Black-And-White Photo Competition 2 2013 : Entry Number 505

We like the atmosphere and tonality in this image, the almost golden skin of the boy in this intimately composed black and white photo.

First of all, congratulations to the winner and all other excellent photographers who were given Marks of Excellence. My name is Andrey Volkov, and I am an amateur photographer living in Ghent, Belgium. This image was taken at Thiksey Monastery in the remote region of Ladakh in Northern India. I had to get up at 4 am in order to get to the monastery on time to attend the morning ceremony, during which the resident monks were praying and having their first meal. These young monks were sitting behind their elderly peers next to an open door. At some point, the first rays of sun entered the room and illuminated the monks' faces. At that point, I knew that this image was the best reward I could have for getting up so early, in addition to soaking up the utterly serene and relaxed atmosphere of that ancient place. The photo was taken with Canon 5D Mark III camera with Canon EF 70-200 f/4 L IS lens and converted to B&W using the NIK Silver Efex Photoshop plug-in.