Full Sprint's Photoblog
Happiness, Illusion caused by absence of reality?
Posted by MARIANA (Waterloo, Canada) on 17 June 2009 in People & Portrait and Portfolio.
Well, this young man suffers some mental disorder. Absence of reality ? Definitely! Happy ? Always! Every time I see him in downtown he sings, he tries talking with everybody on a street, he asks you all time the same question and laugh when you tell him your name, how many kids you have, what car you drive ...
Standley from Carquefou, France
Wopnderful and colourful portrait. I like the expression!
17 Jun 2009 5:56am
Bill Jennings from (Bay Area Northern Calif), United States
always said - ignorance is bliss...
17 Jun 2009 6:10am
Nina from Haute Loire, France
Wonderful portrait, there are joys that we think are difficult to reach when the most simple to know that!
17 Jun 2009 6:39am
Mathilde Collot from Fontainebleau, France
Sublime et drôle! un portrait magnifique! J'adore! haute en couleur cette image me plait beaucoup!!
17 Jun 2009 7:22am
k@ from Paris, France
You're asking such a f.... real question ! Moves me a lot - sign of your intelligence.
What is to be happy ? What is to think we are not...
Thanks ! And a kiss to him too ~
17 Jun 2009 7:36am
Elena Kotrotsou from Drossia, Greece
Very interesting portrait with a very interesting title...
17 Jun 2009 8:46am
Lynn from United States
Fantastic portrait!!! Great title and so well done...this one makes you think :))
17 Jun 2009 10:52am
Lynn from United States
Fantastic portrait!!! This one makes you think...great shot and a perfect title...well done :))
17 Jun 2009 10:53am
shoti from Everywhere in the, Philippines
excellent portrait. his hat matches his cheerful expression :)
17 Jun 2009 11:48am
Eric Cousineau from Sherwood Park, Canada
Wonderful candid shot Mariana! Reality is a fleeting entity....one man's reality is another man's purgatory. I think he is happy in his reality...... ;-))
17 Jun 2009 11:58am
jeff (aka dogilicious) from Millerstown, PA, United States
Great smile and a fantastic hat!
17 Jun 2009 12:08pm
rian from mobile, United States
his smile seems a little forced now, right? great capture still.. :)
17 Jun 2009 12:29pm
@rian: NO, it is not a forced smile, it is just how he looks like. He suffers a minor mental disorder ! And, whenever I see him in downtown he is always happy, always singing, always playing with the toys he carries with him .
Don from spokane, United States
This "character" shot has strong eye-catching appeal. Who cannot look at this and look again. You captured a wonderful expression.
17 Jun 2009 3:07pm
hugo poon from hong kong, Hong Kong
What a wonderful catch!!! Illusion or reality? What really matters is it's bringing out such an intense joy!
Enjoy and admire your amazingly diverse style in photography!!!:-)
17 Jun 2009 3:12pm
ZoomLNZ from Los Angeles Area, United States
This is really a great photo with excellent detail. And I love that smile. The black background really makes the colors pop. Well done!
17 Jun 2009 3:12pm
Laurie from New Jersey, United States
He looks like quite a character. Nice portrait.
17 Jun 2009 3:45pm
Terry H. from Azle Texas, United States
Like the angle of the light and how it lights up his eyes behind those sunglasses and of course Cool hat!
17 Jun 2009 3:48pm
peter from new york, United States
very interesting portrait and the title made me think a lot about it! plus this guy looks like quite the character : )
17 Jun 2009 4:17pm
Ajay from Pune, India
Funny, bright and very detailed. And of course, excellent portrait. Different but admirable.
17 Jun 2009 5:02pm
Mike from United States
Great portrait! Colorful and cheerful !!! Love how it fades to black so we just concentrate on the face.
17 Jun 2009 5:04pm
Liang from San Francisco, United States
i like the smile here. the colors are just exceptional!
17 Jun 2009 5:12pm
dj.tigersprout from New York City, United States
a beautifully bold and dynamic portrait!! and a brilliant question!! faaabulous!! in my opinion happiness is both a basic emotion available to us all naturally as well as a mental construction for those of us in the western world -- who SHOULD be happy after everything we have learned, bought, borrowed, eaten, worn, accomplished, etc., etc.... it seems as those that have much less than we do, swim in happiness most of their lives... while the rest of us loose a grip on happiness in our adolescence and then have to pay therapists and holistic teachers to help us mentally reconstruct positive attitudes regarding what makes life good in our own westernized and capitalist opinions. thank you for this soul searching post -- bravo!!!
17 Jun 2009 6:12pm
@dj.tigersprout: Thank you for sharing your thoughts about happiness with me :)) That is so true what you are saying !
Steve Rice from Olympia, United States
Yes, I think so. A great portrait in any case.
17 Jun 2009 6:29pm
observing from North West, United Kingdom
Well whatever the reason, he looks very happy in this sharp shot.
17 Jun 2009 8:36pm
roentarre from Melbourne, Australia
This portrait is so comical and stunning
Dig the expression
17 Jun 2009 9:27pm
xavier cardell from menorca-barcelona, Spain
Amazing shot. You captured the reality so well, it's a photo that tell a lot. Superb!
17 Jun 2009 9:58pm
akarui from Kagoshima, Japan
Nice expression. Yes beeing healthy and rich is not always the key to be happy...
18 Jun 2009 12:02am
Viewfinder from Bradenton, FL, United States
I like his freedom. One can get away from a lot of what the media calls "reality" and be happy by doing both of two different things - 1) quit watching 24/7 news and 2) cultivate faith and the things of the Spirit in your life. I try.
18 Jun 2009 12:43am
Steven from Chicagoland, United States
He's looking quite festive with that colorful hat. Nice portrait shot!
18 Jun 2009 1:26am
flyingwind风飞扬 from Tai yuan, China
Colorful portrait! Though so many wrinkles and mustache, but his face is characterized with strong features!
18 Jun 2009 3:03am
Paco Díaz from Palma de Mallorca, Spain
Reality is often sad for many. I hope not for him, he has enough. Good and expressive portrait
18 Jun 2009 4:37am
Monique from Koh Samui, Thailand
Beautiful portrait and yes, they always seem to be happy and enjoy every day ... a great example for us 'normal' people!
18 Jun 2009 4:45am
Twelvebit from Victoria, United States
A complicated question. It conjures up a couple of old phrases: from the Music Man, the Sadder But Wiser Girl:
I snarl, I hiss, how can ignorance be compared to bliss?
I spark, I fizz, for the lady who knows what time it is
I cheer, I rave, for the virtue I'm too late to save
The sadder but wiser girl for me
Of course, this contains the obvious sexual allusions, but I think it also speaks to the fact that we learn by our mistakes, and it suggests that happiness is not a product of wisdom --or at least that the kind of happiness felt with wisdom is a richer, more complex, kind of happiness.
I'm also reminded of the saying: "life is a tragedy to those who feel, and a comedy to those who think." While I don't completely agree with this sentiment, I believe its insight is in assuming "equal knowledge" on the part of both those who feel and those who think (since it is a rather meaningless statement if both parties aren't viewing the same facts about the world through different lenses); and it suggests that the distance provided by a certain amount of thinking --intellectualization-- is necessary to overcome our natural emotional impulses and remain happy.
19 Jun 2009 8:10pm
Stef67 from in my head, France
pourtant, bonheur et sourire remplie de vie sur son visage, tres belle leçon de la vie, j aime ^^
20 Jun 2009 11:53am
