logistics questions re: photographing/documenting Guarani Indian tribes

[german]

<p>Hi,<br>

I posed this question on the journalism part of the forum, but I'd like to ask the questions here as well, as I don't know which one would be the most appropriate forum to discuss it. Please forgive me if this is inappropriate forum behavior!<br>

In any case, here are my questions:<br>

has anyone made a somewhat long or long project photographing and/or documenting (documentary work) the lives of some of the many Guarani Indian groups in Brazil, Paraguay and/or Argentina, and the issues they face<br>

if so, what are the logistic problems one would face when attempting such type of work, and how did you or how would you solve them? and what I am talking about are mostly a beginner's questions like:<br>

1. how much storage capability do you carry (how many gigs of memory space do you or would you carry), keeping in mind that you are the one carrying all of this, maybe in a back pack. what storage device, small, with plenty of memory space, and not too expensive would you recommend?)<br>

2. how do you or would you go about charging the camera batteries, and the laptop batteries, and any other electronic equipment one might need? would you carry a bunch of extra AA batteries, if you equipment does use such batteries? (I don't want to and will not be able to take a truck full of equipment.)<br>

... and by the way, I am thinking of staying a few months (maybe 3 to 6 months or so). ... i guess this answers part of my questions ... i would have to go to town (any nearby or faraway town) every once in a while.<br>

but, going back to the questions, how would you handle those problems before having to go to town?<br>

3. would one camp with the people one is photographing? (some of these groups live in tents they make with big, plastic garbage bags, by the side of the road, like in the Mato Gross do Sul (Southern Mato Grosso), in Brazil.<br>

4. how did you handle the first assignment? how were you introduced to the tribe? <br>

5. anything else that might be necessary? -- how did you handle the eating over there? ... the drinking of the water? (any filtration, or did you just use/drink the water from the water wells?) (I guess using those chlorine tablets would help there!)<br>

6. and I dread this, coming from a photography background, but how did you handle the sound recording, if you did make any "documentary" work? (I am planning on sticking with still images just to avoid the additional requirements, such as good sound, a steady tripod for filming, etc.)<br>

... in any event, thanks for your recommendations whether you did go on any such trip, or whether you simply have some common sense advise!<br>

oh, and could you please point me in the right direction as far as where to find all this information -- if there is such a site for "documentary photography work necessities" or such.<br>

thanks again!</p>

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[leslie_cheung]

<p>1. Depends on the shooter's style...raw or jpeg? shoots a lot, or more film like (minimal) shooting, edit daily or weekly etc...<br /> 2. Solar power most likely<br /> 3. If you're doing daily documentation, most likely<br /> 4. Probably thru some NGO, or organization which has local ground contacts<br /> 5. Common sense is to eat what they eat and bring some medicine<br /> 6. Sound recorders are fairly small/light and inexpensive. Many modern digicams have good video functions.</p>

<p>FYI I have no personal experience w/ these tribes.</p>

[german]

<p>.. thanks Leslie!</p>

<p>I grew up on film photography, so, i shoot a lot, but i don't "overshoot" .. i think! I am planning on shooting daily ... but also on doing video (through video DSLR cam), which we know uses a lot of memory!</p>

<p>I'll need to see about the solar power situation. Would that be a solar charger?<br>

3. camping or a communal tent would work, if available!<br>

4. i've contacted some photographers doing work over there already who tell me it's not easy to get into the tribes to photograph (the ones I am speaking of are a seemingly Portuguese descendant and a Guarani chief, who is also a photographer). I do need to look into the NGOs and local organizations, yes.<br>

5. yes. i probably should have asked, does one pay for said food? or, perhaps one has to do some work to be able to feed with them! <br>

6. the sound recorders i looked into -- well, the microphones i looked into are not inexpensive ... going for about $700 for a good one. the sound recorders I'll have to look into. ... i would prefer to work with outside microphones for better sound quality than the quality the cams give you. ... any suggestions?<br>

... no problem with the lack of experience .. we are in the same boat! ;)<br>

thanks once again!</p>

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[leslie_cheung]

<p><strong>Food</strong>---I imagine you would "donate" some food fund though I don't know. Ask the NGO/local organization/fixer<br>

<strong>Sound recorder</strong>---I was recommended Zoom sound recorders. They take AA and are pretty small, I read. I'm not familiar with shotgun microphones, too big and less discreet for me, but it might suit you fine. However...no matter how good the microphone is, the culprit is the camera's recording capacity.<br>

<strong>Yes</strong>, solar charger<br>

<strong>Tents,</strong> I'd look into mosquito nets as well. Don't know about you, but I hate small bugs and mosquitoes! Maybe ear plugs too. In the wild woods, it could get damn noisy!<br>

Lastly, since switching to digital, I experiment and shoot way more than film. <strong>Memory is cheap</strong>, but, again, it depends on you, the shooter. I'd bring five or six 8/16g cards.</p>

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[Hector Javkin]

<p>You've gotten some good answers above. I can only help with some of your questions.</p>

<p>Goodwill and respect will go a long way in getting you accepted in a new culture, but the non-indigenous people who know the most about working with indigenous groups are anthropologists. Anthropology students typically take a course or courses in "field methods," in which they learn how to do that. The name of the courses might differ from university to university. See if you can find an anthropology professor who will let you sit in on such a course. If you can't do that, find a graduate student who has worked in the field and see if they are willing to help. A friend of mine who is an anthropologist worked intensively with Guarani groups in eastern Bolivia and integrated herself into the community. In terms of equipment to take care of herself, the most important thing was a lightweight multi-fuel stove such as those made by MSR, but you may find other manufacturers in Brazil. In particular, the MSR XGK EX stove can burn almost any flammable liquid. You will probably find kerosene, but you may be in a place where you can only get gasoline or or diesel or alcohol. Along with a stove, you will want at least one lightweight but sturdy cooking pot that is easy to clean.</p>

<p>In terms of your preparations, if you can learn some Guarani before you go, it may be very important. The group you work with will probably speak a different dialect from what you learn, but having an idea of the structure and phonetics will give you a head start.</p>

<p>For audio recording, the very small digital recorders by Tascam and others, that include a pair of built-in microphones and record on SD cards, can work very well. The Zoom recorders that Leslie mentioned are similar, but I haven't used them. (With recorders that used tape, built-in microphones suffered in quality because of the noise of the tape transport--that's not a problem with digital recorders.) I am a linguist, although I've ventured into other fields, and last year I used recordings from a Tascam DR-7 and its built-in microphones for a paper I presented in Buenos Aires. If you distrust built-in microphones, consider a recorder that can use tiny condenser microphones, which you should be able to get for much less than $700.</p>

<p>I hope you have a great time and get some wonderful photographs.</p>

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[german]

<p>Hey, thanks again Leslie, and thanks Hector!</p>

<p>i'll need to narrow my search or specs for my sound collecting and recording devices! (looking for the digital kind, like you guys mentioned. i imagine it'd be easier to work with later on, during editing)<br>

need to look into the solar power chargers!<br>

mosquito net would work fine also, thanks!<br>

one other thing i remembered was the possibility of uploading my images (and hopefully the video, though these might be pretty big files!) while i am away, unto some site (i used to have a good account w/ Photoshelter ... that is now only used w/the basic, free features. but i could upgrade again and upload from somewhere near the jungles, if possible!)<br>

mikes would be "simple" ... just for people, and i guess background sound too ... but nothing like, for example, to catch sound from a distant bird or anything like that. (i am trying to stay simple, not too much equipment, but equipment that will serve me well and that would allow for a good quality documentary)<br>

... i don't plan to donate food. just eat it! ;) ... and by the way, i am now thinking i might have to break up the trip into smaller chunks of time, like a month at a time, or less, with in-between trips to nearby cities or towns. a 3-month stretch of time might be a bit too much!!<br>

i just don't want to eat all their food! (i can pack quite an appetite ... which i am sure would have to be tamed while there!!)<br>

i'll look into the cooking utensils (and that stove), thanks!<br>

about memory, i am thinking of cards plus an outside memory-holding device -- with a somewhat "big" capacity -- but small in size!<br>

Anthropologist ... good idea. i'll look into that.<br>

Languages ... i am glad i can speak Portuguese, as I see the Guarani in Brazil, the ones i've seen (!) do speak that language. I speak Spanish, which would help me with the Guarani in Paraguay ... and i can ask my father with help on the Guarani ... he is from Paraguay but i failed to learn that language from him, though i can say a few words, like m'bae cheico (which now i don't find in the online dictionaries, finding instead m'bae ichapa, for hello)<br>

he used to say something like "m'bae cheico ch'amigo" (please do forgive the bad spelling) which he said was hello my friend ... plus there's other things/words/expressions i know which might come in handy to break the ice! ... i hope! ... and I am good at replicating the local language, the sound, the music of their voices.<br>

in any case, i'll keep searching!! <br>

it's time for me to follow this saying: a ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for, by william shedd. <br>

i've been trained as a photographer but have stayed in the safety of the "special events" and later the office work ... it's time to take on the seas! ;)</p>

<p>(middle age is kicking in! ;) </p>

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