My first African experience came about after receiving the 1974 Kodak/Scholastic National Photography Scholarship which included a trip to Kenya and Tanzania. For over a month my safari led me from the shores of Mombasa to the Serengeti plains. I photographed herds of zebras in Ngorongoro Crater and camped at the base of Mount Kilimanjaro. For a 17-year-old kid who loved photography, it was the adventure of a lifetime. During one memorable afternoon, I grabbed a lounge chair on the roof of our game lodge and settled in for a traditional English tea with scones and cucumber sandwiches. As the sun set behind the nearby watering hole, only the occasional sound of splashing elephants trickled through the peaceful scene. During the solitude, I decided to be a photojournalist. …show more content…
Things sure had changed since my scholarship to Kenya and Tanzania in 1974. Back then I had a single Nikon FTN film camera with four lenses in addition to several rolls of Kodachrome 64 slide film. In 2012 , I selected two Nikon D700 digital cameras with a Nikkor 14-24mm, 24-70mm, 70-200mm and 80-400mm zoom lenses. Additionally, I brought two Leica M7 film rangefinder bodies with a 28mm, 55mm. 90mm and 135mm lenses along with several rolls of Tri-X film. Frankly, if I had a choice, I would have used only black and white film. Juggling analog and digital between two camera systems is torturous but I find it worth the struggle. This had not been much of a problem in the past but at age 57, the harsh conditions of Angola challenged my limits. I asked my wife Corinna to help me and she happily agreed to come along.
The game plan was to get down to Angola, photograph as much as possible before catching malaria, yellow fever, typhoid, hepatitis or ending up being arrested or detained. Angola is a beautifully wild and dusty place but it's full of minefields both literally and
The African empires, kingdoms, and cities had many achievements before the arrival of the Europeans. Some of these achievements had influences many other places in the world. Three major achievements were the trading systems, their military forces and strengths of its people, and the wealth and success.
In the essay “Why Africa? Why Art?” by Kwame Anthony Appiah, he talks about basically how Africa is thought to be an uncivilized barren and that’s the stereotypical thing that comes to most people’s mind when thinking about this continent. African art has to look a certain way to be able to be called “African.” It has to be made by a tribe, not just one person which is why he says that most African pieces are signed with a tribe name, not just one name. Appiah gives an example of these Asante gold weights that his mother had a collection of. Their use value was to weigh gold dust, which used to be the method of currency. They were made as a utilitarian product, not for art, but many people started to recognize the aesthetic value. He says, “…in appreciating and collecting these weights as art, we are doing something new with them…” These days art is defined to be a certain way and look a certain way. It can’t just be anything, it has to have an aesthetic value to be considered art and to fall into the “guidelines”.
Wildlife tourism has become a particularly popular trend over the years. Riding on elephants, taking pictures with lions, swimming with dolphins are only a few of the adventurous and thrilling activities that wildlife tourism provides. Even my own school is planning a trip to South Africa to participate in several of the enthralling ventures.
During this period of literature of the Reconstruction to the New Negro Renaissance, 1865-1919, African Americans were becoming more educated and more aware of the rights that they were entitled to. The start of this Reconstruction Era began after 1863’s emancipation of slaves in the Confederate states and the Civil War’s end in 1865. Although the three Civil Rights amendments, thirteenth(1865), fourteenth (1868), and fifteenth (1870), ends slavery in slaves states, ensures equal protection and due process for all citizens, and gives voting rights to all men(Black and White), institutionalized segregation was still an issue(UShistory.org). Nevertheless, more voices began to emerge as social and political changes were made approaching the Renaissance. These brave men and woman of color tried these issues and expressed themselves using the art of literature. The major reasons Blacks displayed these expressions was to: (1) articulate intellectual achievements, (2) teach themselves, (3) correct the historical record of the black experience, and (4) document and shape social and political aspirations and conditions(Gates). After the distinguished abolitionist and writer Fredrick Douglass died on February 20, 1895 at Cedar Hill’s woman’s rights meeting one intellectual leader in particular, Booker T. Washington, become a key spokes person and writer of the Black Community(bibliography.com). Dr. Washington’s “Atlanta Compromise” is noted as one of the most influential and significant speeches delivered in America(Gaston). It’s time to explicate Dr. Washington’s address as it relates to the one of the four major aims for writing literature during this era and his life story.
Slavery. Many people today would like to forget that part of America 's past but, for African Americans, it is not so easily forgotten. For African Americans, life in America has been tumultuous to say the least. Since those first few horrendous centuries, African Americans have been making strides towards a better existence. Things are better now because of the countless African Americans who strived and believed that things could be better for their people. Even though African Americans still have a ways to go, African Americans have come a long way over the course of 100 years because the foundation of the NAACP, the Harlem Renaissance, the "I Have A Dream" speech, and the fact that an
The African culture was great and thriving even before European settlement. They had art, architecture, trade, and a thriving military to protect their great civilization. All of these things contributed to a civilization that no one could say was not thriving.
... learning the aspects of encountering new: people, plants, animals, and minerals, with in Africa, South-East Asia, and the Americas.
In my senior year of high school, I join a program called "The International Youth Leadership Institute" which sponsored by Teachers College and Columbia University. Through this program, it afforded me the opportunity to travel outside the United States. In 1991 I was blessed with the opportunity along with 20 high school students from across the five boroughs, to travel to Senegal, West
The evolution of how the Irish became white is very interesting. It shows how the “Irish” word was used as a derogatory term to establish how low on the totem pole they were and how close they are to Afro-Americans. The book also shows how they had to change their values and try to integrate themselves into American society. Seemingly there were also many instances where the Irish had to push a feverishly high work ethic and work for less to eventually push Afro Americans out of jobs and establish their identity as whites in this country.
When it comes to the African continent we could say that we've heard a lot and nothing at the same time, this is because the history of Africa is barely starting to be written and we are somehow ignorant to the great wonders of this huge and vast continent. Its large and magnificent empires, kings and queens that ruled for generations, centuries at times and also is host of spectacular ruins scattered widely throughout the continent, but even with all these wonderful things that this continent offers to this day there are those who say, and think that Africa is a continent without history, culture and has offered nothing to the world in any form or manner. Africa has always been seen and perceived as the dark continent, this because Europeans claimed and saw the Africans as people without culture, progress and because they were different Europeans concluded that the continent was plunged into a dark age and this is where the term "dark continent" comes from. Africa has always been a source of debate in terms of culture, technology, economy, and in every way you can imagine, it has been labeled as the dark continent from centuries ago just for not being at the forefront as the other continents and although it not called in this way anymore there are still people who think of Africa in the same way. Oyebade argues:
+pointing out some shortages of digital cameras when compare with traditional ones and gives some advices.
Based on a novel by C. S. Forester, The African Queen (1951) is the story of two irascible misfits, thrown together by adversity, forced to reconcile their considerable differences for the sake of justice and survival, who inexplicably end up falling in love. Set in Africa as the first World War begins, German troops destroy the missionary outpost of Reverend Samuel Sayer (Robert Morley) and his sister Rose (Katherine Hepburn). Their only contact with civilization is Charlie Allnut (Humphrey Bogart), the seedy pilot of their supply boat. When Charlie finds Rose in the burnt out settlement after her brother has died, he takes her on board to avoid capture, and what begins as a plan to simply 'hide' becomes a mission of heroism. Charlie suffers Rose's starchy spinsterhood, while Rose comes to terms with Charlie's crude, slovenly behavior and drunkenness, as their humorous journey reaches its harrowing and memorable
There are many similarities among most African creation stories. Likewise certain differences are also noticeable. For example, I chose four creation stories to make the comparisons between them. The first one is "An African Cosmogony." Here, Bumba is the creator. He created nine living creatures, after vomiting the sun and the moon, from which all other animals emerged. The second one, "An African story of the Creation of Man", is a story among the Shilluks of the White Nile which basically explains the different complexions among the various races on Earth. They believed Juok molded all men of earth while he wandered the earth creating the rest of the world. White men were created from white sand which Juok found in the land of the white. Red or brown men were created out of the mud of the Nile in Egypt. Black men were created from black earth found in the land of the Shilluck. According to this creation story, man was given all necessary parts to function. Each part had a reason for being. For example, Juok gave man arms in order for man to work. The third one, "God and the Five women" states the myth of the origin of earth, fire, water and woman, from the Thompson Indians of North Pacific Coast. This creation story states that Earth was created by Old One or Chief. He came down from the upper world in a cloud and created five Perfectly formed young women. To each of them he asked what they wished to be. The first one wished to be "bad". The second one wanted to be "good". The third one wanted to become Earth. The fourth one wanted to become Fire. And the fifth one became water. Finally, the fourth story, "Creation by Thought" states that man was created out of a thinking process by which he first created the Earth and then created man in resemblance of himself. The Earthcreator designed man out of clay. He gave man mind and thought, tongue, soul, and the ability to talk. All of these features came about out of a thought process.
Africa My Africa by David Diop is an excellent example of a post-colonialism piece of work. After researching the author of the poem, I thoroughly understood and enjoyed the text more than just reading it over, without knowing his personal biographical information. David Diop is an African poet, who was born in France. His parents are of the West African descent (Poets.org). Diop emphasizes the problems of Africa that were brought about by colonialism, and shares a message to Africans to bring about change and freedom through his poem, Africa My Africa. Colonialism is the political, social, economic, and cultural domination of a territory and its people by a foreign power.
I wandered leisurely along the shadowy paths, enjoying the peaceful surroundings. With only the songs of birds for company, I felt completely isolated from the crowds and traffic as I walked over the deep carpet of leaves. It had begun to rain a litt le when I first started my journey. However, small patches of sunshine soon began to filter through the giant oaks, promising that the rest of may day would be pleasant.