(as mentioned a few days earlier, this a series where I post a picture, tell its story and provide some technical considerations)
It was a rainy and cold day in Munnar. People sheltered themselves from the pouring day wherever they could. Inside a small vegetable market I spotted this man sitting in that way which is so typical of Asia. I kneeled in front of him, smiled and took his portrait. He never really reacted to my presence, maybe startled, maybe he just didn't care.
This picture illustrates the often encountered dilemma between shutter speed and ISO. Should I keep the ISO low and risk a blur due to the small speed ? Or do I raise the ISO, degrading image quality, but allowing me to keep a high shutter speed to freeze the moment. Auto-Iso is for lazy people that don't really understand what they are doing ;), and I really believe that these are decisions that you need to take on a shot by shot basis. In this instance, I elected to keep a low ISO and risk a 1/15th speed since my subject was motionless. The picture is not razor sharp, but does it matter ? Or to the contrary, maybe it even brings smore life to the picture. (click on picture for high res)
Leica M9 with 35mm Lux Asph at F1.4, 1/15th, ISO160