Boats of Malindi

Photography is just an intriguing thing for me, especially how it allows fluidity like water or the potential to change direction in one moment, like the wind. It can take any shape, color, or texture as long as the maker of the images (the photographer) has learned to be fluid and in time. And in time I mean, being able to see in the moment what is being shown rather than what one wants to see. There are times when the intention for going out to take photos is very clear, but one comes back home with completely different photos than intended. This is the beauty of art: it is fluid, in the moment, and can freeze in time what took thousands of years to build and then be kept in the archive of time for many generations to come.

I stepped out this particular morning to go chase after sunrise at Malindi beach. I had not done an early morning there before, and I was not very sure of what to expect. If there will be people there or if the water will be in or out. I took a bike from the house at about twenty minutes before 6 Am with the hope that I would be at the beach early enough to set up my camera and then wait to capture the sun as it rises.

Imagine my surprise when I got off the bike just a few minutes before 6 am, and right there is the reddish smile of the sun as it rose from its cloudy blankets of the morning. What happened? I found myself asking as I ran towards where I had planned to set up my camera. Sunrise in Kinondo Beach, where we stayed for five months, usually comes out between 6:30 and 6:40 am. Well, I must have convinced myself that I knew when this beautiful lady called the Sun rose from her bed. I was slapped in the face by disappointment. Did the sun change its timing or what? I found myself asking as I set up my camera on a jetty that extends into the water. A few people were seated, and some were jogging in the wet white sand.

If you are familiar with sunrise or sunset photography, you know the magic fades of the light away within a few minutes, so time is of the essence. I managed to get a few shorts and decided to walk towards the side of the beach that I had not gone before.

Lots of boats

Malindi is a coastal town, and one thing that should be obvious is the presence of boats, either fishing boats or just private boats. So, I really could not tell why I was surprised that there were so many boats on the shore.

Fishermen were coming in to shore with their huge bundles of nets and buckets of fish that they caught during the night. Right on the beach were people, especially women, who were waiting for fresh fish that the fishermen were bringing. Most of them have restaurants around the area where they sell food.

I didn’t want to appear rude to them, so I stopped myself from taking direct photos of them, especially since they were in their place of work.

As I passed them, still walking, I came across this huge boat yard loaded with abandoned boats. I asked a guy who came out of the yard why so many boats were broken. He told me it’s the county government’s boat repair yard. I think it’s run by the Ministry of Fisheries or something like that. I asked if he could take some photos, to which he said “Why not?” I went ahead and did just that. His response got me thinking, what if the fishermen had said “why not” if I had asked to take their photos? Anyway, the time was getting to 8 am, and anyone living on the Kenyan coast knows that the heat on the coast is at a high level. I made my way back and headed home.