Very early morning Friday will see me boarding a Cathay Pacific non-stop flight to Hong Kong, and onwards to Hà Nội to add to my inventory of images of Hầu Đồng ceremonies, particularly of those which are conducted in rural areas, as well as to conduct more in-depth interviews of master mediums, fortune tellers, and hát chầu văn musicians.
These will help me to complete my photo book Hầu Đồng: The Spirit Mediums of Việt Nam, or Các Cô dồng Của Việt Nam as it's called in Hà Nội. This work-in-progress has taken over my photography life, with all its ups and downs that are associated with long term projects of such nature.
My favorite hotel, The Golden Silk Boutique in the Old Quarter, is already booked and all is set for my arrival on Saturday February 20.
This time, I'll be carrying two Fuji X-T1 bodies with the latest firmware 4.30 installed, and 5 lenses. A Fuji 18mm f/2, a Zeiss Touit 12mm f/2.8, a Fuji XF 56mm f/1.2, a Fuji XF 18-135mm f3.5-5.6, and my absolute favorite, the XF 16-55mm f/2.8. I might include the X-Pro1 too as I hope to do some street photography.
I will occasionally post whatever is of relevance during the coming two weeks.
