I spent 2 weeks in the old city in March photographing the Muezzins of Sana'a. I hired a local guy, Khaled, to be my guide / assistant - he's the best. He enrolled a couple of his friends who have close relations to several mosques to rustle up subjects and they did an amazing job. Some days we were shooting 6 or 7 guys and because they all have duties in the mornings, only the afternoons were productive in terms of photography.

I shot it all on 120 negative film with a Mamiya RZ and gave a polaroid to each of the subjects.

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Polaroids

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Contact

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This was a good decision because it encouraged others to get involved and gave the subjects something in return.

In total i shot around 35 muezzins of all ages and styles and got to spend a good deal of time talking to the guys and others from the mosques. It was a great experience.

Around 22 have made the edit.

The technique & setup was influenced by Richard Avedon's portraits of the American West:

This is the sound of the city at the time of the call to prayer.

Sana'a Calling -

The publications