The word “Carnival” is derived from the Latin “Carne
Vale” and translates into
“Farewell to the Flesh”.
The inspiration for this Series
of Carnival Photographs came
after being a key on camera
interviewee for a Documentary which aired in Canada recently titled “Where is Home?”
which was produced by Two
Time Emmy Award Winner Paul
Saltzman and directed by Aga
Alegria. The film discuses the
lives of Expats who grew up
around the world and the trials and experiences they encountered in a globetrotting
lifestyle. One main aspect of
the film is that it discusses how
one may not feel connected to
their parent’s homeland if they
live outside that country for an
extended period of time, especially during their formative
years. I grew up in four continents, living in diverse places
for significant periods of time.
These places include Borneo
and Jakarta in Indonesia, Paris,
Argentina, Texas, Canada and
more. I did live in Trinidad for
a short while when I was very
young, but didn’t at that time
partake in mas fully, so doing
this whole project was a form
of self-discovery and discovery
of my parents’ heritage that I
was never around to be a part
of and never fully understood
until now.
I am primarily a portrait photo-
grapher so I approached the
subject matter as if they were
portraits as opposed to large
group shots with hundreds of
masqueraders in the frame.
I spent the years of 2011 to
2013 focused on photographing mainly Traditional Mas and
J’ouvert as each costume tells
an element of the folklore and
history of the country. I did
however photograph certain
kings and queens as well. Doing
this project was a way for me to
learn about the heritage and
culture I never knew growing
up. I also spent the past three
years researching as much as
I could about the characters
in my photos by talking to the
individual masqueraders such
as the fancy Indians, blue devils etc. and by spending time in
their homes and mas camps.
All these experiences furthered
my appreciation of the Art that
is mas. When first witnessing
the celebration, I found it to
be similar to a live Broadway
Show on the streets, or a form
of street theatre. As they masqueraded through the streets,
I felt driven to capture them
in the cathartic frenzy that is
Trinidad Carnival. In doing so,
I learned a lot about Trinidad’s
heritage, folklore and culture.
‘Instead of using
on camera flash
or daylight, I carried around large
studio lights single handedly or
with a taxi driver
as an assistant.
I photographed the project
in a slightly unorthodox manner. Instead of using on camera flash or daylight, I carried
around large studio lights single handedly or with a taxi driver as an assistant. I was running
around Trinidad photographing mas with everything from
Alien bees to Profoto studio
lights with large soft boxes and
octabanks powered by battery
packs and stands balanced by
weights and bricks. As a result,
the photos have a polished
aesthetic. The work may look
heavily photo shopped or digitized but it’s the lighting from
large soft boxes, which gives
the photos that polished feel
and look. The only factors that
were done in computer were
dodging, burning and sharpening of the image. The rest is
all lighting.