Ghana Reflections

Words and photographs by Gordon Lewis

My wife and three kids and I recently returned from a two-week trip to Ghana. This excursion consisted of a week of volunteer activities in Lolito, a small village in the Volta region, followed by a week of sightseeing in Accra (the capitol) and Cape Coast, the former center of the slave trade. Not only was this our first trip to Ghana, it was our first trip to the African continent. This holds special significance for most people of African-American heritage, just as a visit to Ireland might for Irish-Americans.

We had researched and talked with Ghanian friends before the trip, so we had a good idea of what to expect. Nevertheless, there are always a few surprises when visiting a country so different from one’s own. One such surprise was that, despite heritage, we couldn't pass for African, at least not by Ghanian standards. Our skin wasn’t dark enough, we didn’t speak any of the local languages, and the English we spoke had a distinctly non-Ghanian accent. We were obroni—foreigners. This made me a lot more conspicuous than I expected, even more so when I had a DSLR slung over my shoulder and my multi-hued family in tow. My street photographer’s mindset of keeping a low profile was often useless. Instead, I had to resign myself to being the center of attention—not that there’s anything wrong with that.

This situation was most acute when I was anywhere near street vendors eager to make a sale, less so when I was visiting crowded local markets and could wander around long enough for my novelty status to wear off. Fortunately, and with few exceptions, the people I encountered were friendly and liked being photographed. Even indifference would draw a smile when I shared the results. Patience, mutual respect, a cheerful attitude, and humility are a universal currency.

Another pleasant surprise was that the continually overcast skies in Ghana, which I had expected based on prior research, did not result in drab, washed-out images. In fact, the reduced lighting contrast made it easier to record acceptable shadow detail in dark African skin tones without blowing out the highlights or having to resort to flash fill. Shooting in color added enough additional “pop” that I rarely felt the need to touch a saturation or contrast slider. Here's a very small but representative sampling of the images I got.

Lolito village boys, Ghana

 

Painter, Lolito, Ghana

 

Hot pepper vendor, Lolito-area market, Ghana

 

Bronze sculpture vendor, Accra arts and crafts marketplace, Ghana

 

Painted man on Oxford Street, Accra, Ghana

 

Late afternoon in Internet cafe, Accra, Ghana

My biggest regret was losing an SD card that had two days' worth of my best shots. I left my laptop at home for weight reasons and was well aware of the risk of not being able to make daily backups. Nevertheless, the constant activity of traveling, packing, unpacking, shooting, and card-swapping made keeping track of several identical-looking cards an even bigger challenge than I expected. I console myself with the knowledge that my family and I had a wonderful time and returned home safely, with no major mishaps, infections, or digestive distress.

As a final note for those of you who may be curious, the equipment I brought with me was nothing special: a Canon EOS 70D with 18–55mm ƒ/3.5–5.6 STM kit zoom, 28mm ƒ/2.8 IS USM, and 50mm ƒ/1.8 STM. The zoom was for daylight, the primes for low-light. Because of their quick and quiet focusing, all three lenses were equally handy for video. The 70D’s large battery capacity and low current drain were also a great comfort in a country where power outages are common. The combined weight was still under five pounds, which is my personal limit for travel.

If you like the photos that accompany this post and aspire to something similar, my advice would be that it's more important to be in the right place than to have the "right" equipment.

For more photos from Ghana, feel free to visit my online gallery.

Gordon

Friend and regular contributor Gordon Lewis is the author of Street Photography: The Art of Capturing the Candid Moment, published by Rocky Nook.

©2015 by Gordon Lewis, all rights reserved

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

John Garrity (partial comment): "Gordon Lewis's post is pertinent for myself as I'm currently in my wife's home city in China. Being tall and a 'long nose' I stick out. Am an object of curiosity—frequently at the receiving end of stares, which while often impassive are not hostile. I just smile back and say hello in Mandarin, while if at a suitable distance and appropriate, flap a hand in a gentle wave, and embarrassment normally melts. Photographing people here is easy if you are patient. Wait ten minutes and don't hide what you are doing, then you soon become a familiar if eccentric presence."

[For the full text of partially excerpted comments, please see the Comments Section. —Ed.]

Ken Tanaka: "A wonderful photo essay, Gordon. The best photographs pose more questions than they answer, and some of yours pose memorable questions. Was that man painting bars on his house's windows? Is that fellow the sculptor of those bronze pieces? And, best of all, what's up with that painted fellow walking near the car?! (I think he has a brother in downtown Chicago, by the way.)

"Your remarks about being an obvious foreigner in a country with which you might feel genealogically linked resonates with me. Although I do not have strong Japanese facial features I recall being rather a bit embarrassed while visiting Japan. In one incident a group of museum curators, guided by my name, immediately began assuming that I could act as translator for my party of fellow Americans. My slightly yellow face turned quite red.

"Thank you for your delightful notes, and for the reminder that being and seeing trumps the 'right' lens and camera."

Comments

[Paulo Bizarro]

Good story and images, thanks for sharing.

[Alan Hill]

Ghana is a beautiful country and the Ghanaian people are wonderful. Forty years ago, I spent two years teaching at Kpandu, up-country in the Volta Region. I still treasure the photos I took then, although they look very amateur by today's standards. Thank you for stirring my memories.

[John Garrity]

Gordon Lewis's post is pertinent for myself as I'm currently in my wifes home city in China. Being tall & and a 'long nose' I stick out. Am an object of curiosity - frequently at the receiving end of stares, which while often impassive are not hostile. I just smile back & say hello in Manadarin, while if at a suitable distance & appropriate, flap a hand in a gentle wave & embarassment normally melts.

Photographing people here is easy if you are patient. Wait ten minutes & don't hide what you are doing, then you soon become a familiar if eccentric presence.

I photograph with black-and-white film only. Can't be so easily lost as a card, but flying in & out & entering railway staitions it is necessary to get a hand inspection of the film, rather than trusting it to multiple passes throug X-ray machines.

This trip I am using a single raty Leica M6 with 35 & 50mm lenses. I also have a Hasselblad Xpan with 45mm. For me the 50mm is often too long, being embarrassing to use as it risks being outside an individual's social space. Fine for portraits though. The 35mm is all thats really necessary.

The Xpans panoramic format is great for the extra information at the sides, though you need to add a focussing tab to get the most out of it.

It is best for me to photograph on my own. Yaqing doesn't get bored & I can access places she cannot or would be uninterested in - universities; kindergartens; mahjong parlours with their endless cups of tea.

Robert Capa's "Get close, then closer still." is excellent advice, both physically & emotionally.

Because Yaqing and I come roughly every 18 months or so, I always bring prints for people. My mendicant searches for people in turn creates fresh opportunities.

[Ken Tanaka]

A wonderful photo essay, Gordon. The best photographs pose more questions than they answer, and some of yours pose memorable questions. Was that man painting bars on his house's windows? Is that fellow the sculptor of those bronze pieces? And, best of all, what's up with that painted fellow walking near the car?! (I think he has a brother in downtown Chicago, btw.)

Your remarks about being an obvious foreigner in a country with which you might feel genealogically linked resonates with me. Although I do not have strong Japanese facial features I recall being rather a bit embarrassed while visiting Japan. In one incident a group of museum curators, guided by my name, immediately began assuming that I could act as translator for my party of fellow Americans. My slightly yellow face turned quite red.

Thank you for your delightful notes, and for the reminder that being and seeing trumps the "right" lens and camera.

[Bill Mitchell]

Gordon,
I enjoyed your book, and the print I bought from TOP.
I hope you made a diary of your trip and will print it on your website. (Even if you didn't write one at the time, you can re-construct it from your memory and your wife's.)

[Kaemu]

This is great, thanks Gordon!

I grew up in that part of the world. This brings back great memories.

[Larry]

I had a similar racial limbo experience when my Dad took me on my first trip to China in the mid '80's. Although we were both Chinese and from the same part of China as the locals, our clothes and general mannerisms made it obvious to everyone else that we were foreigners.
Taxi drivers would stop for us instead of the locals but would also abandon us if we tried to pay in local currency instead of the more valuable foreign exchange certificates.

Also, sorry to hear about your lost SD card. When I travel light (ie: sans laptop), I use my Android phone or tablet to backup over USB to a small, portable hard-drive. Works great and doesn't rely on any kind of wifi.

[Kefyn Moss]

They're all great pics Gordon and I love the colour contrasts in the boys against the blue wall.
I always travel light and have for years been using a portable HD. I would recommend one of the many Hyperdrive products for backup when traveling.

[rob]

Larry,
Great to hear that you’ve been able to back up your pictures on the road with minimal equipment.

Are you shooting with a MicroSD card in an adapter in your camera, then putting the MicroSD card directly into your Android phone/tablet? And then connecting a non-powered USB hard drive to your phone via a USB OTG cable and using a file manager to copy the files over?

Gordon,
Wonderful pictures.

[Rev. Heng Sure]

Thoughtful article, lovely photos. Thanks.

[Gordon Lewis]

"Was that man painting bars on his house's windows? Is that fellow the sculptor of those bronze pieces? And, best of all, what's up with that painted fellow walking near the car?!"

Thank you most sincerely for the compliments, Ken. I really try for photos that ask more questions than they answer. But since you asked, the answers to your questions are:

No, he was painting bars on the window of a classroom -- not that that's necessarily any better.

Yes, he was hammering on a sheeting of bronze when I photographed him.

The painted man is a street performer who stands stock-still in the middle of the street while holding out his hand and hoping for tips. He hangs out on Oxford Street in Accra's Osu tourist and shopping area.