Qatar - Early Morning at Al Wakra and its Dhows (Boats)
The town of Al Wakrah (also known as Al Waqra and Al Waqrah) is located in between Umm Said and Doha. Though, originally a tiny pearling and fishing village, Al Wakra evolved itself into a small town with a population of not more than 30,000. The town has an Al Wakra museum in one of it’s old forts, that displays marine life and the history of the area. The town also has good art and architecture displays. Fishing and former pearl centre Al Wakra which is just ten minutes from Doha is fast becoming a repository for Doha workers fleeing the outrageous rental prices that exist in the capital city. This leads to some vicious traffic jams, with commuters competing with Qatar’s never ending stream of trucks and lorries.
Althought my 3.53AM (who said travel photography is easy!!) wake up call brought me to blue hour shoot at the Islamic museum at Doha, I wondered where it would be nice to go for early morning light. I have decided to head to Al Wakra and to my surprise I discovered a beach full of traditional dhows (boats) in front of newly built traditional fishing village, which construction is currently going on. Qatar is one of those states that tries to bring some of its traditional past back into life. Souq Waqil in Doha is a great example of it. Once this traditional fishing village is finished it will be beautiful place to wonder around. You can already find many traditional Dhows (boats) "parked" on the beach in front of the village. This photo captures one of those dhows taken shortly after 5AM with warm, soft light coming from just risen sun.
Fishing is a traditional business and you can find many Dhow workshops in Al Wakra. Dhows are still built in Al Wakra, but the percentage has come down significantly. The mangrove swamps in the area are uprooted for construction of new Al Wakra. There are many such swamps in the area and in the past mangrove trees were used in the construction of boats, houses, and furniture. Pearling and Dhow workshops have become rear in recent days and the youth is attracted towards few new opportunities in Doha, which is very near to Al Wakra. A dhow (Arabic,داو) is a traditional Arab sailing vessel with one or more lateen sails. They are primarily used along the coasts of the Arabian Peninsula, Pakistan, India, and East Africa. Larger dhows have crews of approximately thirty, while smaller dhows typically have crews of around twelve.
Camera Model: Canon EOS 5D Mark II, Lens’s focal length: 17.00 - 40.00 mm, Photo Focal length: 21.00 mm, Aperture: 8.0, Exposure time: 1/125 s, ISO: 100
All rights reserved - Copyright © Lucie Debelkova
All images are exclusive property and may not be copied, downloaded, reproduced, transmitted, manipulated or used in any way without expressed, written permission of the photographer.
Comments and faves
Matyas Dubai, PAUL1852X, rev_adan, photo-maker, and 100 other people added this photo to their favorites.
© Lucie Debelkova / www.luciedebelkova.com (34 months ago | reply)
Matyas Dubai (34 months ago | reply)
Great shot.......
tpeñalver - www.tomaspenalver.es (34 months ago | reply)
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
National Geographic: Are You Good Enough?
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Visto en el grupo"National Geographic: Are You Good Enough? Post 1, Nominate 3" (Yo también quiero esto)
Michael Speelman (34 months ago | reply)
WOO!!!!!!! what a shot! awesome!
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Seen on my Flickr home page. (?)
~AntZ~ (34 months ago | reply)
Great composition! Lovely tones.
tdietmut (34 months ago | reply)
amazing capture, Lucie
greetings Dietmut
danihernanz (34 months ago | reply)
aweosome shot! good work
Erwin Bolwidt (34 months ago | reply)
Great colors and light!
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
National Geographic: Are You Good Enough?
madebyreggy (34 months ago | reply)
Gorgeous light here !
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
National Geographic: Are You Good Enough?
akhlas_viewfinder (34 months ago | reply)
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
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James Tung (34 months ago | reply)
nice composition and nice color!
Peter_C (34 months ago | reply)
Great shot!
Manolis Thr (34 months ago | reply)
Wow!!! An amazing shot my friend!! Well done!! Have a nice and beautiful week!!
Thunderbolt_TW (34 months ago | reply)
lovely composed!!!
R Scott Photography (34 months ago | reply)
Truly exceptional work
chris lazzery (34 months ago | reply)
Nice framing. Clear blue skies are often boring, but it definitely works well here to contrast everything in the foreground.
juntos ( MOSTLY OFF) (34 months ago | reply)
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juntos ( MOSTLY OFF) (34 months ago | reply)
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Chuck & Pat Harkins (34 months ago | reply)
Love the colors and view in this one, very nice work.
Mohammed|Photography. (34 months ago | reply)
Amazing shot ,,,
FRANK SMOUT IMAGES (34 months ago | reply)
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
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dixie_law (34 months ago | reply)
Love the angle of that old boat against the new buildings. Wonderful, soft morning light.
DNIAK DNIAY (34 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called دنــــيــــاك دنـــــياي, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
alvinclsmy (34 months ago | reply)
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
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salamino (34 months ago | reply)
That is really good man ..
MaTRaCH (34 months ago | reply)
Beautiful perspective!
Very nice composition
britania66 (34 months ago | reply)
Love this photo.
roofgarden (34 months ago | reply)
Fantastic light.
Jyzus (34 months ago | reply)
Great Picture, I love it !
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
National Geographic: Are You Good Enough?
kingofthejungleo (34 months ago | reply)
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
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La.soares (34 months ago | reply)
Excellent angle!
mariedoucet (34 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called *absolutely beautiful-absolutamente bello*post 1 comment1, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Jonathan Stacey (RedBubble.com only now) [deleted] (34 months ago | reply)
Just superb in every way....a truly stunning capture
S i m o n . M a y s o n (34 months ago | reply)
Great shot and great story
Alex //Berlin _ Alexander Stübner (34 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Reflect your World (Invited Pictures Only- New Contest), and we'd love to have this added to the group!
Slim Letaief [deleted] (34 months ago | reply)
Excellent ! Well done :)
loveroni (34 months ago | reply)
Very nice shot =D The image is very dynamic due to the perspective, nice work...
Dean Taplin (34 months ago | reply)
Great shot, love the composition on this one, just photographed at the right angle.
Dante Laurini Jr (34 months ago | reply)
Love the composition, Lucie!
THEORO ~ [*Back*] ~ (34 months ago | reply)
FANTASTIC BOAT PICTURE, extremely well captured & presented :))
THEORO ~ [*Back*] ~ (34 months ago | reply)
Hi, I'm an admin for a group called The Oracle of Photographic Excellence (Admin Invite Only) +25 F, and we'd love to have this added to the group!
THEORO ~ [*Back*] ~ (34 months ago | reply)
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THEORO ~ [*Back*] ~ (34 months ago | reply)
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Anil Jadhav (34 months ago | reply)
awesome
aetven (34 months ago | reply)
I pick this photograph to be on the cover of National Geographic
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rskoon (Richard) (34 months ago | reply)
Great composition.. and, as always, interesting!