Ben Wilhelmi

B/W portraits on films, in the bush, Tanzania

 

Sieving some analog black and white through my archives...before digital times. it had its perks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Masai portraits, Tanzania

 

when I was privileged to work in some remote areas in Tanzania...

 

Here is a Masai boy who has just been circumsized, this new status while healing leads him soon to the next awaited one, warriorhood. The white mask and black cloak indicate this impure status.

And here is somehow the feminine version of the circumsized boy. Just instead of the warrior times, she'll be able to marry.

 

 

 

B/W film photography, Masai people.

 

 

One of my little privileges of living in Africa is having the time...well I am obviously still a bit obnoxious about it but I have some free time nevertheless and opportunities, like bringing vintage cameras to remote areas, here around lake Natron with a magnificent 1961 Rolleiflex allowing 12 shots per medium format film roll, very old fashioned.

Why...? Because l can? Because l couldn't afford such an expensive camera 20 or more years ago. And well it is just about driving a venerable car or listening to a LP...

 

Some portraits in the bush, Tanzania

 

 

A Masai boy showing his regalia. It means he has been recently circumsized and the next step is warriorhood.

 

 

Scenes in the bush, northern Tanzania

 

 

When there are no official public transport...

 

Hard work for this woman.

 

Notice how nobody stepped out to lighten the car...

 

 

This Masai lady uses an umbrella obviously not from the rain nowhere to be seen but from the scorching sun. Temperatures can come close to 50C at the bottom of the Rift valley.

 

A dust storm or dust devil passing by. Pretty harmless except for a slow and low flying plane. Very common near the equator.

 

 

Kids are the same everywhere!

 

Kids are the happiest in the rain season which only lasts a couple of months.

Random aerials, Tanzania

 

 

It took me a while and a picture to notice at the same time a reflection and a shadow of an aircraft. "They have eyes but don't see" says the latine proverb...

Here over lake Natron salt flats.

 

Flamingoes taking off. Lake natron again but on a normal looking area where the water reaches 3m deep.

 

2 young Masai boys. Their white make up and black cloaks indicate the boys were recently circumcized, paving the way to warriorhood.

 

I was lucky that day...what a scenery.

 

Lake Natron again, always a different coat.

Masai portraits in the Tanzanian outback

A selection of masai people in various stage of their lives...

 

The married man.

 

Young woman.

 

Young boy freshly circumsized and in the impure healing period. It shows by his black cloak, his feathers at an early stage around his head, and the white make up.

 

same period for these 2 teens but they belong to another clan and are more sober in display.

 

And for girls, the fashion also shows their new status, here are 2 girls from 2 different clans . The black cloaks and the white beads are the main markers.

 

 

Another married man. Where did he pick his vintage 70's hat?

 

A young girl who has not been through the ear extension process.

 

A married woman in full traditional gear, included the extended ears.

 

 

B/W film Masai portraits, Tanzania

 

 

 

All shot recently with a Rolleiflex 3.5F, a medium format beauty camera from 1961. Sometimes it feels good to show the millennials that there was life of various sorts before digital era, before selfies....

 

Bush portraits in Tanzania

One of my jobs in northern Tanzania allowed me to meddle in the very remote areas where foreign visitors or workers were rare, like these pictures around lake Natron or Sonjo valley many eyars ago. I gave my models, usually Maasai but along Sonjo a lesser know tribe, proper prints never money. I didn't want to spoil the game.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

B/W portraits, Tanzanian bush

 

 

Young Masai mother and a traditional cheek scar. She will keep her hair uncut till the baby has officially been named during a proper ceremony.

 

This woman wanted to wait to wait while getting prepped up for the pictures.

 

Sonjo woman using an umbrella to protect from the scorching sun in the Rift valley.

 

 

Some masai women in full regalia.

 

(Picture shot at 12am in natural light but with a +3 stop correction while the model stood under the aircraft wing)

 

 

 

Scenes in the Masai bush, Tanzania

 

 

Fashion changes slowly even in the remote northern territories of Tanzania. This blue pattern is definitely not included in the traditional Masai clothing.

 

A non-perenial pond becomes the holy place while it lasts.

 

Cows are the main thing regarding status, show off and wealth. But goats are welcome as side dishes.

Donkeys are useful too but not much in term of status.

 

 

Things change...

 

 

Things change!!  "Tout fout le camp" as we say in French...

 

In the bush, portraits, Tanzania

 

A collection of Sonjo and Masai people, historically they were enemies but recently things have somewhat improved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stonetown, street photography

 

 

In 20 years, yes I left Belgium 20 years ago already, colors have appeared in Stonetown. Black cloaks are still there but competing with this kind of more fashionable trend.

 

 

 

Masai businessmen are to be spotted quite far away. Personally I have met a few in South Sudan and west of Kampala, Uganda. They're selling the Masai bead artwork. Slippers are very popular. Too bad this guy here doesn't wear any instead of those horrible plastic shoes.

Another trendy example. Pink scarf, lace garment?

 

Old pictures with Flying Medical Service

I'm faffing around through my old pictures from 1999, the year I arrived in Africa, here in Tanzania.

 

One of my first proud Masai warriors posing for me. Impressive guys for a newbie. Greater Serengeti.

 

A village in western Tanzania, Kasulu.

My colleague Steve on take off, Olpirikata, Sanjan plains.

The stunning lake Natron, I couldn't Believe such a marvelous and stunning place could exist. Rift Valley.

Teenagers are the same everywhere.

A Flying Medical Service Cessna 206 on landing.

Me on my first time in the bush, Olaika, Greater Serengeti.

FMS has a knack for the craziest and or most beautiful places to land and operate. Olorbelin, lake Natron, Kenyan border.

My second emergency! This man had been dragged into a brawl with cow thieves. An Arrow landed through his forehead to his lower jaws. He sufefred a momentary speech impediment but sadly lost one eye. I had been in Tanzania for 2 weeks ...

 

Landing with a strong crosswind, Ngaresero, Bottom of the Rift Valley. The mountain is the active volcano Lengai. Another stunning place to operate into.

I was using a great SLR film camera, a Minolta X700 which I still use once in a while.

Bush portraits in sepia, Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tanzania, Masai portraits

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tanzania, portraits in the bush

 

 

 

 

 

 

Various portraits, the bush in Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

Tanzania, portraits in the bush

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

B/W portraits in the bush, Tanzania

 

 

 

 

Portraits on films, Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

Shot with my good old Nikon F3 in 2002.

People in the Tanzanian bush, shot on Rolleiflex

 

Some slide films at work in a superb Rolleiflex camera from 1961.

 

 

 

 

The beauty, cosmetically nearly unchanged from 1930 till the 80’s.

But B/W films work wonders too.

A village in Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

People, Tanzania

Circumcised boy, from one Maasai subclan.

 

 

 

 

 

Sonjo woman. That type of jewel is a good sign.

people in Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

B/W scenes in the bush, Tanzanie

 

 

 

 

Sceneries in Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

Flying Medical Service, NGO in Tanzania

 

Please visit our Facebook page: Flying Medical Service or our website Flying Medical Service 

 

I’ve seen happier babies. BCG vaccine here.

 

A nurse administers a vaccine shot.

 

Taking care of babies, definitely a woman’s job here.

 

A Maasai woman in full regalia.

 

The fascinating active volcano Oldonyo Lengai, potentially seen from 10 different clinics nearby.

 

 

A tetanus shot for a Sonjo pregnant woman.

Flying Medical Service, clinics in the bush

 

 

One of the few trees around, perfect for shade under the scorching sun.

 

the nurse prepares vaccinations.

 

 

the scale, a precious tool to check babies health.

 

one airstrip, Habere in the Sonjo Valley.

Human activity in Tanzania, aerials

 

lake Balangida, people collecting salt.

 

 

Masai kids playing on the scorched salted expanses of lake Natron! The surface must be boiling hot…

 

 

 

 

B/W photography, portraits in Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

 

shot with a medium format Rolleiflex 3.5F, 1961

Flying Medical Service, Tanzania

 

Flying Medical Service provides various health cares in northern Tanzania and operates in remote areas where roads are usually non existent.

who can see the airstrip on this picture?

 

Easier to spot here, Monik village on lake Natron. The mountain is a volcano, Lengai.

 

The wing provides shade to the doctor and her ‘cabinet’.

 

 

 

Things change, cheap motorbikes have shown up some years ago. This man offers his taxi skills.

 

Women waiting for the vaccination jabs.

 

The nurse is busy weighing the babies.

 

The baby has a more interesting haircut than his mother.

Flying Medical Service in the bush

 

Behind stands a Cessna 206, a 6 seater, Flying Medical Service favorite workhorse. Compare it to a Land Rover with wings.

It’s amazing what a few boxes of medical supplies, a doctor and 2 nurses can accomplish in the most remote areas of Northern Tanzania. The most common diseases can usually be treated on the spot. Notable exceptions are severe cases of malaria, complicated pregnancies, and various wounds. The Tanzanian bush could show some similarities with the Wild West. Spears, machetes, wooden clubs are still common. Kalashnikovs become sought after. Add wildlife for a nice combo. That’s why we need some extra seats for occasional patients to bring back to the nearest hospital.

 

A selection of airstrips in the most beautiful landscapes.

 

 

 

Measles, polio, tetanus, BCG…up to 10 vaccines are nowadays administered.

 

A doctor, here with one his metallic cases full of medicines, typically works in the shade, whether provided by a tree, a wing or a hut.

landscape photography, Tanzania

 

volcano Lengai, what a marvel.

playing “Amélie” with a hedgehog fluffy toy.

 

 

a squatted airtsrip…

 

playing soccer near the volcano.

 

 

 

view on lake Natron and another volcano, Shombole.

Villages, Tanzania

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flying Medical Service, outreach clinics in Tanzania

 

Where there is no road or medical facilities in the Tanzanian bush, some aircraft come handy for outreach…that’s where Flying Medical Service  steps in with a doctor, 2 nurses, some medical supplies.

Tetanus jabs for pregnant women.

 

A bunch of patients and onlookers surround the doctor.

 

A nurse prepares the vaccines.

 

Normally this an easy airstrip. Till it gets flooded in the rainy seasons. Luckily it is one of the few long and wide airstrips we use so I could go around the puddles on landing and take off.

 

Some irstrips in the Ngorongoro Highlands are a bit challenging… This was the best location for the whole area. At 6500 ft high and with a 11% slope.

 

 

Stonetown, Zanzibar, street photography

 

Masai people, fake or not…. Notice the so un-Masai hats.

 

The old quarter in Stonetown is a huge trap for tourists, but I like to walk in there.

 

Only a few famous things out of Zanzibar: Freddie Mercury of course but his lifestyle doesn’t quite match the local culture to say the least so references to him are not at all that widespread. Then there is the clove spice. And in French culture (and elesewhere maybe?) a sexual position is quite famous, “la brouette de Zanzibar”. Une brouette is a wheelbarrow. Use your imagination!

 

Watch for various signs, the mix between local and foreign is always amusing.

 

 

That tourist made my day!.

 

 

Bin Slum?

I was experimenting with a new smartphone. Great toy or notepad I agree. One main flaw as on all digital screens, the picture doesn’t appeared very detailed due to reflection. So once in a while I see my bloody shadow in the picture..afterwards. I then miss a good old optical viewfinder. Optical, not electronic either.

Tanzania, portraits in the bush

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flying Medical Service, clinics in the bush, Tanzania

 

a doctor chats with a Maasai patient.

 

An active volcano, Lengai. We’ve got  a few airstrips nearby.

 

A man has just received a bag of medicine.

 

a typical Maasai homestead. Miles away from anything like a shop, a dispensary, a road…

 

People coming to the clinic.

 

A mama has just received a vaccination shot.

 

It used to be the real bush out there. Only traditional clothes were to be seen. But if a lodge or a hunting company come nearby and provide jobs, fashion changes quickly or newcomers show up.

little flight in the bush with friends, Tanzania

 

Out of the blue, this beautiful aircraft showed up in Arusha. The owner and a pilot friend wanted some familiarisation flights in the bush. So we flew 3 days. Here we are in Monik, a Flying Medical Service airstrip on lake Natron. The volcano Lengai in the distance was splendid that day.

 

because of the small wheels and fairing on this aircraft, we couldn’t go to the roughest airstrips. But for 2 normal Belgian pilots, those easy strips were amazing enough.

 

Another day in Endulen, Ngorongoro area. Zebras were all over the place, including on the airstrip.

 

The wheel fairings had been removed. The small rocks could destroy them.

 

A Go Pro 3 camera had been fixed on the wing. Amazing quality, I want one now…I’ll post the link soon.

 

Zebras again.

 

We did some other airstrips but didn’t stop completely in all. Flew gently in some gorges, overflew the flamingoes on lake Natron, enjoyed the colors and abstract shapes of that wonderful lake, spotted wildlife, circled over the Ngorongor Crater...

In Malambo, we were threatened by a drunk Masai and his spear! In Olbalbal, we kept the engine running but I gave medicines urgently needed to the local health worker. Thanks to Miguel and Johan for helping Flying Medical Service. The plane is even made available for FMS but we declined. This yellow beauty is brand new and our operations would wear and tear it pretty quickly.

There are quite some difference with our preferred C 206’s but this FB-A2 Expedition E350 would do wonders, it is real bush plane. Some minor modifications would make it a bush killer.

Anyway I enjoyed the flying very much, was happy to meet new cool dudes and their equally cool passengers.

There should be more flying in a few weeks!