Geraint Rowland photography

Tourist Assistance (Or Not): Varanasi Street Photography & The Everyday Comedy of India

India has a way of humbling you, lifting you, and then making you laugh—sometimes all within the same five minutes. This photo, taken in Varanasi on my second trip to India about five years ago, is one of those moments that perfectly captures the everyday poetry and subtle comedy of life on the subcontinent.

A bold sign reading “TOURIST ASSISTANCE” painted in crisp red letters. A blue metal box in the foreground. And a man stretched across it, fast asleep in the sun. Is he the assistant? Or just a local catching a bit of warmth in the midday haze? No one knows. But in a place like India, you quickly learn to stop asking and start observing. Check out a black and white Lightroom edit of this image on my Flickr account here.

Varanasi Street Photography & The Everyday Comedy of India

The Beauty of Varanasi

Varanasi isn’t just one of the oldest cities in the world—it’s one of the most visually arresting places on Earth. Whether you're watching sunrise rituals at the ghats, the constant flow of pilgrims and sadhus, or everyday locals just getting on with life, there’s always a story unfolding.

This image is part of a wider series of candid street photos I shot across Varanasi. The city is loud, sacred, chaotic, peaceful, surreal—and the more time you spend there, the more it reveals. That’s what makes it a dream for photographers: the drama, the beauty, the realness of it all. Take a look at this previous photography blog I wrote about street photography in Varanasi - click here.

Second Time Around

This was my second trip to India, and it was the first time I really started to slow down and focus on smaller details. Not just the big epic landscapes or ceremonial scenes, but the spaces in-between. The sleepy moments. The humour. The subtle absurdities that make India such a wild and fascinating place to document.

Shot on my Canon EOS 5D Mark IV paired with the EF16–35mm f/2.8L II USM, I used natural light and let the geometry of the signage and colours speak for themselves. Tech details for the camera geeks are as follows:
ƒ/6.3 | 35mm | 1/160 | ISO 250. Take a look at some more amusing and alternative street and travel photography from my time spent in India in the slideshow below:

Explore More of My India Work

I’ve travelled extensively across India—from the ghats of Varanasi to the deserts of Rajasthan and the hills of Himachal—and my camera has been with me every step of the way. If you’d like to see more go to:

👉 View more India photography on my Flickr
👉 Browse and license my India images on Getty Images
👉 My Instagram has plenty of India images - follow me here

Whether you're a fellow photographer, a traveller planning your first trip to India, or just someone who enjoys looking at the world a little differently, I hope this image (and the wider set) makes you smile, pause, and maybe even wonder what "Tourist Assistance" really means.

#IndiaPhotography #Varanasi #StreetPhotography #CandidPhotography #IncredibleIndia #TravelPhotography #VaranasiGhats #DocumentaryPhotography #LifeInIndia #CulturalPhotography

Photography Competitions, Travel & Lockdown

I have been a bit lazy with my photography blog of late due to the never-ending lockdown, each day being the same and therefore lacking any writing motivation! Having not taken any photos for months I have been delving back into old hard drives and revisiting some old favourites. My stock photography work has been keeping me busy with further image editing, uploading to Getty, and then carrying out the mundane and time consuming admin process required. I now have over 16,000 of my travel photographs available for license on Getty Images and still have several hard drives to get through! As well as the stock photography work I have also entered a few more photography competitions. In addition to potentially winning a great prize, entering photo competitions is a great way of revisiting your photos and seeing what images work well with each other. A couple of weeks ago I entered the Open Walls photography competition for 1854 photography. The theme was, ‘Then & Now’ with the artists being asked to explore the theme in many ways. Through visual imagery the photographers were asked to portray a sense of reflection and to convey the changes that time brings. Click through the slideshow below to view the ten images which I entered for this theme of ‘Then & Now’:

When entering photo competitions I normally go through my back catalogue and look out for any images that may be suitable. This normally results in a large collection which I then have to go through to eliminate the weaker images, those which I do not think quite make the cut! These omissions may be based on the photo technique and quality of the image: focus, lighting, composition and so on. In addition I will take out photographs that do not quite fit the themes, although the interpretation is often very vague and up to the photographers imagination. Before entering competitions I will first read the biography of the lead judge to discover his or her style of photography. It may not always be the best taken image that wins a competition, but instead ones that are unique, individual or unusual in some way. Photography competitions must get inundated with thousands of similar images (especially in today’s Instagram age) so if I have something that may stand out or catch their eye I may enter that over a personal favourite. The important thing is to enter in the first place, as if you don’t you certainly won’t be winning. Many photo competitions require fees to enter, but there are still some to be found that are free, or where the fees are very affordable. In addition to the prizes to be won, competitions can introduce you to galleries and other photographers as well as providing you with much needed exposure for your work. If nothing else the selection process for the competition above gave me a nice trip through memory lane, reminding me of some fantastic adventures I’ve had over the past years. It also gave me the opportunity to share rediscovered favourites through my Twitter, Facebook and Instagram social media accounts. If you are interested in purchasing a print direct, writing a guest blog or exhibiting some of my work please send an email to: geraintrowlandphotography@gmail.com.