Via Flickr:
Still on holiday, I went on my travels today resolved to speak to someone that wasn’t British and I got what I deserved with my first mime-nod-click stranger.
When I saw Sigmund he was kitted up in Spanish branded gear and astride a rather flash looking Specialized bicycle so he was a good non-tourist candidate. Off he cycled into the distance though, but as I continued on my walk I saw him again sat on a bench seat so I went and sat beside him, said Hola and asked if he spoke English …
… No he replied smiling and given it is such a short word and so easy to say I picked up no trace of an accent so I thought he was joking and asked if he was British. Apparently not … Isle of Man he explained … now I was confused, did he speak English or not? A few seconds later though we had it sorted – he hadn’t said Isle of Man he had said Alemania!!!
So he doesn’t speak English, I don’t speak German and we also established that I was letting the side down by not speaking Spanish so after exchanging names that only left gesturing to get the permission I needed. I mimed taking a photograph, pointed at Sigmund then pointed at my business cards and specifically at the Flickr web address … he nodded so I was good to go as far as I was concerned.
I took three shots with a bit of negative exposure compensation on the last to cope with the bright backlighting and then, much as I would have liked to ask where he was going on his expensive looking bike I realised that would be too painful to struggle through without a common language so I thanked him for his time (in Spanish which was a bit dumb given that I know enough German to have said Danke if I’d thought about it) and continued on my way.
I forgot to leave Sigmund my card so unfortunately there is no chance he will find this portrait but just in case … thank you.
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Please feel free to provide constructive critique on the technical aspects of this photograph.
This picture is #81 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page
99% Digital 