Story hunting

Saturday, May 2, 2009; A morning in the Uvita Market

I have spent the last 3 days in front of computers editing images from a recent tumbling tournament so it is time to take a mental break and dip into some images from my recent trip to Costa Rica.

Uvita is a small town about 20 minutes north of where we stay in southwestern Costa Rica. On Saturday we took our first trip to the weekly market, or the Feria as the locals call it, where people from the area sell everything from orchids and organic groceries to native masks and wildlife photos.

It was a toasty morning with temps in the upper 80’s when I noticed a dog planted in front of a fan, he had the right idea. As I was shooting a few frames of Joe Cool I noticed a man sitting by a table full of wildlife photos.

I have always loved being on the streets because it gave me a reason to walk up to random people and strike up a conversation looking for a good story idea. Brian Nice is the developer of the property where the market is held but he is also a bird lover and it shows in his photos.

Generally I will not stop unless I really like the work and Brian's images are tight, colorful, well composed and he knew everything about each of his subjects. I wandered over and struck up a conversation with wildlife photographer. I have not run into a lot of people with long glass down there and I knew Brian was using at least a 600. We talked a bit about the variety of bird species in the area and how the numbers are dropping, he knows because he keeps a count.

Brian told me a story about how he invited someone to go bird watching with him and they showed up in their gear and climbing boots ready to hit the jungle. Take a seat he told them, he does all his bird watching from his home. He pointed to one of his photos he told me, “This one was taken about 10 meters from where I sleep, that one there about 2 meters.”

At another table a couple was looking over a mask among the homemade made crafts displayed by a Borucan man. The Boruca tribe are known for their art and craftwork, especially weaving and their distinctive painted balsa wood masks. The village is just over an hour drive south up in the mountains.

Many of the pictures I have made on this trip are reminders of stories that I want to follow up on in upcoming adventures. I hope to hang with Brian in the morning birdwatching, work on a story on Costa Rican dogs and spend a little time in the village of Boruca during their annual Danza de los Diablitos ceremony.

-john

all photos © John Konstantaras