Badami town in Karnataka, India is built amongst the ancient temples that surround the man-made Agasthya Lake. The Chalukya Dynasty left behind monolithic cave temples that are awe-inspiring in their details. The town population was low during our visit because of the immense flooding that year spurred by the government discharging a river dam, killing hundred in the surrounding area. Everyone in Badami seemed to know that we braved the broken flooded roads to get there. A labourer rests after a long day of work in the town.

Hiking up the stairs of Anjanyah Hill to Hanuman Temple in Hampi, Karnataka, India we are force to rest regularly. The heat is excruciating and the exertion to climb to the top is best done in pieces. We are approached by one of the many Sadhus, or holy men, with an ask for alms. Sadhus live by the donations and will of others as part of relinquishing all of their worldly possessions, including money.

A monk waits on the bridge on the way to the main fort in Orchha to greet and make some money from his performances.

Meet the next generation of Borneo’s Dayak Iban Tribe. This boy is covered in the traditional tattoo work that is meant to represent becoming a warrior and the various places he has visited in his life. The old men of the communal longhouse on the Lemanak River are adorned this way. Youth, as anywhere in the world, struggle with the draw of a modern way of life versus making a life in the longhouse and working the dry rice and pepper plantations that sustain the tribe. What will his decision be? At this moment, he appears to have one foot in either direction.

After sitting for a photograph, which he was incredibly pleased about, this farmer around Old Bagan proudly showed us pictures of him in his military uniform as well as a faded black and white of two stunningly handsome people in wedding attire. Others behind the scene excitedly point back and forth with surprise in their eyes attempting to make the connection between this man and the couple in the picture. Everyone eventually agrees that this man is impossibly handsome. He beams a smile for one final photo before we head back into the drizzling rain.

India is where fashion meets functionality. A woman in Orchha, India uses her head cover to shield her from the sun while providing some privacy to a new face in their small village.

The rain had been steady that week in Bagan, Myanmar, but mostly it was a mix of grey and dark grey skies and a drizzle. On this day in a small village we were surprised by a sudden downpour which had everyone scurrying for their homes. We managed to find ourselves at the oldest house in the village. Open on one side with an overhanging roof, it seemed a community gathering spot for women and their crafts.

Two monks invite us into their 175-year old home and monastery. They live there alone, but together. They parade us through unspeakably beautiful, priceless treasures, referred to as donations, from a day gone by. They sit in unfolded aluminium lawn chairs while we pad barefoot around their home come museum with huge teak floorboards creaking under every step.

I take a picture of a man at his food stall at the Sonepur Fair. He yells back into a dark cavern of a temporary building and his son comes out. He wants me to take a picture of his son with some of the things they make. He was so proud of his food and his son. It seemed like a big moment for the both of them. One thing you get from travel is that if you are interested in people, they are enthusiastic to show you what they are all about....which unleashes a flood of photo opportunities. Travel is awesome!

A Sadhu holy man takes rest on a stone ledge leading up a steep stairwell near the top of Panchganga Ghat.

A young girl stops at the front door of her home to welcome us to her village and show us her kitten and courtyard to her home. The rest of the family soon joins us.

The prize fighter can lift the greatest weights, is super fit, but heavy just the same. Kushti is the sport of kings in India, but is also built on the backs of some of the poorest. These Gladiators work hard for prize money and for food. Just before swinging these enormous wood weights onto his shoulders, he covers the posts and his shoulders in ghee (clarified butter) to lubricate and avoid injury. Talc covers his hands for the exact opposite reason.

Cheap, small toys catch the eye of passersby at the Sonepur Mela in Bihar State. The crowds are huge here, particularly as the evening turns to night and the energy ramps up. We chose to use this time to head back to our tent accommodation as this can be a very unpredictable time for us and it seemed that the mood was not in our favour anymore.

Orchha based monk Chetugree poses for a sunset picture on the banks of the Betwa River overlooking the amazing Chattris along the Kamchatka Ghat. These 15 cenotaphs are memorials to various rulers of this ancient kingdom of Orchha, India. I met Chetugree on a very early morning walk as he drank his tea and applied his make-up. Around him was a friendly pack of young dogs and a group of decidedly unfriendly monkeys. I later found him in the heat of the day on a bridge over the river and asked him to meet me by the river later. I don’t usually take people from their location, but I found him and this location far too beautiful to not connect them. We walked back slowly in the darkness together with Chetugree smoking a cigarette and laughing.

in the oldest city in the world, Varanasi, India, Kushti wrestling coach Doyan Siyaramji and his pupil take a rest from their heavy training. They are surrounded by very old equipment along with some “new school” weights. This is living history. In India, this is one of the oldest sports that still exists. You can see paintings of this sport on ancient temple walls. It was considered the sport of the kings. In the next week I will show more photos from this project.

A holy man Sadhu sets up his bedding under a huge stone elephant at the top of the stair at the magnificent Jagdish Temple on the hilltop of Udaipur.

Tam Coc, Vietnam is not only breathtakingly beautiful with its lush green and jagged karst topography and dragon-tail rivers, but it’s people are warm and inviting. We perched ourselves in the middle of the rowboat failing to protect ourselves from the driving wind and pebble hard rain behind a floppy umbrella. As the rain grew ever more torrential we decided to seek shelter in a temple where we found a priest with an old school “Fu Manchu” beard. He played some music for us on a strange instrument then he sat and watched the rain with us. I asked for some portrait shots with hand signals while trying to keep the tranquil feeling permeating the air.

During a downpour while visiting the small villages on the outskirts of New Bagan we took shelter in a house with a group of older women drinking tea, making huge cheroot cigars and taking massive drags off of them over coconut shells. We hung out, tried smoking and drank pots of tea for an hour and a half trying to make conversation with the help of a young girl as translator and pop-up guide.

The Flower Hmong ethnic group, one of the 54 ethnic groups found primarily in the mountainous Northern Vietnam can be found congregating at the Bac Ha market near Can Cao, Lao Cao Province. The Flower, Red, White, Black and Green Hmong groups are easily spotted whilst wearing those colours in very separate clothing styles and jewelry. Recently you see Western fashion buyers walking the markets of Northern Vietnam looking for the next, “undiscovered” fabric and fashion trends such as hand drawn batik patterns on indigo coloured hemp.

I loved the congruent nature of this shot of a restauranteur in Bangkok about to set up shop for a breakfast shift. Usually there is a grill and pots on one side with oil, condiments and mis en place on the other. He parks just outside of a brightly coloured Buddhist temple waiting for groups of people to come and go for morning prayers.

An old woman sits amongst the ruins of an ancient elephant stable lost to shrub and trees. Below her goats wander looking for blades of green grass. The heat is oppressive and the shade seems meaningful and life affirming. The sun takes your energy and makes a single day feel like two of the same. 

Iban Tribe Borneo - The older men of the long house relax during the day. They have done their hard-work and have made their lasting impact on the group of families that live in this communal space. Now they exude the wisdom and patience that comes with age and experience. Their tattoos show off their adventures and headhunting past.

Deep in the Borneo rainforest, well away from civilization, I spot a familiar object....an airplane. I ask the man who made this children's toy if he has ever seen such a vehicle before. He says no, but one time he did see it on a TV, so he made what it is in the image of his memory. He sold me this airplane to take home with me. I gave him money and traded with agreeing on a portrait with his creation.

Culture in motion! Photography should be an exchange and a door that opens to another world....maybe someone else's?

Three men sit atop a sand dune as they finish their 300km trek across the Thar Desert while watching their caravan of camels drink from a water source. We have come to see one of the largest animal fairs in Asia, the Pushkar Mela. Because of the heat of the desert the Vaishya caste wear their red turbans loosely to allow for the cooling wind. I have not been able to find in my research, the background of his facial tattoos. These are not the kind found in Arunchal Pradesh on India’s North Eastern flanks. He may have travelled from Pakistan as well?

Young monks relax around their dwelling during the hot afternoons. This is the best time to meet them. They are educated so some have enough English to converse which makes seeking out a visit all that much more enjoyable. They are some of Cambodia’s most inquisitive people and they love to challenge their minds.

Lemanak River Iban tribal matriarch stops to meet before starting her day around the long house. The Iban were once a much feared warrior tribe. They now make up a large part of the Dayak people of Borneo.

A boy watches as I adjust my lenses and tripod after an amazing photos shoot at the monastery he lives by.

15-years of service at Penang, Malaysia’s Chong Fatt Tze, The Blue Mansion as it is known, made “Uncle” the go-to guy for information or fixing.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pulls up a chair to meet his public in Calgary, Alberta. One of a large series of photos I did as part of his official personal media on the day.

Calgary Street Project I am working on. Meeting and talking with others sharing the street has been incredibly rewarding. This is Garth Harper - President. He took out a perfectly new business card for his cleaning business. I didn’t ask, but I suspect a massive stroke has him in this chair? We joked about some of the news of the day.

Brooks Kinsmen Rodeo July 07. Bull rider gets psyched up on a cold and windy day on the prairie of Alberta.