Over the past year, WOFI Cohort 4 has been working with Natan Dvir, an Israeli photographer not only through viewing his photos of the people of Israel, but also through learning different photography skills and techniques from him. Over a two-day period, WOFI-ites took pictures capturing Israelis in the holiest city in the country, Jerusalem, and throughout Neve Tzedek, Tel-Aviv, and Jaffa.
Our first stop was at the Kotel, where we went up to people praying by the Wall. Even though praying is something intimate between a person and God, most of the people at the Kotel who I was photographing were comfortable with my pointing a camera in their direction.
Through this activity, we were trying to answer, “Who is the Israeli?” As Natan Dvir told us, “Trying to capture the essence of where you are is the challenge.” While at first I felt uncomfortable going up to people and photographing them in their faces, I soon got used to it. Most people seemed open to being photographed and stayed calm, continuing their intimate conversations with God. Those, however, who felt uncomfortable simply put up their hands or asked politely not to be photographed.
If we were photographing people in sacred places anywhere else in the world, the people would not be as open. I think that if I was in another country and photographing people that close, I would have received hostile reactions. This is an interesting contrast, especially since Israelis are viewed as being rude and pushy.
Our second stop with Natan Dvir was in the Arab market where we took pictures of people in their everyday lives. Most of the people in the market also were open to being photographed. Owners of shops too, even if we were not buying anything from them. In the market, I tried taking a picture of some of the tourists; they were all alarmed and made angry facial expressions at me and said, “Why are you taking pictures of me?”
Our third stop was the Church of the Holy Sepulcre where we worked with special ISO settings on our cameras since there was not much light in the church. Some of us entered the church where we saw Jesus’s tomb and the seven different sects of Christianity praying in separate areas of the church. Also taking close ups, we received the the same reactions as at the Kotel and the market.
On our last day in Israel, we photographed the people of Tel-Aviv. Capturing the lives of Israelis close up was definitely an eye opening experience for me, while going out of my comfort zone to discover who they really are.