THE NEW KID IN TOWN: GO MAGAZINE

If your only entertainment is weekend trips to City Mall (and unfortunately there are a lot of you), the new magazine Go should come as a breath of fresh air. They are out to dispel the myth that there is nothing to do in Jordan. The magazine was created totally from scratch through a ton of hard work by the editors and designer. I wrote and contributed photos for the two pieces above. Look for the December issue on shelves soon, perhaps on your next trip to City Mall!

A COUPLE OF MY FAVORITE PICS FROM CLASS

I was right to have high expectations of my students. Their photos were great! Here are a few of my favorites from class today. Everyone had some great ones, but these are a few that really impressed me.

TEACHING PHOTOGRAPHY IN AMMAN

For the past month I've been teaching a photography class at an arts college here in Amman called SAE. It is a good school, and one of very few opportunities here to learn photography. Professionals in Jordan don't like to share tips and advise I suppose out of fear they may educate someone else into their jobs. I don't share that fear. I miss the way photographers in the US push each other to be better and the community they form. My students are very talented and have really impressed me thus far (we are a third of the way through the twelve week course). Yesterday we had a field trip with the aim of getting practice taking street photography. Not an easy thing in any country, but down right difficult in Jordan. After only an hour out on the streets of Madaba, they captured a ton of people pictures, doing the tough things I was asking them to, like staying with a subject for a while and moving people into better light. They went out again and got even better stuff. It should be noted that the majority, 12 of 17, are women. This is not the easiest country to be a woman, or so I've heard and seen. Appallingly, there are no women in the photography business here, but in my opinion, they have a clear advantage over most men; they can photograph women much easier than a male photographer. We ended the day on the farm of a friend taking magic hour photos of a gypsy family. A really great day of photography. Tonight I get to see what they shot, and if they'll let me, I'll post some of my favorites on this blog. Above are a few of my favorites that I shot.

WHERE "DEAD SEA" MUD REALLY COMES FROM

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These pictures were taken at the plant of the largest Dead Sea product manufacturing company in Jordan. I think most people envision their high priced Dead Sea mud coming directly from the idyllic shores of the actual Dead Sea. Well, it doesn't. It comes in bags from land owned by the Arab Potash Factory (they produce potassium chloride used in fertilizer), a heavily industrialized area around 20 kilometers south of the actual Dead Sea. It is purchased for around 30 cents per kilo, processed in a factory in Sahab, and then sold for up to $60 a kilo. A healthy profit margin for mud. These pictures show how the mud is processed. 1: Mud from the Arab Potash Factory arrives in canvas bags. It is removed and placed in plastic barrels. 2: Water is added to the mud and it is liquified using a large blender-like machine. 3: The muddy water is poured through a screen to filter out large impurities like rocks and sticks. The mud then sits in the barrels for 2 days to allow harmful chemicals to separate from the mud. 4: The mud is pumped to the roof of the building and is spread into thin layers and allowed to dry for two weeks. This evaporation process also leaches unwanted ingredients from the mud. After two weeks, the hardened mud is shoveled off the roof and put into large plastic bags. 5: The mud chips are placed into an industrial blender. It is here that many of the healing ingredients of "Dead Sea" mud are added along with water. 6: The final product is put into a fancy container. It will soon be purchased by an overweight American hoping to take a few years off her wrinkly face.

MEET ALI SULIMAN

I've got to start learning more about the people I photograph before I photograph them. I took this picture of Ali Suliman in the smokers lounge of the Sheraton Hotel in Amman. I was told by Nox magazine that he was an actor, but little did I know he played architect Omar Sadiki in Ridley Scott's Body of Lies. He was also one of the leads in the terrific movie Paradise Now, which was nominated for an Oscar. I don't think I would have taken a different photo, but I might have had more to chat with him about as I set up my lights. To his highest credit, he never once name dropped or rushed me through the shoot.

HOUSE HUNTERS INTERNATIONAL

Yes, Julie and I will be on the reality TV show called "House Hunters International". The show flew us back to the US so we could shoot for one day in our old floating house in Portland. The premise of the show is that people from the US or Canada sell their homes and move somewhere else in the world and look for housing. To be perfectly honest, neither of us have any desire to be on TV, we both just really wanted a break from Amman. It was great being back in the US. It was perfectly dreary and cold the whole week we were there. I'll keep everyone posted when I find out the actual air date of the show (probably not until March). I have a few more posts about our time back stateside, but I am exhausted from this world-wind tour. Give me a few days back in Amman to recover.

MY FIRST COVER FOR JO MAGAZINE

A year an a half ago when I arrived in Jordan, the first magazine I came across and was very impressed by was JO. It's the only magazine here that regularly address the tough issues. It's also one of the only magazines here that shoots their own covers. I had tried several times to get work with them, but they never needed anyone. I ended up pitching a couple of ideas a few months back and that's how I finally got published. The cover feature this month is a reworking of a piece I wrote for Nox magazine. Since that article published last March, the city of Amman secured the main landfill and the men who used to go inside and pick out the recycling to make a living are out of work. The article tells their story. Next month I have another feature that was one of the most challenging things I've ever shot.

ONE GOOD REASON TO MOVE TO JORDAN

KAYALI JEWERY CATALOG FINALLY FINISHED

I shot these jewelry images back in January of 2010, and the catalog just came out. The pieces are available at Kayali Jewelry here in Amman. Check it out if you're in town. They just remodeled.

"THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED"

It's probably not a coincidence that a documentary that shows Hugo Chavez in a light reminiscent of early American heros like Abraham Lincoln is impossible to find. The only place I could locate it was on google videos. The film follows the democratically elected President of Venezuela through a ridiculous coup attempt that was clearly orchestrated by the US government. Why would the US attempt to overthrow a hugely popular democratically elected president? Because he nationalized the oil business and restructured profits to make sure people in Venezuela benefited from their abundant natural resource. It is amazing the lengths rich people will go to to maintain their wealth. In this case, which I believe to be getting more and more rare, the rich people lost.

PRICE OF PETRA DOUBLES IN JUST FOUR YEARS

Today the cost of a single day entry ticket into Petra was raised from 33 JOD to 50 JOD (from $46 to $70). When I visited in 2006 the cost was 24 JOD. It's getting kind of expensive to see this wonder of the world. It may in fact be the most expensive wonder in the world! Is it wonderful? Yes. It is a must see. Could they use another kid inside selling postcards? No. These are pictures I took this past weekend right before the price increase.