Several of the best photographs I’ve ever taken (in my opinion) were shot on a single morning in December of 1994. I had flown from Kathmandu to Varanasi, India, and my first morning in that Hindu holy city, I was up and dressed before dawn to see the bathing rituals on the banks of the Ganges. Although it wasn’t as serene an experience as it could have been for me—being a conspicuously tall, pale fellow surrounded by constant calls of “Sir! Boat! Boat! Only ten rupees!”—I did take in some ethereally gorgeous sights as the thick mist slowly lifted. Some of these sights I managed to even capture on film.

All images ©2002-2003 by Dietrich Neuman