How to take great fall color pictures and UPA, The Ukrainian Resistance

Above, top to bottom: fall colors on Lychakivska Street(see below for explanation); the moon right after sunset from the Wysoki Zamok(high castle); dog owners let their bulldogs socialize in the park on a sunny day; the faithful waited in line for over 30 minutes to get holy water after Tuesday's mass, many of them drank the water, an Orthodox tradition; a woman holds a portrait of Christ to be blessed while taking part in the procession around Pokrot Church in L'viv, Ukraine on October 14th, 2008.
I was supposed to cover a pro-life event on Tuesday, the anniversary of UPA, a national holiday in Ukraine. Instead, I never found the group, took pictures of the baptism, watched Ukrainians drink the holy water, and wandered into the adjacent woods. I especially liked the one of the fall colors, and in response to some recent comments asking for photo instruction, I explain the shot below.

UPA, or the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, began as a resistance movement in the spring/summer of 1943 and developed into a guerilla force. They fought in the best interest of the Ukrainian people, according to Wikipedia, and challenged the Nazi Waffen SS, Wehrmacht, the Polish Underground Army(Armia Krajowa), and a variety of Soviet forces including the Red Army and the NKVD. They also fought with the Germans against the soviets and the poles.

Tuesday was the anniversary of its founding, and the leader of UPA, Stepan Bandera, is a huge national hero. For Ukrainians, this is like the Alamo, the Revolutionary War, and the resistance all rolled into one. I find it fascinating since my grandfather fought in the polish underground. The UPA was unique because it fought the Nazis with no foreign support, unlike most resistance movements. UPA was most active in the Carpathian mountains and in Western Ukraine, near to where I am living. Another reason why Western and Eastern Ukraine are entirely different worlds. 

In order to take a zoom photo like the one above, you need a manual zoom. I used a 17-35mm lens, but you can pick anything that isn't fixed(so no 50mm prime). Then you set it to either extreme(17mm or 35mm) and then set your exposure to somewhere around 30 sec-60 sec. It can be faster or slower than this, depending on the desired effect. The top photo was shot at 1/40, f/8, ISO 200. Before pressing the shutter, begin zooming in or out and then press the shutter button simultaneously. The camera will expose the zoom and create an effect similar to this. 

Be careful how you use it. It can be used to bring emphasis/life/action to an otherwise dull subject, but it's also disorienting. Here, I wanted to emphasize the color of the trees, not the details. Zooming helps me do that.

Is this blog any good? Readers' review!

Above: Traffic has increased substantially in L'viv over the past few years as Ukrainians finally have the income to pay for cars. "There was barely any traffic here 10 years ago," said Matthew Matuszak, an UCU employee. "Now they don't have the infrastructure to deal with the cars. Glad I don't own one." 

As of today, I have been in L'viv 44 days, or 1 month and 2 weeks. In that time, I've been keeping this stellar blog going by posting photos, stories and videos every day I've been here. I haven't missed a day I've been in L'viv. Thanks to all who have sent compliments on facebook or directly on blogger, it means a lot.

I asked my friend Mark Kane if I was posting just to get more traffic, if this was the real deal. Ever so frank, Mark said,

"No, you're actually doing your job. You post every day with real material that is interesting and I actually want to read. Your not just posting every other week, you're doing it every day. You're doing what every blogger should do."

Thanks, Mark. 

Some from facebook and emails:

Meredith Mahoney wrote  I want your camera! Love the blog too (and so does Mint)!

Danielle Littrell wrote  Hey cuz! I looked at your blog and it's amazing! That is so cool waht you are doing! I'm jealous... even though you are only surviving on 19 cents a week. Hope all is well otherwise! :) Amanda Sheaffer wrote  Mike, you're the national champion of hacky sack? How come you never told me? Nicholas La Joie wrote  mike, good to hear from you... and i enjoyed perusing your blog a bit-- i especially appreciate the video clips-- the one of "l'viv in september" put to music was an especially quality piece. in particular, the shot of the decrepit soul on the park bench just billowing smoke out from his innards. strong stuff.

Catherine Curley wrote  Hey Mike! I just checked out your blog for the first time, and your trip seems SO COOL! Both intimidating and inspiring at the same time - how awesome. Anyway, I hope you stay safe, and keep growing/learning - and posting! You have this CTW DR living vicariously through you :) Emily Brunner wrote  Your blog is so stinking good! Once you've completed this round of adventures, you should script it and talk to some movie folks. If it is that good to read, it could be great to watch! "at the risk of sounding redundant...awesome blog. really. you have a great layout and a fabulous mix of quality photography and well written prose. basically, you're a badass." "Just read your latest blog post, Mike. Look who’s the new “sexy foreign exchange teacher.”  HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA  Yet another highly entertaining tale from your life."  "I saw your blog today, nice stories, keep it up. I'd say "How's life?" but that's what the blog is for, I guess.   How ever did you get involved with the seminary?  It's like going back in time.." For those of you that sent compliments via email, I apologize for not getting your permission to publish this(email, I think, should be private). That's why I excluded names from the email quotes. I was flattered you sent me that, really, this is the reason I keep blogging. I keep track of blog hits through Google Analytics, and that's why I keep modifying my posts. Some people read all of some posts and sometimes they just want to take a look at the pictures. The point is, when people do read it all, I notice and I try to play up more of that material. If you send me an email at mikerudz@gmail.com, I will reply, and have been pretty good about it so far(apologies to anyone I haven't gotten to yet). I read them all.  Some stats as of October 10th: Hits to date: 541 Pageviews: 1804 Visitors: 221 % of visits that are new: 42% 74% of visitors are from referring sites(facebook) 24% are direct hits(people who have bookmarked me, cough cough, nudge, nudge) Thanks to you all!

The First Lady of Ukraine is a White Sox fan *sigh*

Above, top to bottom: Me with Kateryna Yushchenko, First Lady of Ukraine on October 11th in the Hyatt Kyiv Hotel in Kyiv, Ukraine; Yushchenko and the Ambassador from Lebanon(notice the awkwardly smiling woman in the background who ruined this picture); the most attractive Ukrainian woman I have ever seen; and the posh Hyatt Kyiv Hotel, which will run you about 400 euros a night($600 give or take). 
"Those are olives," I said to Petro the Video Guy as he stabbed a toothpick into a bowl.

"Ahhhhh!" he smiled with delight and nodded vigorously, his face suddenly puckering as he found the pit. "And this?" 

"Those are rice wafers," I said, pointing to the bowl with the white, cup-shaped crackers used to cleanse your palette.

"For spitting!" he mumbled, hawking an almond-shaped olive pit into the rice wafer and tossing it on the table.

I tried to tell him it was for eating, but I was buckled over in laughter under the table in front of a dozen millionaires, choking on my olive.

"In photography business, we must have no serious," said Petro.

"A sense of humor!" I said.

He nodded his approval of the new phrase and waved a hand towards the auction room. Photo and Video made their way back into the auction room and began documenting the handshakes and blank smiles of politicians, millionaires and VIPs . After a few dozen pictures, I slid out and made my way to the door to await the arrival of the First Lady of Ukraine.

"You know, you're not exactly dressed to be standing there," says an older woman with the university. "You're going to be the first thing the first lady sees, we can't have you standing there. We don't want to give a bad impression. You should move over there, stand in the corner. No offense or anything."

"Oh, none taken," I said, plastering a wry smile on my face and biting my tongue, knowing I hold no weight at the university. "I'm sorry, I don't think I caught your name."

"Svinka."

She's an american, about 60 and looking it, and I instantly understand that she enjoys what limited power she wields. Having been up for 24 hours, being anxious for the First Lady, and already irritated, I pop a brilliant question: "is that Mrs. or Ms?"

"Honey, you just don't ask that question in 2008, that's so rude," she said and walked away.

I decide that if ever given the opportunity, I will duel with her to the death. She ranks right below a few high school classmates on my revenge list, but a glass of champagne quickly erases her from my memory. 

Kateryna Yushchenko was born in Hyde Park, Illinois near Chicago where she went to high school(this is per our conversation) and is married to Viktor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine. She mentioned her last trip to Chicago, earlier this year when she attended "a sox game." I take this as her being a fan of the Chicago White Sox, which is unfortunate. 

Although the night was filled with donations, pictures of donors, donor awards, donor auctions, donor recognitions, and a donor dinner I stuffed my face with, the spotlight seemed to always be on Yushchenko. I waited until there was a free moment, handed my camera to Petro and walked up to her and introduced myself. Since we are both from Chicago, we had much to discuss, and she remembered a friend of mine who translated for her(Kate! where are you?!). I had a pleasant conversation with her, and I felt she meant every word. 

Even in the posh Hyatt Kyiv Hotel, she has the grace to mingle with the upper crust of Ukraine, talk to every millionaire in the room and still have a down to earth, meaningful conversation. I was genuinely impressed with her, and she was sincere. I told her about my career dreams, and that I'm a volunteer at the university she donates to regularly. 

"Good luck to you, Michael," she said, squeezing my hand before she left. 

"Big Blesz," holy man of the east

Above, top to bottom: Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, or "Blesziniscie," of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church and me at the banquet in Kyiv on Saturday, October 11th, 2008; Cardinal Husar reacts to a question from an interviewer after an interview for UCU on Sunday, October 12th; Husar and the Archbishop of Kyiv, center, and an archbishop from Rome at the Hyatt Kyiv Hotel on October 11th; and Blesziniscie in his home outside of Kyiv after the interview on October 12th, 2008.
His black cassock sweeping the floor, Blesziniscie(bleh-zih-nee-shee), "Your Beatitude," silences an entire room of Ukrainians by lifting his hand in blessing, then rumbles a greeting beneath a snowy white beard. An icon of the Virgin Mary swings from his neck by golden chain, like a pendulum pitching back and forth with each plodding step. He is already tired and weary at 6 pm, and only lasts for a couple of hours till his speech. He doesn't disappoint.

He is a warm man, and even though I reiterate what an honor it is to meet him, the leader of an entire faith, he insists that the pleasure is all his. Born in Lviv, Husar fled with his family to Austria in 1944, and eventually settled in the United States where he attended St. Basil College Seminary in Connecticut. He later taught there, and eventually returned to Ukraine where he now resides. 

I was impressed by his humility and sincerity as many church hierarchs, I hate to say, emanate a political savviness and elitist air that is less than charming. Although a minority church, the majority of western Ukraine is Ukrainian Catholic, and it's the only eastern church that is in communion with Rome. I feel lucky to have been in the same room with him, and even luckier to have met him in person. 

Kyiv, Kiev or however you say it

Above, top to bottom: Fr. Ihor Boiko watches the Ukrainian countryside pass as he sips his Chai, or "tea," on the express train to Kyiv on October 11, 2008; tourists and passerbys hurry past the main square in Kyiv, where the Orange Revolution took place in 2004; a couple poses for a wedding portrait, imitating a statue in front of St. Michael's Cathedral in Kyiv; two men light cigarettes while walking out of St. Michael's Cathedral in Kyiv; the escalators in Kyiv's subway are especially long, taking several minutes to descend to train level in some areas. 

I shot a "grab-and-grin" as we call them in the business on Saturday in Kyiv(pictures to come). It was a fundraising banquet for the university in Kyiv. Easy gig, but lighting can prove to be the bane of an evening. I had the opportunity to meet both Cardinal Lubomyr Husar(Or Blesziniscie as they call him, "your most blessedness"), head of the Greek Catholic Church, and the First Lady of Ukraine, Kateryna Yushchenko. More on that later this week.

Anyway, Kyiv(Ukrainian for "Kiev," the capital of Ukraine) has a population of about 3 million. It's a nice town, but bizarre in the same way that Istanbul is; it's a cultural cocktail of eastern and western cultures. It reminded me a lot of Istanbul, and if I could compare it, I'd say Kiev is something like a version of Paris that has lived under communism for over 100 years(which it has, and is thus run down and has Russian "classical" architecture, think concrete beehive) crossed with modern Istanbul. I do miss Istanbul. But they serve Kebabs in Kiev, too. 

You pronounce it 'Keev," but quicker, and you don't pronounce the syllables as you do in English. There's a ton of money in Kyiv, and I saw more Mercedes there than anywhere else in Europe. The banquet was held at the Hyatt Kyiv, a ridiculously expensive and elaborate hotel that runs you 400 euros a night(about $600). 

Kyiv is worth a visit, especially for its historical significance and role in the Orange Revolution of 2004. I had a great conversation with the First Lady of Ukraine and with Bleszinisie, which I'll post in the couple of days. 

Yushchenko dissolves parliament, calls for reelection: What to do when the country you're living in falls apart

Above: A Ukrainian man waits to cross the street near my apartment in L'viv, Ukraine on October 6th, 2008. The yellow bus approaching, called a Mashrutka, are a popular means of transportation in a city that doesn't have the infrastructure to deal with the surge in vehicles per capita in the last decade. 

Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko dissolved the legislature on Wednesday and has called for new parliamentary elections on December 7th. The Ukrainian stock market has fallen 30 percent  and the Ukrainian Hryvna has fallen 20 percent as the economy continues to falter. The decline of the hryvna has outpaced even the devalued American dollar, the exchange rising from approximately 4.80 UA to 5.80 UA to $1 USD in less than 2 weeks. 

In short, the economy here is doing worse than the US economy, the currency is devalued, the government destabilized and everyone is really, really ticked off. Ukrainian sentiment has generally been to fix things as fast as possible in a country trying to stave off the political influence of the Kremlin. Although this could mean an even poorer Ukraine, political catastrophes in a troubled government and an even unhappier populace, I'm excited that heated politics could make good pictures.  

In short, there's a huge power struggle going on between the president and prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko. Both were strong allies just a year ago, and both worked together in 2002 to take control of the government and put a pro-western coalition(of their two parties) in power. That coalition fell apart last month, leaving Ukraine out to dry. Now both are trying to win the presidency, and with the election coming in 2010, Yushchenko is running out of time.

I leave for Kyiv(Ukrainian for "Kiev") early tomorrow morning to photograph a banquet for the university(I'm trying to learn "smile please" in Ukrainian and Russian). I have no idea what's going to happen before the vote in December, but things are likely to get heated with more political demonstrations and confrontations happening across the country. 

Yushchenko's party, Nasza Ukraina(Our Ukraine), will probably lose seats in the revote, and Tymoshenko said that Yushchenko is trying to force her from office. My students didn't know this was happening on Thursday, the day after the president's announcement, but I'm certain to get an earful of it Kyiv. 

The Ukrainian Countryside

Above, top to bottom: Seminarians and UCU students pray and sing psalms as they walk the 11 km from Rudno Seminary near L'viv to the town of Stradch on October 4th; villagers digging up potatoes stop to watch as the procession passes by, best viewed large; a Ukrainian woman shoos her geese into a shed outside of Stradch; the forest near Rudno was surprisingly lush and colorful despite the cold; this yokel didn't even know I was taking his picture, I'm not sure he knew what my camera was until I asked if I could photograph him. I liked his cows.

While walking to Stradch, we tromped through the muddy Ukrainian countryside, which is quite beautiful. I was particularly struck by the villagers we encountered on the path, from digging up potatoes to moving house siding via horse-drawn carriage, they were a welcome introduction to village life. I've heard good things about the village life in the countryside(where the Ukrainian culture and language has been preserved in the fullest), but you are really going back in time. This feels more ancient than Romanian villages I traveled through in June, but the transportation isn't as bad.