Festivals in San Miguel de Allende

It seems like there is always some sort of festival going on in San Miguel. In fact, there really is. Most of these are tied to religious or Mexican national events, but at times there also those unexpected festivals. When they involve children they can make for extra special photographic events. And who doesn’t love the smiles and special faces that children can make. Add a few costumes and now there is magic in the air.

Last year and again this year there was the multicultural school event with kids coming from many districts. I wasn't paying special attention to the date as I didn’t even know it was happening again. I only came by the festival when I was heading by the Jardin. Which is a daily ritual for me in my treks around town. I didn't notice the festival event in the local paper Atencion which is great for highlighting events in and around town. There is always so much going on that it's easy to miss one, or sometimes the festival's name is in Spanish and it may not be evident by its title.

I asked one of the girls participants to pose with the rose as she seemed to have the best smile of all of them.

She and the boy in the image above were the central characters in their school skit.

The pair of them started off sitting on a bench and the boy appeared to reject the advances of the girl. I believe that this was part of a Valentines theme as every person had a heart on their palms.

After a short interval, with the music was playing all the time, the rest of their class mates joined them on stage and performed a choreographed dance.

It was great fun to watch and in this photo you can see all their hearts on their hands.

A few weeks later I came across an art festival called “Thank You Art' project. This is were kids and some adults, me included, glued coloured tissue paper to a clear plexiglass sheet.

They were allowed to cut the sheets into strange shapes or with cut-outs and even write messages on their sheets.

Then they were glued on top of each other in a multitude of different colors. When the panels were hung in a lighted area they glowed like stained glass panels.

During my photographing of the kids enjoying themselves one of the directors of the project asked me if they could use some of my photos for the up coming display of the final glass sheets.

I was fortunate to have several of my images selected for the Art show in the Biblioteca that ran for 2 weeks.

They printed my images 39cm x 52 cm (15” x 20”) and hung them on the wall around the 2 plexiglass sheets that looked like large stained glass windows.

When in San Miguel you should always, and I mean always, have your camera with you as you never know what's just waiting around the next corner. Three times during my winter stay I did not take my camera with me and I regretted it each time. Now I don't leave home without it. It may be a bit heavy so I carry it in my backpack.

Niels Henriksen

Why Photographing Hats Can Improve Your Street People Photography

This wasn’t something that I consciously knew, maybe deep down we all tend to know these types of things, but something I discovered while undertaking a new photography project in San Miguel de Allende.

There are many, many ideas to photograph in San Miguel. Doors are a very common theme, I did one last year and one I am continuing this year. I was looking for something different and with the almost constant blue skies and bright sun, even stronger at 6,800 feet, most people if not all the gringos wear hats.

Everyday I walk around photographing almost anything and everything. Great fun and focusing on Hats gave me a new challenge.

I am reserved when it comes to photographing people out and about on the street. I feel reluctant to invade their privacy but deep down I love how people relate and engage the city streets. Here in Mexico, being such a tourist destination, the locals are even more wary of being photographed and many times hide there face or just look away. If a person is not comfortable with their photo being taken I won't take it.

A different type of sun covering

When I photographed street people I tended to hesitate too long (should I or not) with taking the shot and the impromptu moment was lost as they tended to now be aware of the camera.

This man is not praying but doing close-up photography of the cactus

I found out after the fact that when I was just focusing on people's hats I tended to think less of the person and more on the object of the hat. This allowed me to be quicker with the decision to shoot and also it allowed me to shoot more often.

Who wouldn't love this big Mexican hat

Because I was focusing on an object it even allowed me to approach people and ask then if I could photograph them with their hat as this was a project of mine. I think people felt more comfortable in letting me photograph them because I wasn't really just photographing them. It was an inanimate object and somehow that was OK.

A hatted man with lots of hats

I suggest you give yourself a try at this project and see if you don't now photograph more people.

Niels Henriksen

An Explosion of Colors at the El Señor de la Conquista Festival in San Miguel de Allende

The one thing I enjoy most about San Miguel de Allende is that you'er busy. I'm taking photographs everyday, meeting old and new friends and enjoying lots of events. There are many artist shows opening every week and then there's the special film showing and theater plays. The downside, at least for my blog readers, is the problem with actually getting down and writing a new article.

I was working on a theme and then on Friday the 2nd of March there was the 'El Señor de la Conquista' Festival in San Miguel de Allende in and around the center square called 'el Jardin'.

There were 5 different groups from local towns nearby each with their own style of dress and costumes. Withh such a display of colors and action it was not hard to keep photographing as they almost performed continuously for 10 hours. There was a small break in the afternoon as they started around 10:00am and continued until 9:00pm.

Even the people resting provided good photographic opportunities.

It's easy to see from the next photo how much these dancers enjoyed and were engrossed with their performances.

During breaks they laid their headdress on the ground.

The music playing and drums resonated over the whole town all day long and if you wanted a quiet spot you almost had to head out of town.

Great costumes and action.

Even fathers and sons participated.

San Miguel is first an historic town with stunning architecture but the festivals which almost happen every weekend during some months add that extra spice and color to your stay here.

Niels Henriksen

San Miguel de Allende – Part 6

This final set of photos from San Miguel are an assortment of odds and ends. A potpourri of fun stuff.

There was just something intriguing about this old German VW bug, not in pristine condition parked at Berlin bistro bar along Pica Sila Street. I used an overlay effect and some 'curves' adjustment on car only to make it more grungy.

At the school cultural event with the hundreds of kids (see link People of San Miguel ), it was difficult to isolate the subject for other children. With these 2 boys I was able to get grey background to help the boys bandannas stand out.

There is already enough color with the bright building in San Miguel so when you find a subject even more vivid, it just begs to be photographed. I did use selective contrast enhancement of the man's clothes.

In Juarez Park there are, especially on weekends, artists who display and sell their painting. The long bearded gentleman clearly typified for me the appearance of a classic artist.

This image was discovered when I was reviewing some of the photos taken. When you walk along capturing interesting moments you don't always notice everything in the field of view. This can be bad but sometimes good. In the photo above I like the disconnect and differences between the lady on the left and the 2 people interacting on the right.

There is nothing quite like a good fish market. I feel you're not experiencing the local flavors until you find places like these mixed in with all the other vendors around.

The el Jardin Park which is officially Plaza Allende, is the favourite gathering place of almost everyone in San Miguel. A wide collection of people show up from big show bands to nightly mariachi bands to single soloists.

One item that never ceased to amaze me is the bright jacaranda trees that were in full bloom.

Niels Henriksen

People Getting Around in San Miguel de Allende – Part 4

The previous set of images that dealt with the subject of people from San Miguel were more from a tourist perspective.  Those subjects that grab your attention. Almost demand to be photographed.

I also thought that the following set of photographs had a demand for attention. From many people I've met here in San Miguel there is this understanding of 'Mexican time'.  For all things, it generally takes  longer and can be further delayed at any time.


With Fed Ex being known for its speed, I couldn't help but notice the context of the old bent man in his blue jacket, sitting with his walker beside this sign. Is this an employee waiting for his next delivery? His orange peels also tie connection back to dual color sign.

It almost seems perfect when a complimentary color walks into the field of view. I like this version better because the door balances out nicely with the man. Whereas the other photo with the windows along the wall didn't quite match the image.

San Miguel is a city built like a taco shell. Open ends and step sides. The church 'La Paroquia' is situated on a knoll itself on one of the sides.  Therefore, most of the city streets are steep and cobblestoned. At times, I find walking tiresome. I just couldn't quite believe it when a person went cycling by on a leisurely pace up one of those steep streets.

On another part of town there was a man delivering some sort of goods to local stores while using a laden down donkey as his delivery vehicle. Several days later I saw, in more residential parts of town, a man with 6 fully loaded donkeys like below.

This man on a horse in historic dress is actually an on-duty policeman of San Miguel. As far as I can tell, there are 2 of these officers in town.

The building might be interesting by itself, but with the people we now have all 6 primary colors of  Red-Orange/Yellow/Green/Blue/Purple. The interesting part with the people is that they are all in different modes of transportation.

San Miguel is known for its strong bright colours. These can at times be all mashed together in one block.  The red scooter adds to the dominance of the bold window on the red wall.

 


Niels Henriksen

People of San Miguel de Allende Mexico– Part 3

The first two articles showed photos that a tourist would normally expect to see in and around San Miguel. They do show that San Miguel is a very vibrant and diverse town. Like most towns, its not just about the colourful buildings or its natural surroundings, it's also the daily life.

It seems that almost every weekend, sometimes even during the week, there is some sort of festival underway which eventually winds up in the main town centre, 'Le Jardin'.
On one Friday there was a large school cultural event which I think was in its 4th year, at least with my best translation.  There where hundreds of kids in colourful transitional costumes. Each group took turns on stage performing their routines.

 These 8 boys were waiting patiently, which isn't normal for most boys, for their turn on the school stage that had been set up in 'Le  Jardin'.

It's great when you can catch those unexpected movements like the boy above hanging around under the stage. The sun is always very strong and hot so any place to get in the shade is a good thing.

 The girls on the other hand have no trouble showing off and posing for a photo shoot.

 The  people come in many different outfits from what's on their face to the clothes they wear.

There are many beggars throughout the downtown core. It's obvious that they are poor, especially with the average daily wage in Mexico of $15.00US. But the troubling part is that during tourist season,  some men drop off their wives, kids and even their mothers to beg 12 hours a day. Some women even have babies cradled in their arms. There are very young children sitting all day in the same spot  with their mothers not doing anything. It seems such a waste.

But whichever way you look at it, they are poor and a helping hand is always a good thing.

There are many other people who manage to get around and seem somehow to earn money from the tourists.

Some people don't have a regular place to work and can be found working in the streets.

This lady may look frail but I bet she can out walk me.

Some people bring the pets to Le Jardin because I guess there is not already enough colour around.


Niels Henriksen