstrip, I do some pictures. Lately I’ve introduced that studio look to the portraits. I was a bit anxious people might not be used to this white background but when I brought the prints (still in colors though) 2 weeks later they seemed utterly happy, so did I. They kept on asking for more anyway…Maybe I’ll bring some B/W or sepia prints next time and see. I’d love to bring an enlargement but that would create jealousy…

 

This Masai warrior was a bit of an exception: he insisted to keep his umbrella for the shoot…

 

street photography in Arusha, Tanzania

 

those carts will carry just about everything, even car wrecks.

 

common scene to see armed guards walking around. A rifle is definitely not the best weapon to guard a property but it is the mot common weapon issued with the shotgun.

 

a local jacked-up customised hot rod… It mad me laugh whn I thought of the tune-in fashion in Europe. These guys should meet up and compare their tasteful ideas….

 

Arusha City Bus Serv’? Baby step I suppose because this is the only one I’ve seen so far.

 

cell phones (2 in this picture) are all the rage in Africa, especially in Tanzania which is leading the pack I read in the news. Logical, the landlines were sooooo crap and useless…

Zanzibar, street life in Stonetown

 

street photography, Cologne in the eighties

 

the colors by then...adults would wear that too!

in the bush, Tanzania, B/W portraits

 

 

street photography, Arusha, Tanzania

 

once in a while, I just grab a camera and keep my eye peeled in the streets of Arusha.

Rastafarians are not that rare in Africa. More than punks in the West I’d say.

 

the monument for the Tanzanian soldier. Behind is a brand new Chinese made hotel. I’ve been shocked to hear that Chinese are already severely hated by Africans, I mean workers, not the politicians and businessmen of course. Poor quality of whatever is made in China and sold here, hard conditions of work, no benefit whatsoever, poor salaries…. I came by bus from Nairobi the other day, I had 6 hours to chat with the driver who seemed to loathe utterly Chinese people, "the new colonialists in Africa, worse than white people" he said smiling. He showed me the numerous patches that were already broken down on the brand new Chinese road. What a shame and scam indeed. He seemed also impressed (and admirative) than some exceeded Zambian workers had killed some Chinese foremen already...

 

loading a motorbike taxi. No fear….

quite often walking on the road is safer than on the derelict pavements…

 

the famous clocktower, still empty at that early hour in the morning (but don’t look at the clocks, they’ve been out of service for years). This tower shows various mileage to other places and is also located halfway between Cairo and Cape Town, that is 5500km each side.

I should have asked how this vendor ever got a hold on a sunglass stand.

 

sweets for sale.

street photography in Stonetown, Zanzibar

 

Historically these Masai dudes ain’t got nothing to do on the island. They’re either visiting or trading, rather the latter with bead work for tourists.

 

I’m not too sure of what to think of this guy’s dress…but homosexuality is still a huge no-no in Africa. Still criminalized in many countries… They pretend, the idiots, that white settlers brought that so un-African behaviour on the continent…

 

typical scaffolding in Africa. I’d be rather wary to climb on these…

 

Modern clothes for this but they’re probably still coping with  the religious society so the veil…

 

colorful portraits in the bush, Tanzania

a selection of Masai and Sonjo portraits in Tanzania.

 

Tour of duty with Flying Medical Service, people in the bush

 

I just came back yesterday from a tour of mobile clinics with Flying Medical Service. I flew to Loliondo area, that is northern Serengeti, then lake Natron and the Gol mountains. In Tanzania that is. Weather was mostly bad, we’re in the middle of the rain season, and thus I couldn’t land on 3 airstrips. One was quite flooded, another one was damaged by trenches made by flowing waters, and the 3rd one located on top of a cliff was shrouded in clouds. So badly that even flying alongside the cliff I couldn’t find a hole in the clouds  to crawl up. The cloud ceiling was at 4000 feet against the cliff…and the strip is still 2000 feet higher in the mountain.

In the Sonjo Valley, there is a village I particularly like for various reasons, one being that 3 tribes live together there, more or less peacefully. Women seem to go by much better than men, the latter still tend to fight each other, with Kalashnikovs even sometimes. Every year we get emergencies with bullet wounds…

A Sonjo woman with a typical Tanzanian-flag necklace.

 

 

 

a Mangati woman, with a typical spiraled necklace.

 

an elder Mangati lady, with scarification marks around the eyes. Younger people seem to drop that traditional feat.

 

 

and some Masai women fully equipped.

Anyway, these women like their pictures to be taken and they trust me that I’ll bring prints later. This time one model was a bit shocked that I also wanted a picture of her alone, without her baby. Shocking indeed! Many women would rather have their babies pictured rather than themselves. It must be said that in remote areas women have only one right: produce and raise children (preferably males). So being childless is a social stigma, disaster. And so denying that role by requesting a picture without the baby must be seen as slightly insulting?

I also got some nice shooting with the Sonjo kids playing with an old bicycle rim. Sonjo kids still dress very often in these bright colorful pieces of cloth, the same 4 colors for the 13 years I have been flying out there. No red, no purple, no black, no white… nope just these yellow, light blue and orange colors. And green but not on this picture.

New York City, street photography

 

 

Paris, B/W photography

 

I’m not a translator, but basically here we go

“Passer-by, stop here, the building was dedicated to the muses and to the joy by R.S., he welcomed therein the famous Cabaret du Chat Noir”. The Muses and Joy… what a program

 

Cologne, street B/W pictures, eighties

 

I was just 18 or 19, roaming Cologne streets and practicing street photography…

B/W portraits, Tanzanian bush

 

Masai portraits, photography on film

 

during my early years in Tanzania, from 1999 till 2002, I was flying for an NGO, Flying Medical Service, and during my numerous mobile clinics, I had some spare time for my hobby, that is photography. Initially equipped with a Minolta X700, I switched to Nikon F3 and FM2.

B/W street photography, Cologne in the 80's

 

During holidays and some weekend, I’d pay a visit to Mom who lived very close to Cologne, Germany, like 20 min by train. Funny enough I was not that inspired to go to Brussels and shoot street pictures there. Of course I lived far from Brussels, and it was quite a mission to reach the capital…

these guys were numerous on the cathedral square…

once in a while, a priest would come out and ask for calm…

 

Paris on B/W films, street photography

 

 

one of the excellent  Yellow Korner galleries. A young connoisseur admiring nudes.

 

did you know LP’s are back, brand new? There was a t-shirt with various dates of birth and death for music tapes, Walkman, LP’s…but for the latter there was a rebirth date!

 

 

Arusha, driving and shooting pictures.

 

Arushan traffic jams gives some time to observe the urban jungle out there. Here is a little bit of various scenes or fashion and colors.

typical colorful coach. Taste was optional…

 

Rare pigs. Many Tanzanians are Muslim but still in minority as opposed to Christians. But pigs are rare nevertheless. In swahili, a pig is kiti moto, which means hot seat. Don’t ask me why.

 

Japanese second hand bus. The original marking haven’t been sprayed over, not unusual. Bob Marley is still fashionable in Africa….

not like the cops always on the prowl for a bribe.

 

Trendy grandpa.

 

Posters, rugs, calendars, maps, science diagrams, religious portraits are the usual things these guys sell. What a life, spend your day with arms up….

 

Cool dress!

 

So typical….

 

some road sides in Arusha.

even the crappiest hand-cart, like coaches or dala dalas might show some slogan or motto. “Serengeti”…I’d like to see this guy crossing the Serengeti for sure and see what happens….

some colorful portraits, Tanzania

 

street photography in Cologne, Germany, 80's

 1987, I turn 18, Mom asks what nice gift I'd like. Instead of a car, I chose a camera, an excellent Minolta X700 with a 50 mm. Perfect lens to learn the basics and later improve greatly. So since I visited Mom a few times every year in Germany, Cologne, the next big city, became my photographic playground.

2 regular drunk dudes.

 

Köln is Cologne in German.

 

Cologne had a slight advantage over Belgium where I could share my pictures with friends: fashion was distinctly different. There were also a lot more of street artists of various kind. And a lot more would pour in from Eastern Europe and further when the Berlin Wall collapsed 2 years later.

London, street photography 20+ years ago

 

1989 to be precise… I had been mostly learning photography in the street by then. London…only 5 days unfortunately. 

Agfa films and a Minolta X700 camera.

‘

Yep that’s me, experimenting with mirrors…

 

chatting up girls…

 

Street photography, Brussels

 

Lace is supposedly a Belgian specialty. I admit I found this girl’s curves more interesting….

 

the legendary and wonderful Grand-Place in Brussels.

 

a Manneken Pis (litt’ the little pissing man) copy, here peeing chocolate in a chocolate shop.

street photography, spring time in Paris

 

Champs-de-Mars, near the Eiffel Tower, people enjoying some puffs.

 

Prints for sale, Les Tuileries.

 

La Pyramide, le Louvre.

 

Le Pont des Arts, nice place ofr pedestrians to relax over the Seine. Notice the numerous padlocks on the fence. They express eternal love or wishes for…

 

les Colonnes de Buren.

 

les Tuileries near the Obélisque entrance.

  

Paris is peppered with many little green spaces.

people in the bush, Tanzania

 

even in Masai territories, soccer is the game.

 

2 Sonjo ladies getting prepared for a photo.

 

street life in pictures, Nairobi

 

I had dropped the airplane for inspection so I came back to Arusha by bus. The exact same trip I had done in 1999 for my first visit in Tanzania.

As usual I had bribed the driver to have the front seat with more leg room and a large window. Perfect position for street photography.

 

Since the usual landlines were notoriously crap, non-existent, unreliable in Africa, cellphones have been seen a blessing and the continent is picking faster than any other place in the world. This man has even 2 phones.

Paris in B/W photography

Spring in Paris, "à la Doisneau", that is a with an old Rolleiflex camera, his favorite. 

New York City, street life

 

the so-called Naked Cow Boy who is now suing a so-called Naked Cow Girl on the ground she copied him too much.

 

Burma, B/W photography

 

recycling seems to be taken very seriously by Burmese people. These shops were selling the smallest oldest and most various items, salvaged from any appliance. Smoking ladies are common sightings.

Pictures above were shot in Rangoon but the same vision could be seen anywhere else in the country.

 

Burmese food… luckily there were big Indian and Chinese communities for proper food. I did try some Burmese dishes for the sake of it but that’s it. Prunes marinated in salt will always come to my mind… I was later confirmed that salt intake was skyrocketing in the local diet, enough to give kidney problems to many people in their 40’s.

I was a bit surprised, in 2004, to spot these modern clothes and attitudes on many youngsters. Not what I expected to find there according to my readings.

 

a tourist and a camera seemed to be a rarity in this neighborhood. One girl left running but giggling, the other one stayed there laughing too.

 

My Leica M6 at work, its first trip outside Europe and Africa.

B/W photography, people in the Tanzanian bush

 

 

 

so sweet, and proud, with her scarf!

 

Flies are not always seen as a nuisance, even for a portrait…

 

Paris, b/w pictures

 

 

shot with a 1961 Rolleiflex 3.5F, medium format

a Rolleiflex in Paris, b/w street photography

 

 

a wink to Cartier-Bresson, a man in partial profile with family eating on the Seine bank.

 

B/W portraits, Tanzanian bush

 

Northern Tanzania, various tribes share a vast and remote territory around lake Natron.

Older women are not easy to approach for pictures.

Masai portraits, B/W photography

 

Tough mean looking mama. Even her Masai husband must think twice before coming home late and drunk…

 

 

street life in Nairobi

 

Leaving Nairobi by bus back to Arusha, I snapped “Nairobbery” (the unofficial but most common nickname for Nairobi) life out of the window.

Soetimes I think there are more cellphones in Africa than in Europe

 

Ads are getting big and spread all over in Africa. Maybe the guy is having a hangover from that beer? As anybody can see, while the image is decent, the logo is shit as usual. Low carbs for a beer, who cares really? These marketing people really, no shame to consider consumers as morons….

 

Traffic cops…sometimes they just seemed at best to be considered as information doll, not to be taken seriously. Just the same for robot lights by the way.

 

At least they used a black santa! Good for them. Christianity still has a long way to go to adapt. Swedish look alike, blue eyed pale sick jesuses and maries are still the norm in Africa, basically coming from our medieval pieces of religious art. That probably helped the missionaries to keep the lid on African pride….

 

yep graffiti can be spotted here too. But not yet the same kind as we know in the West. Baby steps.

 

I suppose the road is in much better condition than the sidewalks, if any…