This aunty above is Un's aunt in Thailand. She's very quiet, shy and of few words. I didn't have any interaction with her for two or three times we met till I took her portrait. After that she's quite warm to me even though we can't talk to each other (since I don't speak Thai). I am not good at making friends or talking, so this making-friends via photography is really handy.
Portrait photography is different from other photography genre that it impacts only selected individuals, but the impact on them is deeper than the impact you can have on wider public by some other genre, say nature or wildlife (I'm not talking about photojournalism or top-notch artists).
I am not an artist. My photography skills are not creative or top of the line. I like portraiture just because I like to see people happy with their picture I took. It's an instant self-esteem boost for them as well as me. Seeing someone really happy with their photo is worth more to me than 100 likes on facebook. It's personal.
I once did a portrait session for our housemaid in Yangon. Being a maid in Myanmar means you don't get to do photoshoots or fancy studio sessions much. I just want to give her beautiful portraits that she can keep. She loved them and she was so thankful till these days that her relationship with me has became much warmer and more personal.
These joys from my portrait people give me more energy than anything else to keep me going with portraits work. They are priceless.
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