The people here in town, most of them at least, state without hesitation that Montalb谩n has undergone a remarkable transformation in the last, let's say, 15 to 20 years... And most of those who think that conclude that this transformation has been, as they usually say here, "from good to bad"... I also think that this is so. After all, I've spent roughly the same amount of time wandering these streets regularly, and I think that gives me a certain authority to speak with certainty about these transformations and whether they're negative or positive. You don't need to have lived here long ago to sense that the past was surely more prosperous. The streets are broken, many people have left for better-off places, the colors of the houses are barely a shadow of what they once were, and the street decorations are perhaps a distant memory for many. Yes, this town has definitely undergone quite a few transformations, and it seems to me that this isn't just a visual thing; something has changed in everyone's psyche, perhaps forever...
Las personas aqu铆 en el pueblo, la mayor铆a de ellas cuando menos, afirman sin titubeos que Montalb谩n ha sufrido una transformaci贸n notable en los 煤ltimos, digamos, 15 a 20 a帽os... Y la mayor铆a de los que piensan eso concluyen en que dicha transformaci贸n ha sido, como suelen decir aqu铆, "de bueno para malo"... A mi tambi茅n me parece que esto es as铆. Despu茅s de todo, he estado m谩s o menos esa misma cantidad de tiempo deambulado asiduamente estas calles y, pienso yo, eso me da cierta autoridad para poder hablar con certeza de estas transformaciones y su car谩cter ya sea negativo o positivo... Y es que no hace falta haber vivido aqu铆 desde antes, para intuir que los tiempos pasados fueron seguramente m谩s pr贸speros... Las calles est谩n rotas, muchas personas se han ido a otros lugares con mejor suerte, los colores de las casas son apenas un asomo de lo que fueron, el ornato de las calles es quiz谩s ya un recuerdo lejano para muchos... S铆, definitivamente, este pueblo ha sufrido unas cuantas transformaciones, y me parece que esto no es algo solamente visual, sino que en la psiquis de todos, algo se ha transformado y quiz谩s para siempre...
And by the way, today, while I was selecting and processing these photos in front of my PC in my small studio, something came to mind that I want to share here:
"It occurs to me that these streets are more broken since I learned of your death... It occurs to me that it's because of that that you no longer appear to me through the fog and pass by without saying hello, smiling with your face downcast... It occurs to me that, since I know you're dead, I no longer remember you for the sins we committed together, but for the moments we hugged like children..."
Y por cierto, hoy mientras seleccionaba y procesaba estas fotos en frente de mi PC en mi peque帽o estudio, vino a mi mente algo que quiero compartir aqu铆:
"Se me ocurre que estas calles est谩n m谩s rotas, desde que te supe muerta... Se me ocurre que es debido a eso que ya no te me apareces entre la niebla y pasas sin saludar sonriendo con el rostro gacho... Se me ocurre que, desde que te s茅 muerta, ya no te recuerdo por los pecados que juntos recorrimos, sino por los momentos de abrazarnos como ni帽os..."
Thank you very much for your visit and appreciation!
隆Muchas gracias por pasar y apreciar!
ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL NOTE: Photographs captured with my Nikon D7000 DSLR camera in RAW format, then processed in Adobe Camera RAW for adjustments regarding light, sharpening, contrast and depth... They were then exported to JGP format on which minor modifications such as straightening and adding watermarks were carried out using PhotoScape v3.7
NOTA T脡CNICA ADICIONAL: Fotografias capturadas con mi c谩mara DSLR Nikon D7000 en formato RAW, procesadas posteriormente en Adobe Camera RAW para ajustes relativos a luz, afilado, contraste y profundidad... Luego fueron exportadas a formato JGP sobre el cual se llevaron a cabo modificaciones menores como enderezado y agregado de marcas de agua usando PhotoScape v3.7
@jlinaresp"We make photographs to understand what our lives mean to ourselves." - Ralph Hattersley.
"Hacemos fotograf铆as para comprender lo que nuestras vidas significan para nosotros mismos." - Ralph Hattersley.
Camera: Nikon D7000
Lens: Sigma 18-200mm f3.5-6.3 II DC OS HSM
Lens: Tokina ATX-PRO 100mm f/2.8 d MACRO
Lens: AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR
Lens: AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR
Lens: Nikon AF Nikkor 50 mm f/1.8d FX
Lens:AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G
C谩mara: Nikon D7000
Lente: Sigma 18-200mm f3.5-6.3 II DC OS HSM
Lente: Tokina ATX-PRO 100mm f/2.8 d MACRO
Lente: AF-S DX NIKKOR 55-300mm f/4.5-5.6G ED VR
Lente: AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR
Lente: Nikon AF Nikkor 50 mm f/1.8d FX
Lente: AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G
Montalb谩n, Carabobo, Venezuela.